Dave Jones Xperience

Dave Jones Xperience is powerful, raw, punk rock music from the heart!

Dave Jones was born November 26, 1961 in Morristown, New Jersey. As a baby he shared a room with his teenage sister and she would blare rock music at full volume to drown out his crying. Ever since that early experience self expression through music has been a central part of Dave’s life. From his legendary days of New York Punk and Hardcore in the early 80’s up to 2007’s thought provoking Dave Jones Xperience release, “Mean People Suck” Dave Jones has created boundary breaking, cutting edge music.

As a young child Dave’s parents noticed his artistic side and encouraged it by sending him to a Montessori School. By age seven Dave’s Mom, a manager of a caberet, enrolled him in drum lessons. He continued with drums through school, later playing with the school orchestra. In fourth grade he took violin lessons and in fifth grade he learned to play the harmonic. By the time he was fourteen he began to play guitar. His first paid show, at age 17 in 1978, was at the Morristown High School Talent Show. By August of 1979 his band, “The Sonic Reducers,” named for the legendary Dead Boys song, played a live set of all originals at the Morris Plains Teen Center.

Less than a year later, in February of 1980, Dave left school and moved to New York City to play drums full time for Isleford Recording artists the “Suburbans.” Here he recorded his first records, “The Pop Life” and “Suburban Rock ” and played all over New York City. He lived at the Times Square Motor Hotel, a dingy, crime filled place to lay his head between recording sessions and gigs.

In May of 1980 Dave formed “The Enerjetics”, where he wrote most of the songs and lyrics as well as sung and played the drums. The line up was rounded out with the addition of guitarist, Dean Jones. While playing at Max’s Kansas City in October of 1980 Dave met Dead Boys guitarist, Cheetah Chrome, a major inspiration. The Enerjetics released an EP, “Killer Dobermans” and Dave sent a copy to the legendary Wendy O. Williams of the Plasmatics. Wendy and her producer / husband, Rod Swenson, told Dave they loved his music, it was like nothing else out there and invited the Enerjetics to open for the Plasmatics for their tour in 1981.

Back in New York City Dave was either playing a show or supporting the bands on the scene. He was a regular at CBGBs, and the A7 Club on the Lower East Side and The Showplace in Dover, New Jersey. In 1984 he joined Agnostic Front and played drums on “Victim In Pain”, a landmark album which highlighted Dave’s fast, masterful hardcore drumming ability.

In 1985 Dave released “Streets of Filth” with his band Mental Abuse on Urinal Records, a label he co-owned with New Jersey art dealer John Costello. Dave played drums with Mental Abuse but he also wrote many of the songs and lyrics including the hit, “Sock Woman.” Later, Urinal Records would release the compliation, “Hardcore Has Come of Age” including selected songs from Mental Abuse.

Dave continued to play with several New York area bands in the late 80s.

In 1989 Dave’s life changed forever when his car was run over by an 18 wheel tractor trailer. “We pulled a dead guy out of a car,” said one of the EMTs on scene. Dave would survive the accident with the help of two jaws of life, a life flight, a good trauma center, over 30 operations, fighting spirit and countless prayers.

After the accident Dave took a break from full time music to study Zen and fully recover from his injuires. From the period of 1991 – 1999 Dave intensively studied traditional martial arts, a discipline he had been involved in for years by the time of his accident. He currently holds a Masters certificate in Traditional Martial Arts.

By December of 1999 Dave devoted himself to the serious study of the guitar, practicing up to five hours a day.

In the summer of 2005 he began to write and record “Mean People Suck.” His complete immersion in the project – he wrote every song and lyric, played every instrument as well as arranged, produced,engineered, recorded and mixed the record – led to the project’s name, “The Dave Jones Xperience.”

Extreme yet insightful Dave Jones Xperience is true musical expression. “Mean People Suck” is an album that had to be written, then needed to be recorded and released so the songs could be shared and enjoyed by people who love good music.

When you listen to the album you can hear Dave’s earlier influences, yet it sounds completely new, modern and unique – like nothing else out there. Along with the punk and the hardcore there is zen insight and story telling reminiscent of Lou Reed.