Jenocide just wants you to dance
Tuesday, January 19th, 2010(Jenocide, Photo by kelly clark fotography, typicalgirl.com)
Jen Clarke says she doesn’t want to appear preachy, but if you listen to what her alter-ego, Jenocide, is saying in her danceable, hook-filled songs, there is undoubtedly a feminist point of view coming through.
“I do have political ideologies about feminism as an undercurrent to all that I do, but I never want to alienate people,” Clarke says. “It’s more about inclusiveness and empowerment than alienating (anyone). I want everyone, you know, guys and girls, to dance and have a good time above anything political. I just want to have fun songs with fun hooks that people want to dance to.”
Jenocide, also featuring beatmaker Ed “Erenzi” Renzi, is bringing its dance party to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia over the coming few days (dates listed below) with Ruby Jean & The Thoughtful Bees and A/V.
Jenocide, which is touring in support of the full-length album Machines That Make Us Wet, was born out of Clarke’s five years of being the only girl in otherwise all-guy bands like HOTSHOTROBOT and Windom Earle.
“When I started going to shows and got involved in the indie scene probably like five or six years ago, there were no girls in rock bands, really; maybe a couple. There were no girls doing their own thing in terms of something that was more aggressive. There’s always been hordes of girls with guitars and stuff like that. I never identified with stuff like that.
“I would go out to punk shows and other kinds of shows, and there were no girls and it was so depressing.”
Finding no one she could relate to, Clarke says she was inspired to create a strong female character, taking elements from some of her role models like Madonna, Blondie’s Debbie Harry, Le Tigre and Peaches.
Her aim was to create “strong voice for women, something that women can identify with” while ensuring that the music was still fun. She says women are bombarded on the street, in magazines and other media with images of what they’re supposed to look or act like. She wanted to cut to the heart of those issues.
When asked about another current strong female musician and character, Lady Gaga, Clarke admits it’s not the first time she’s heard the comparison.
“I think like six months ago I would have told you that you were an idiot, because my initial, knee-jerk reaction to her was like, ‘Oh great, another one of these bullshit popstars that’s like content-less.’ But she’s a very smart woman, and I think she surrounds herself with very smart people. I’m intrigued as well with her image, and she definitely is a good woman, pop-culture figure right now. I don’t take offense to that, I think she has awesome style. And certainly she’s a performer just as much a musician.”
Clarke says “there’s a lot of bullshit” to deal with as a woman trying to do something different, particularly on the east coast, which has a wealth of more traditional folk, rock, metal and country acts, but a smaller scene of pop or dance music.
Clarke says she hasn’t met any resistance to the Jenocide project, but it has been a challenge to find peers to perform with.
Since debuting with her EP bikerides. barrettes. bruises. last summer, Jenocide has performed mostly in the Halifax area, bringing out men and woman alike to dance. She says women seem to really connect with what she’s doing, and she has no doubt she’s alienated a few men along the way.
“Jenocide has some strong opinions about girl power and getting rid of guys if they’re not good for you,” she says. “I’ve alienated a lot of guys, I’m sure, at shows because some people feel threatened by it because it’s a pretty aggressive, in-your-face mentality when I’m up on stage saying, ‘If your boyfriend sucks, then fucking dump him.’ I mean, it’s tongue-in-cheek, right? It’s not militant, but it can be interpreted that way I’m sure by some people who maybe feel defensive about who they are and they feel that they’re being pointed out.”
Clarke has two releases out now under the Jenocide banner. Her debut, she says, was a little more thrash while the follow-up LP was more dancey. Next, she’s aiming for a bit of a hip-hop feel. Expect another release from Jenocide in the not too distant future.
In the meantime, she wants everyone to come out and dance their asses off. Here’s when and where you can do just that:
Jan. 23 in Saint John @ Blue Olive
Jan. 24 in Fredericton @ The Capital
Jan. 27 in Charlottetown @ Hunter’s
Jan. 28 in Moncton @ The Paramount
Jan. 29 in Sackville @ George’s Roadhouse
Jenocide’s albums can be bought online, at her shows or on iTunes.









