Jesse Lacey
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Jesse Lacey |
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Jesse Thomas Lacey (born July 10 1978) is an American musician from Levittown, New York.[1] He is the lead singer of the band Brand New. Jesse was born to parents Sandy and Thomas and is the second eldest of seven children. As well as being the lead singer, he also plays guitar and piano and writes most of the band's songs and lyrics. Before Brand New, he played in The Rookie Lot, featuring fellow Brand New bassist Garrett Tierney and drummer Brian Lane as well as future MovieLife members. Previous to this, he had a short spell in Taking Back Sunday where he played bass and backing vocals on old records. Two notable songs he features on are: "Go On" and "Summer Stars" from the band's self-titled EP. Thanks to the popularity of his current band, Lacey has a broad fanbase and has several fanpages dedicated to him. He is the embodiment of the uniquely sincere sound Long Island has been accredited with over the past decade.
He is a well known fan of Morrissey and The Smiths, having previously namechecked both of them in the song "Mix Tape" on Brand New's debut album Your Favorite Weapon. Lacey's lyrical style has been compared with Morrissey's, with many parallels noted between the two (eg. Brand New's "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot" and The Smith's "The Boy With a Thorn In His Side") The actual origin of the title was given to Jesse by his father because, whenever the basketball-loving family played a game, Jesse put his hand in a way so that when he shot, his hand would get in the way of the ball's direction and his dad called him "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot".
The song "Play Crack the Sky" also features the line 'This story's old but it goes on', which is more than likely taken from the song "Last Night I Dream't That Somebody Loved Me", by The Smiths, which has the line 'This story is old (I know) but it goes on'. He is also often compared to Robert Smith of The Cure, attested by the song "Logan To Government Center" on Your Favorite Weapon, which shares the lyrics "I never thought this day would end / I never thought tonight could ever be this close to me" with The Cure's "Close To Me".
Jesse often cites his influences by covering songs in his live performances, most notably, various songs by Modest Mouse, Neutral Milk Hotel and Weezer. In interviews he has expressed his main influences for The Devil & God from such bands as The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Jesus Lizard and Archers of Loaf. He claimed that he believed Neutral Milk Hotel's 'In The Aeroplane Over The Sea' to be "the greatest album of all time."
Jesse Lacey has close ties with fellow Long Island musician John Nolan, a former member of Taking Back Sunday and a current member of Straylight Run, with whom he attended South Shore Christian School. As a result of their friendship, their respective bands are often known to tour together and to combine each other's songs to form a medley, and Lacey has previously appeared on stage during a Straylight Run tour.
Much speculation (online and off) has centered around the relationships of Lacey and current and former (respectively) Taking Back Sunday members Adam Lazzara and John Nolan. All three are members of the Long Island music scene, and have known each other since before their respective bands' fame. However, details of the past tiff that spawned the angry Lacey-written "Seventy Times 7" (and Taking Back Sunday (at the time, Nolan and Lazzara) "answer song" "There's No 'I' In Team") are shrouded in rumor, the most popular being that Nolan or Adam (or both) slept with Jesse's girlfriend at the time. Nolan's Straylight Run has since performed alongside Lacey, and the prevailing mood amongst the bands seems to be that the personal squabble is history. Lacey has performed "There's no 'I' in Team" alongside Taking Back Sunday. Jesse also pokes fun at Adam's stage presence with his famous shirt slogan that read: "Mics Are For Singing Not Swinging...You Know Who You Are." Taking Back Sunday shrugged off the remark, responding to the slogan with a t-shirt that read: "Proudly Swinging Since 1999."
Jesse Lacey has been featured in Kevin Devine's "Cotton Crush", "After Party", and "No One Else's Problem" off the album Split the Country, Split the Streets. Lacey recently announced a solo tour of thirteen shows with Kevin Devine and special guest Grace Read.
Discography
Albums:
- The Rookie Lot/Yearly split 7" (As The Rookie Lot), (1999)
- Your Favorite Weapon (As Brand New), (October 19, 2001)
- Deja Entendu (As Brand New), (June 17, 2003)
- Split the Country, Split the Streets (Backing Vocals on "Cotton Crush", "Afterparty", and "No One Else's Problem"), (May 10, 2005)
- The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me (As Brand New), (November 21, 2006)
EPs:
- Taking Back Sunday EP (As Taking Back Sunday), (2001)
- Lullaby EP (As Taking Back Sunday), (2001)
- Brand New/Safety in Numbers Split EP (As Brand New), (2002)
- The Holiday EP (As Brand New), (December 15, 2003)
Demos:
- Five Track Demo Tape (As The Rookie Lot), (1998)
- First Four-Track Demo (As Brand New), (2000)
- Second Demo (As Brand New), (2001)
- New Album Demos (As Brand New), (2006)
References
- ^ "Rolling Stone: Hot Band: Brand New". Rolling Stone. 2003-09-03.