* G R O U P B I O *
Jay Gordon: vocals
Amir Derakh: g-synth
Ryan Shuck: guitar
Paige Haley: bass
Bobby Hewitt: v drums
"We never know how people are going to react to our band," says Orgy's vocalist Jay Gordon. "But they always react." "Yeah," says guitarist Ryan Shuck. "Everyone has an opinion on us." Including the members of Cali legends Korn, who made Orgy the first signing to Elementree Records, their new Reprise-distributed record label.
"It's something fresh and new - that's what turns me on," says Korn singer Jonathan Davis. "I think they'll appeal to a lot of kids, a lot of different people. They're fashionable pretty-dudes, so all the chicks will dig 'em. And they're real heavy, so hopefully a lot of our friends will like them, too."
Orgy didn't really form as much as just happen. The five guys all knew each other from hanging around So Cal and playing in various bands.
"Ryan and I conceptualized Orgy only about six months before we were signed," says Jay. "We started writing songs together as soon as we hooked up. It started off in a garage, with Josh our co-producer. We just started throwing some rough shit together, and the next thing you know weíre recording an album and making plans to tour with Korn!"
"We didnít want to go out and play the club circuit and get burned out," adds Ryan. "Playing clubs over and over for our friends. That would be pointless. We just went in and recorded who and what we are."
"We didnít want to let the cat out of the bag too early," offers bassist Paige Haley. By choosing to record right away, the band captured the early energy that brought them together in the first place, trusting their instincts and believing if you mess with things too much, you can lose that creative spark that makes it so right initially.
That creative spark soon grew into an inferno - a spectacular debut album called Candyass. When queried on the meaning of its dozen songs produced by Orgy and Josh Abraham, the band deflects any serious implications. "It's pretty much just all bullshit," laughs Jay. "We conjured up a bunch of lies and fairy tales." Nevertheless, he doesn't deny that atmosphere played a role in the process, "We recorded on a snow-capped mountain in Tahoe, in a huge cabin. It was along the lines of 'The Shining.' Cabin-fever set in after about 15 minutes, right after the truck left back for Los Angeles."
"It's a raw record," declares Ryan. "It's all five-in-the-morning, pissed-off, fighting-with-each-other, kill-each-other kinda stuff. There's an innovative, futuristic feel to the music. Yeah, it's pretty cool."
Paige contributes, "It's kind of like death pop." "Our songs are all just slightly deranged, but I can definitely hear them on the radio," adds Ryan, who co-wrote Korn's "Blind" with Davis. "Don't look for any more meaning than that."
"Anything you can imagine is what we use to make a record," says guitar synth wizard Amir Derakh. "From old-school to state-of-the-art and everything in between."
As for the name Orgy, don't jump to the conclusion that there's only one meaning to that word. "Believe it or not, it's not a sexually-based name," says Jay. "It's a musical reference, y'know? We play a collage of sounds, you could say. But it's still hard to tell the lady at the bakery that you're in a band called Orgy and keep a straight face."
"We do have a sound that's really a mixture of a great many sounds," adds Amir. "The good thing about the name is that it sticks in your head."