Jamey Jasta

Jamey Jasta, (born James Shanahan on august 7 1978), is vocalist for hardcore band Hatebreed.

Occupation

Jasta is a very active proponent of the hardcore movement as well as the metal genre. As well as fronting Hatebreed Jasta also owns and runs the record label Stillborn Records and hosts 'Headbanger's Ball' on MTV2.

Style

Jasta's lyrics in Hatebreed are considered by the band's fanbase to be one of the strongest points of the music. The themes usually covered in Hatebreed's songs are self improvement, discipline, brotherhood, hatred and revenge. Although metaphors and multiple syllable words are rarely found, the lyrics are popular due to honest and positive nature. Lyrics such as 'Now is the time for me to rise to my feet, wipe your spit from my face, wipe these tears from my eyes' and 'How can I change tomorrow if I can't change today?', although simplistic are incredibly powerful in their desire to advocate self empowerment.

Criticism

Some of those in the underground circles believe Jasta and Hatebreed have "sold out", so to speak, for a number of reasons, the most prevalent being Jasta's association with MTV and the band's major label status. Many fans feel that the popular and corporate world is anathema in hardcore punk doctrine, often quoting the famous sound sample of Warzone's Ray Barbieri: "In our minds, and in our hearts, we feel that hardcore music should stay out of big business, and stay in the streets where it belongs..."

Many other fans point out, however, that Jasta's support of underground and semi-underground hardcore and metal bands through his Stillborn label allows fans to discover obscure bands and hopefully become dedicated to their local music scenes.

Former Works

Jamey was also in a band before Hatebreed, called Jasta 14 (where he got the name "jasta"). Before Jasta 14, Jamey was in a band called Dreadnaught. He penned songs such as, "Satan in my Butt" and "Funky Schwa". As the aforementioned tracks demonstrate, his lyrical influences have not always been of the "toughguy" variety. Jasta is not without a sense of humor.

Other Appearances

Jasta appeared on the Napalm Death album The Code Is Red...Long Live the Code as a guest singer on two tracks, "Sold Short" and "Instruments of Persuasion." Other appearances include "Spit my Rage" from the Terror album "One with the Underdogs", "Human Cause" by Sepultura on their Nation album, "Peace" by Agnostic Front, "Hard to Impress" by Catch 22,and "Push It to the Limit" by death rapper Necro, and on Ill Niño's track "Turns to Grey" on their One Nation Underground album. Recently Jasta has signed with Roadrunner Records, and is in current works with Hatebreed on a new album.

External link

• Jamey Jasta at IMDb