Cloak / Dagger interview

Put members of Count Me Out, American Nightmare, Striking Distance among others together in a band and things sure to get loud and nasty. And that's exactly what Cloak / Dagger sounds like. Their album kicks ass and so does their live performance. Do yourself a favor and check out their debut full-length "We Are". It won't change your life but it is a nonstop rollercoaster ride and that's all the reasons we needed to ask vocalist Jason some questions.

PRT: Who are you and what would you like to tell our readers about yourself?
Jason: I am Jason Mazzola. I sing for the Dagger, I love coffee and shopping at thrift stores and need to get a new record player.

PRT: Who else is in the band and why would they make a great secret agent?
Jason: Collin Barth is on guitar and he would be the best at playing poker or being a secret agent because you never know what he's thinking but he's a smart cookie. Adam Juresko are bass player would be a runner up since he has no cell phone, no i.d. he could create a new identity in no time. Colin on drums would be good at debugging bombs since he's good with cars. I would be the worst.

PRT: Why did you go for the name Cloak / Dagger. What's so secret about the band or are you avid comic book readers?
Jason: There's no real meaning behind the name. Colin said we are doing a punk band called Cloak/Dagger and you're going to sing. No relation to the movie or comic.

PRT: I read that Cloak / Dagger started as a temporary project but now you've got a full-length out and are doing a complete tour in Europe. So how serious were you about the band before and what turned it into the project it is today?
Jason: We weren't serious at all when we first started. We just wanted to play a few shows here and there but things really took off after we started playing out. We just finished a full U.S. tour and then did the European tour two weeks after. After a while we all decided to do this full time and just do as much as we could with the time we have. Two months straight is a long time to be homeless.

PRT: The full-length is called "We Are". The best you came up with during an uninspired brainstorm or do you want people to know that the album is the perfect representation of what the band sounds like?
Jason: It's just a more clever way to make it a self titled record and a lyric from one of our old songs. We are daggers.

PRT: For people that haven't heard the album yet, if Cloak / Dagger was the lovechild of two other bands, which bands would've had sex and which position were you conceived in?
Jason: I've heard and can agree with the Black Flag meets Hot Snakes comparison. I think that it would be the mutual respect and admiration of both bands in the missonary position.

PRT: Speaking of other bands, you have all been involved in other bands like Count Me Out, American Nightmare, Striking Distance. Do you think that works for or against you? Because people will probably have certain expectations before even having heard a single note.
Jason: We made it a point not to advertise or expect anything due to the ex-members clause. I think that things are just the same as they have always been and we had to work just as hard as any of those bands we were in to get to where we are today. Sometimes it works for us and sometimes not, after the first year of us being a band people knew what to expect.

PRT: Three of you were also involved in Renee Heartfelt. I absolutely love those releases so please tell me that the band is still active and that a new album is in the making!
Jason: Pete who is the singer song writer of Renee is doing a band called Memorial and is in dental school so there won't be a new release any time soon for RH but it was a good band who didn't get the respect they deserved when they were around and active.

PRT: On the one hand there are still bands like yours which play hardcore the way it started out and on the other hand there's a zillion bands that like to be categorized under a zillion subgenres. What do you make of this evolution? And do you think that traditional hardcore is coming back as a reaction to that evolution?
Jason: I think that it's just a matter of bands playing a niche in between of punk or hardcore and not aiming to sound like anything. I think that in the 80's you couldn't really call Bad Brains or Black Flag punk or hardcore or call Fugazi a punk or hardcore band they were just good bands. I think that people are tired of music that fits a certain formula so yeah I think it is a reaction to that. Collin likes to refer to us as a fast rock and roll band.

PRT: In the movie High Fidelity the guys that work in the record store constantly come up with these top 5 lists of songs for any occasion. If you would have to make such a list, which occasion would it be for and which songs would make your top 5?
Jason: Breaking up with your girl or boyfriend mix.
1. R. Kelly- Real Talk
2. Joy Division- Love Will Tear Us Apart
3. My Bloody Valentine- Only Shallow
4. Marked Men- Right Here With You
5. Iron And Wine- On Your Wings

PRT: Any last words for our readers?
Jason: Thanks for reading, go to gravemistakerecords.com and check out what Alex has to offer he doesn't put out anything bad. Come see us next time!