Jet generation: Washington state's Jet City Fix dive-bombs the Cooler Lounge

By Hektor D. Esparza

Forming a new band and nurturing it into maturity can be a frustrating process. It takes time to find like-minded musicians, write listenable songs and learn to play well together. It's a process that can take years. And for young musicians putting a band together for the first time, a long and winding road is fine, even necessary. But for those who've been around the block a couple of times, it's not an attractive prospect. For the Washington state-based Jet City Fix, a long climb to the top wasn't even on the table. Within two months of forming, the band wrote and recorded its first LP, Play to Kill, and within a year had amassed a loyal fan base in the Pacific Northwest, toured across the United States and Canada, and even played dates in Europe.

According to drummer Dana Sims, the band wasn't going to wait around for someone to hand it success, and instead chose to take matters into its own hands from the get-go.

"We made a conscious decision to do it this way because we had much higher goals than plodding around being in a local band, and talking about making a record," says Sims. "We wanted to go places, so we decided to put out a record sooner rather than latter."

In less than a year, the Jet City Fix has played more than 100 dates, sold a fair amount of records and received a substantial amount of press (some extremely complimentary, some not so). On certain songs, Play to Kill comes across as a little half-baked. Sims reflects, "In retrospect, there are a lot of things that we probably would have done differently. But for the time it was made in, and the vehicle that it's been for us, we're still really proud."

The band's sound is a mixed bag, the result of varied tastes and stylistic sensibilities. And though Play to Kill meanders a bit here and there, it doesn't stray far from a tried-and-true rock 'n' roll aesthetic, with standard themes of heartbreak and hard times.

The band's vocalist, Shane Lauding, was chosen after the rest of the band formed, and after an extensive search. When they finally came across Lauding, he had just left an emo band and needed some vocal retooling, so to speak. "In my last band, I sang like a boy who had just been kicked in the nuts." After practicing for only a couple of weeks with JCF's material, it was clear they had found their man. Even so, Lauding remains a bit of an oddity among the band's hard rockers, especially on the road.

"Shane has some leftover quirks," says Sims. "He definitely brings a different CD collection to the van. And he knows boy bands better than anyone. He can sing and recite 'N Sync and stuff like that to a T, which is equally hilarious and frightening at the same time. It's kind of fun to hear him sing those songs, but we draw the line at letting him play the CDs. No boy bands in the van!"

But if there are any stylistic incongruities, they're not obvious on Play to Kill. Maybe that's due to the fact that, like straight-up rock 'n' roll, emo also deals with starry-eyed girls and lovesick boys. Granted, emo's tones may be different from rock's, but the band says Lauding is coming along just fine.

As Lauding confesses, "Sure, sometimes were not on the same page, but most of the time we are. And I don't know how it works -- but on stage, we just click, and I love it."

Jet City Fix

When Monday, Oct. 20; 10 p.m.

Where The Cooler Lounge (1905 N. Decatur Blvd.; with Straight Out of Junior High)

Admission $5

Info www.coolerlounge.com