Feelings Mutual leader learns to love life in a trio

By JIM TRAGESER - Staff Writer | Wednesday, July 9, 2008 10:27 AM PDT ∞

When Jordan Clark's last band broke up, he wasn't sure where to go musically. After all, that band was Hot Like a Robot, which had a solid six-year run as one of the top local bands in San Diego County, and had a bit of a national presence through frequent touring and four CDs.

But last year, the members decided to break up ---- and lead singer/guitarist Clark was left without an outlet for his creativity.

"I took the natural step, which was: I kept on writing music and forming ideas, and eventually I met the bass player," Clark said by phone from his San Diego home last week. After meeting bassist Brandon Jensen (who lives in Escondido), Clark said, they "started sharing a lot of good ideas together and that led to forming a new band."

In December, he and Jensen headed into the studio to record a demo of some songs Clark had already written. That recording session led to the self-titled five-song EP that Ares Records is releasing next week.

"The studio we recorded at, the owner's band is tied in to Ares Records. He came down and checked out our demos before we had a drummer. We were just going to use these songs to find ourselves a permanent drummer, but the guy from Ares was excited by the demos and expressed a lot of enthusiasm about putting out an EP on his label. We were kind of hesitant at first, because they were just demos, but he gave us the confidence and convinced us to release them."

With a record in the can, and the band's name, the Feelings Mutual, already set from a conversation between Clark and Jensen, the next step was to find a drummer.

"We auditioned tons of drummers. Eric (Brozgold) we just met through Craigslist. He just came out here from Dallas and was looking for a serious band to get into. He was just really the right fit and was dedicated."

"I feel a lot more comfortable now as a trio," Clark said, comparing it with his years in the quartet environment of Hot Like a Robot, where he was one of two guitarists as well as the lead singer. "There's less to worry about dynamically, and I've always been a fan of trios from Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience to Nirvana and Dinosaur Jr.

"For me as a guitar player, there's a lot more room to breathe. I have to cover a lot more ground. Maybe playing less or playing more, it depends on what the song requires. When you have two guitars, you can kind of layer over."

Interestingly, heading into the formation of the Feelings Mutual, Clark said he and Jensen anticipated something other than the accessible alt-flavored power pop on the band's EP.

"We had kind of had a different idea of how we were going to sound talking about it. The actual sound didn't actually come together until we started sitting down and writing together," he remembered.

With Monday's concert at the Casbah counting as the official release for the EP, Clark said the three members of the Feelings Mutual are already working on a full-length album.

"For this EP, I had a lot of songs kind of pre-written, and Brandon came in and adjusted things for me, but lately the stuff we've been writing has been getting into a room, all three of us, and it just comes out of us.

"It's coming out a little more unique; I think we're developing a unique sound."

The Feelings Mutual, with Joanie Mendenhall, the Valley Arena, the Fascination

When: 8:30 p.m. July 14

Where: The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., San Diego

Admission: $6

Info: (619) 232-4355 or casbahmusic.com

Web: thefeelingsmutual.com

First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, e-mail addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. Attempts to misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person will not be approved. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.