With a repertoire of party songs, a profusion of punk ethos, a passion for the hardcore scene and frank, controversial lyrics – JJ Peters is Melbourne’s hardcore punk/rap-core act Deez Nuts.
With a repertoire of party songs, a profusion of punk ethos, a passion for the hardcore scene and frank, controversial lyrics – JJ Peters is Melbourne’s hardcore punk/rap-core act Deez Nuts. Crusading for individuality, and exuding an "I don’t give a fuck," attitude, Peters discusses his songwriting process and Deez Nuts’ upcoming Kids And Clubs tour.
"I have strong views and opinions, but everybody’s trying to push their views on kids, so I try not to do that too much," Peters says on the topic of his lyrical content, which is often as affronting as it is humorous. "I prefer to encourage people to be happy in their own skin and do what makes them happy, except for Go Veg – I got a bit opinionated on that, but the song’s only ten seconds long so it’s not too much of a lecture," he laughs.
"I never write anything with the intention to get a reaction," he affirms. "I write what I want to write, influenced by the things I listen to and the stuff around me. There is a lot of humour [in my writing] but I like to think there’s some underlying truth to a lot of it too. [It’s just] freedom of expression."
Responses to Deez Nuts are rarely neutral, dividing audiences and leaving few on the fence. Despite articulating in the song Don’t Call It A Comeback "if you ain’t with us keep our fucking names out your mouth," when questioned on how he feels about his music eliciting such adverse reactions, a comparatively laid-back Peters responds, "I’m fine with that, I’d rather evoke something strong in people one way or the other then have people feel so-so about it."
Deez Nut’s began after JJ’s previous band, Adelaide’s I Killed The Prom Queen (he was the drummer), disbanded in 2007. Originally, the solo project was simply intended to be a fun, experimental endeavour and a chance for Peters to attempt composing independently. "I still consider it something fun and something I take as it comes, but as the band’s progressed it’s become a little more serious in certain aspects," he says in regards to Deez Nuts’ evolution. "I mean, a lot of the content is still tongue-in-cheek, but I think when I’m playing to hundreds of kids somewhere in Europe and they’re all singing along, it becomes somewhat serious, no matter how ridiculous my lyrics may be," he concludes with a laugh.
Despite the addition of permanent touring members to Deez Nuts, Peters has always remained the sole songwriter for the project, "I keep the writing solo because that’s the way it’s always been, and I don’t know if I could write the same stuff if I changed the process," he explains. That process has proven to be a relatively short one, with latest album This One’s For You taking Peters just two weeks to complete. "I write the majority of it in my head," he relates, "I fill it all out and picture it with everything in there. Then, I try and work it out on guitar [and] jot the lyrics down. I demo all the songs just on guitar, then head to the studio and hope for the best."
The final product is an amalgamation of hardcore punk and hip hop – Peters’ hip hop influence being especially evident in his "rap-core" vocal style. Peters claims that merging the two distinct genres was never premeditated, and is simply due to the his penchant for both distinct styles (JJ is also a member of hip hop duo Grips & Tonic), "It wasn’t really intentional, that’s just the music I listen to, so when I started writing that’s what I came out with: if it has any positive influence or opens people’s mind to different genres, that’s dope."
Armed with a new touring outfit, Peters and his band are preparing to embark on their Kids And Clubs tour, a tour modelled on the group’s first headline shows. "I wanted to take it back to basics and do some intimate night club and all-ages hall shows and recreate that first headliner [tour]," Peters confirms. Another motive that inspired Deez to tour more personal, smaller scale shows was to re-create a sense of community in the hardcore scene. The song Free Music details Peters feelings about the current hardcore scene, where stereotyping and discriminating is now present in an environment Peters had always viewed a as a haven; "a family" in which "everybody … should feel welcome" as long as they shared a passion for the music. When questioned if he still believed music could create "somewhere we can all turn", Peters replies, "Yeah definitely, the hardcore scene in Adelaide when I was coming up was very much like that. Everyone knew everyone and was very supportive and enthused about new bands and very inviting to new people coming to shows. I miss those days… that’s the environment I came up in when I got in to hardcore, that’s what I fell in love with, and that’s what I wish it was still like. "
Along with these more intimate club performances, Deez Nuts will also make an appearance at this year’s Push Over Festival. When asked whether he prefers a festival environment or the atmosphere of a more personal gig, Peters remains ambivalent, "They both have something different to offer, so I enjoy the diversity. That’s the appeal of doing the Kids And Clubs tour; [we] get the best of both worlds. "All-ages are always best," he determines; "all-ages shows are the only way to go. Everywhere else in the world all shows are all-ages shows. I don’t know why were forced to split shows up here," he muses.
Push Over will be among one of Deez Nut’s first few festival experiences, "[We haven’t got] many festivals under our belt to be honest, but that will all change after summer in Europe. I don’t know what to expect from Push Over, but I’m sure it will be a lot of fun," Peters enthuses.
As to whether Deez Nuts will be previewing any new material at Push Over 2011, Peters divulges that, "the newest material we’ll be playing at Push Over is off of This One’s For You, but I will be starting to write new material for the next album very soon. We have the Kids And Clubs tour…" he says of Deez Nuts plans for the rest of the year, "then, off to Europe for the summer festival run there, and then hopefully America again. We’ll be putting out a tour DVD this year as well."
DEEZ NUTS will play the all-ages PUSH OVER as a part of a huge bill of Australian acts across an array of genres – from hardcore to hip hop. Catch them alongside Anchors, Children Collide, Dream On, Dreamer, Hopeless, House Vs. Hurricane, Trainwreck, Metals, Oh Mercy and many more at The Abbotsford Convent this Sunday March 13. Tickets are still available through Ticketek, Oztix and Moshtix. For details, visit thepush.com.au. They also play Next on Thursday April 7, The Seaford Community Hall, Seaford on Friday April 8 (tickets from oztix.com.au) and Spudfest in Geelong on Saturday April 9 (tickets from oztix.com.au). This One’s For You is out now through Roadrunner.
