Severed Fifth

On Saturday, Jim, Ben, and I got together to have a second audition with Ron Crockett; a bassist who started playing bass relatively late after the urging of family and friends but not content with being just a passive listener of Slayer, Death and All things Bay Area Thrash.

Ron met Jim when he supported Defiance at a show while he was playing with another band, and he got in touch a few weeks back to apply to join our headbanging troupe on bass duties. We auditioned him a few times, played Foretold Revelation, Drill Down, and Politicold with him and offered him the job.

He absolutely ripped through the songs with a thumping great tone, ideal balance of rhythm and technical creativity, and we are looking forward to him being a firm foundation holding up the bottom end in Severed Fifth.

Ron has played with a number of South Bay metal bands and opened up for various touring acts while also rebuilding metalblade.com and consulting on matters of music and communications. Ron is looking forward to doing to what he loves most, melting faces with a deafening bass. \m/

Today Jim, Ben and I got together at our rehearsal space and started really digging into much of the details in the songs. We worked on three primary tracks from the forthcoming album, Foretold Revelation, Drill Down, and Politicold, and they sounded absolutely awesome. Even though this was only our second ever rehearsal with the three of us, and even though Jim and Ben have only known the material for two weeks, the quality of the playing and the “gel factor” was incredible. The songs are already beginning to feel natural and our vibe and groove as a band is really beginning to set in.

To give you folks an idea of what a Severed Fifth rehearsal looks like, we took some quick and dirty snaps, of which there are a few below and the rest are on the Photos page. Enjoy!

Everyone crunching away to Politicold.

Jim soloing on Politicold.

Ben hamming his drums on Foretold Revelation.

Jono rocking out to Politicold.

The full band chugging away at the end of Drill Down.

Severed Fifth are actively looking to recruit a flexible, capable bassist for recording and live performances. This is an awesome opportunity to join Jono Bacon, Jim Adams, and Ben Gibbs at the birth of Severed Fifth. We are not only looking for someone who has the skills and talent to play some rocking bass, but also someone with an easy-going, relaxed, but enthusiastic personality that will knit well with the rest of the band.

What We Are Looking For

We are looking for the following attributes in candidates:

• solid bass playing technique; the flexibility and diversity to know when to add bass flourishes and melody, but also when to keep things simple and clean, particularly over complex and fast guitar parts.
• an easy going, relaxed, constructive and positive attitude and personality. We have a strict “no assholes” policy in Severed Fifth. We want to ensure that the successful candidate knits well personality-wise with the band.
• flexibility to join at least two rehearsals a week and time available for performing at live shows and future tours.
• based in the Bay Area, preferably in the East Bay (Oakland/Walnut Creek area).
• equipment for rehearsals and live shows. We play in C.
• we expect you to have a car to get you and gear to and from rehearsals and live shows.
• we would preferably like someone who plays with their fingers if possible.

How To Apply

Ideally we would like you to have an audition video available somewhere online that we can watch.

To apply, send an email to ‘jono AT severedfifth DOT com’ and tell us:

• links to preferably an online audition video or music we can listen to that you have played in.
• who your influences are, both bassists and bands.
• what your musical experience is and any bands that you have played in.
• what you feel you can bring to Severed Fifth.
• where you are based.

We look forward to talking to you!

Recently I have been in the process of putting the wheels in motion for a Severed Fifth live band. As many of you will know, traditionally Severed Fifth has been an entirely solo driven project where I wrote, performed, recorded, and promoted the music entirely myself. It has always been part of my plan to put together a live band and get out there and take Severed Fifth on the road, and in the last few weeks this has turned from a plan to a reality. Let me give you the story.

A few weeks ago I was at an airport and bumped into Chris Kontos (ex-Machine Head, Testament, Konkhra) who was on his way back home to Oakland from his European tour with Attitude Adjustment. We got chatting (largely because Chris was one of my influences as a drummer, and my old band Seraphidian used to cover Machine Head’s Davidian from Burn My Eyes) and I talked to him about Severed Fifth. Chris was keen for us to follow up when we got home and he said he knew some musicians who might be interested in joining Severed Fifth. As such, I sent him some tunes to give him an idea of the music, and he recommended a guitarist called Jim Adams who he felt would be a good fit.

I headed over to Jim’s home studio on Saturday to audition him, and it was instantly a good match. We worked through a few Severed Fifth songs, talked about the direction of the band, our philosophy of great music and great bands, and what ingredients we felt we needed for success. Not only did we knit well musically, but we knitted really well as friends, and I think Jim is going to bring so much to Severed Fifth, both musically and personality-wise. Jim is also hugely motivated by the Free Culture nature of Severed Fifth and giving our fans free access to our music.

Jim Adams ripping up the stage live.

Jim started playing guitar at the age of 12 after hearing the live version of Kiss’ Black Diamond. He played in several different bands through is middle and high school years, but came to local recognition once he landed the job as lead guitarist for the Oakland CA based Defiance in 1986. He has five albums available with Defiance, three under the Roadrunner label (Product of Society, Void Terra Firma, and Beyond Recognition), a box set from MetalMind Productions (Insomnia) and the most recently released from last fall with Candlelight Records (The Prophecy).

So folks, join me in welcoming Jim to the Severed Fifth family, and I look forward to you all meeting him at future shows!