"When you're considered a local band, you're too loud. But when Nashville Pussy comes rolling through town, 30,000 fucking decibels louder, that's cool, because they don't live here. That's bullshit. If you're gonna be a rock 'n' roll band, then be one."
Greg Reinel, guitarist for provocative, love-'em-or-loathe-'em rock duo Nutrajet, seems a bit tired of hearing that his band is just too damn loud.
"Everybody's concerned about the volume aspect," adds drummer Jeff Wood, with a look that suggests he doesn't understand the fuss. "We take great pride in our volume," he adds with a shrug.
Outside at New World Brewery's patio on a gorgeous early spring evening, Reinel and Wood have answered all the standard questions about their project's history, influences and intentions — as Reinel himself would say (and did, several times), "blah, blah, blah." So, like virtually every conversation ever held regarding Nutrajet, talk turns to the subject of stage volume. Because, really, they're pretty freaking loud — at times it seems like cheating physics for two dudes to be able to create such a racket.
According to the Orlando/Tampa twosome, it's more a matter of their delivery method than actual sound levels. Both the six-string and bass lines come from Reinel's guitar, creating an airtight, uniform barrage bereft of the usual gaps inherent in instrumental interplay.
"You don't get a guitar player plinking out a melody, another guitar player chunking out a rhythm part and a bass player grooving on a different part," says Wood. "You've got this big fucking fist, and it's just slugging you in the fucking face. That's the idea, that's what we're supposed to be like."
The "volume aspect" is just one of a host of attributes which, from day one, have served to set Nutrajet apart from both Tampa and Orlando original-music scenes. Some five years ago, O-town resident and former Nicoteens member Reinel put together a trio with drummer Suzy Dozier and Rocket 88 bassist Chuck Zayas. Shortly after, Zayas fell by the wayside, Reinel ran his guitar through the PA at rehearsal to get some bass in the mix, and Nutrajet was born.
"The whole duo thing was accidental," Reinel says. "After (Zayas) left, we tried a couple of other bass players, and they all kinda wanted to noodle around, which for what we're doing isn't really necessary — it just needs a bottom, nothing special."
In addition to the visually abnormal two-person lineup and dense, tidal-wave sound, Nutrajet cultivated a snotty, well-dressed identity and an eye-catching, punk-derived poster/flyer/artwork aesthetic engineered by Reinel, a gifted graphic artist. The band also emphasized a simple, straightforward rock 'n' roll songwriting style beholden to neither trend nor sub-genre. Naturally, none of this exactly endeared them to the indie-rock scene, where bands hang out with bands that sound like their bands, and dressing up is equated with rising above one's station.
"All these bands who say they want to be part of one big cohesive music scene — the minute that contract gets dangled, they're out, and you can bet you won't be getting phone calls from 'em to open shows," says Reinel. "There are some genuine bands we've met, but it's cutthroat. It's show business, and it's always been like that. Rock 'n' roll's the only business where you get pissed on for getting a raise."
Ironically enough, the contract did get dangled — for Nutrajet. Some British tourists caught the pair's set at Orlando's Virgin Megastore and passed a copy of their self-produced EP to Brian Guthrie, head of Scotland's ballsy, no-frills punk-rock label Twenty Stone Blatt, the UK home of Electric Frankenstein and The Gaza Strippers. Guthrie signed the band, released an augmented, full-length version of their debut and hooked Nutrajet up with a promoter to begin laying plans for a United Kingdom tour. Outside responsibilities forced Dozier to leave the band at this time, however, leaving Reinel faced with a potential hitch in Nutrajet's momentum.
Enter Wood, a well-known Bay area scene vet then playing in raucous pop outfit Spiller. The two had known each other for over a decade, and their respective musical tastes largely overlapped; Wood took the drum stool, and adapted easily to Nutrajet's odd configuration.
"It's kind of liberating, not to have a bass player — let's just go," he says. "If anything, it forced me to become even more visual than I already was. You have to make up for there not being an extra one or two members."
The lineup solidified, Nutrajet headed to the UK in December 2000 for two weeks of dates supporting Los Angeles street-glam outfit Bubble — a bold move for a band with such a nascent profile. The crowds were largely old-school metalheads drawn by Bubble's pedigree (featuring ex-members of Dogs D'Amour, Vixen and Faster Pussycat), but Reinel and Wood's energetic bombast garnered some fans along the way.
"(Bubble) were the draw," confirms Reinel. "If you're the opener over there, you're literally considered shit."
"We had these guys coming out with hair down to their asses, tight jeans tucked into their cowboy boots, that whole Nikki Sixx, Girls Girls Girls look," Wood says with a laugh. "But we almost always won those people over. By the third date, we had this new little Nutrajet crowd following us around. It was really cool; they'd go from gig to gig."
The duo managed to return to our shores with the shirts on their backs, the origins of an overseas fanbase and the groundwork laid for their second jaunt, which starts in late March. This return trip is scheduled to coincide with the release of their sophomore Twenty Stone Blatt full-length, For Your Protection.
"We did make a lot of good friends, and I think this tour will be a lot better, because — no disrespect to the promoter last time — we've got those people helping us out now," says Wood. "The tour manager has got all the gear lined up, he's nailing down sponsorship."
They're well aware that another trip across the pond isn't likely to fill the Nutrajet coffers just yet. But for these two, grabbing every opportunity and taking every risk is far more important than keeping their day jobs secure and hoping to someday fill the State Theatre with accepting hipsters.
"I didn't start doing this for money. Take the lumps and go fucking do it," Reinel says. "You're not going to get anywhere unless you do something. It's pointless for us to play the Orpheum once a week."
Which is not to say that Nutrajet has in any way rejected the scenes that spawned them — they're just not gonna go out of their way to be everybody's favorite local band. The pair gigs consistently in Orlando and the Bay area, and a limited edition EP of songs from the forthcoming album is currently available to regional fans. But Reinel makes no bones about the notion that Nutrajet is more about having fun and feeding his punk/power-pop jones than being accepted.
"One thing I can't stand is hearing a band say, "Thanks for coming out.' Fuck that! If you dig the music, great. If you don't, piss off," he says. "If somebody enjoys it, I'm genuinely appreciative. But first and foremost, we're doing this for ourselves. Any time you do something you're passionate about, it's for you."
Adds Wood: "It's about attitude and aggression, but it's also meant to be fun. If you don't like loud music, why would you go see a live band?"
"And the EXIT sign is always well-lit," Reinel points out with a smile.
Music Critic Scott Harrell can be reached at 813-248-8888, ext. 109, or e-mail him at scott.harrell@weeklyplanet.com.
This article appears in Mar 6-12, 2002.