Name: Joe Rogan Experience #1968 - Jason Everman
Uploaded: 2023-04-11T00:00:00.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Joe Rogan Experience #1968 - Jason Everman' from PowerfulJRE on Comedy Buff. Published 2023-04-11. Transcript available.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Joe Rogan Experience #1968 - Jason Everman' from PowerfulJRE on Comedy Buff. Published 2023-04-11. Transcript available.

Joe Rogan Experience #1968 - Jason Everman

Joe Rogan podcast, check it out.
The Joe Rogan Experience.
Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night, all day.
Well, thanks for coming, man.
Appreciate it.
Yeah, thanks for asking.
You've had a wild life, dude.
How the fuck does one go from playing in Nirvana and Soundgarden to being a
soldier?
It's a longer story.
I want to hear it.
How long an answer you want.
We've got plenty of time.
Okay.
So, I guess being a professional rock musician was something I kind of fell
into.
It wasn't something that I had a dream of, you know?
It's like, oh, I'm going to be, you know, I love playing in bands, I love
playing music,
but it was like at this punk rock level where you're never going to make a
living at it,
you know?
It's just something fun to do.
And then started playing with Nirvana.
And even at that level, you know, still not making money from it, but, you know,
touring.
Was it the early days of Nirvana?
Yeah, yeah.
So, Nirvana wasn't worldwide at that point?
No, no.
There were, even on the Seattle level, like one of the smaller bands, you know?
Like there was bands like Mudhoney and Soundgarden that were better known than
Nirvana was at
the time, for sure.
And you played for Soundgarden, too.
Yeah.
Which is also hilarious.
Yeah.
And when, when did you, like, so you're in the beginning, so did you just have,
did you
have friction with the band?
Like, why did you wind up leaving?
So, uh, with Nirvana is just, I guess initially, like when I came on board,
like Kurt wanted
a second guitar player for the live show, basically.
Like, uh, have a heavier sound live, take some of the guitar playing
responsibility off
him so he could concentrate on vocals, like that kind of thing.
And initially, like, I thought I was going to be able to contribute to the band
creatively.
And then it got to the point where I realized that wasn't going to happen.
And then the same thing happened with Chad, the drummer, I think.
And it was, like, everyone in the band, including myself, was, like, very poor
communicators.
Like, a lot of passive aggression.
And, you know, I mean, we were kids, you know.
How old were we at the time?
20, I think.
Mm.
And, yeah, I just, I wasn't equipped for it.
And it became more and more unhappy with the situation and then ended up
leaving.
So, was it that, like, when you would try to put creative input in, it would
get shut
down or they weren't interested or Kurt wasn't interested?
Yeah.
So, like, on the rare time where we actually rehearsed as a band, which was not
a lot,
Kurt would kind of half-heartedly, like, hey, who has ideas?
And, like, I'd throw a couple ideas out.
And then Chad, like, a very accomplished musician in his own right, would throw
some ideas out.
And then it'd just kind of be glossed over and, like, okay, here's the new song
I wrote, you know,
and start learning that.
So, it was very...
Ego-centric.
Cursory, you know.
Yeah.
It's like, he kind of, like, threw it out there, but then it wasn't going to go
anywhere.
And so, did you, so you went for Nirvana first and then to Soundgarden?
Yeah.
Like, I left, we did a U.S. tour, like, the first full U.S. tour that Nirvana
did in 88 or 89.
I can't remember what year it was, but I think it was still the 80s.
And, like, I left at the end of that tour, like, okay, I'm done.
Like, nice little four-way, foray into rock and roll, but I'm going to do
something else.
And when I got home, I was planning on going trekking in the Himalayas.
Like, yeah, that was the next thing.
It's like, okay, this was a nice diversion, but I'm going to kind of fulfill
this dream I've had since I was a kid of, like, trekking in the Himalayas.
So, like, I went to Metzger's Maps in Seattle and was buying maps of the Himalaya
of Nepal and Tibet and all this stuff and, like, getting gear sorted.
And that's what I was going to do.
And then at some point that summer or fall, I can't remember what time of year
it was, end of summer, Kim from Soundgarden called me and was like, hey, Hero,
their bass player then, like, quit.
Do you want to audition for the band?
I was like, you know, at that point, like, Soundgarden was my favorite Seattle
band, like, hands down.
And I was like, okay, you know, fully not believing I'd ever get chosen.
And then you did.
Yeah.
And how did that end?
I got fired.
What happened?
It was like, you know, it's complicated.
But I think at the end of the day, I wasn't getting along with Chris that well,
the singer.
And, you know, obviously, you know, who's going to go?
Right.
Yeah, it was me.
Yeah.
So how does that translate into becoming a soldier?
I mean, there's more to the story than that because there was still, like, I
basically, like, getting fired from Soundgarden, like, put me in a pretty bad
tailspin.
I mean, it was a rough patch in my life for sure.
And so in order to kind of cut this tailspin off, like, I had to do something
radical.
And what I did was ended up moving to New York.
And so, I mean, there's more to the story than that.
But moved to New York, like, basically, you know, I grew up in rural western
Washington.
Like, so it was kind of polar opposite to what I, what my experience was.
Like, got a job in a warehouse, got an apartment, and kind of started my New
York life and did that for a couple of years.
What was your plan when you moved to New York?
Did you just want to try it, experience life in the city?
I think the main plan was, like, like, get out of this funk that I was in, you
know?
How old were you at the time?
21, 22, maybe.
So just young guy trying to figure out life.
Yeah.
Like, the Soundgarden thing, I mean, getting fired from Soundgarden, like, it
broke my heart.
It was, it was a bad spot for me.
And, because I love that band.
And it wasn't, it wasn't about, you know, I never thought they would get as big
as they did.
Honestly, it kind of surprised me when they did.
Because, yeah, they're a great band.
But I think, I always thought they were a little too quirky to be huge, despite,
you know, the Chris factor.
Like, you know, this genetically engineered rock star, you know?
But I always thought they were a little too weird to have, like, mainstream
success, which was fine with me.
I thought they'd be, like, like a big indie band, like Sonic Youth or Butthole
Surfers, like that level, you know?
And, but it was more like, I just love that band and I love playing with them.
And, like, having that taken away, yeah, it really, it fucked me up for a bit.
So, you just went to New York City to try to experience a different life?
Just running for my demons, you know?
Like, like that old rubric.
Yeah.
But, you know, your demons tend to follow you.
Always.
Yeah.
What were your demons?
You want to go down that rabbit hole?
Sure.
There's a few.
Growing up, you know, like, and, like, everyone has a story, right?
Like, when my childhood was bad and my childhood wasn't bad necessarily, but it
was, it was, there was a lot of unhappiness for sure.
And it stemmed from, like, my mother and my stepdad not being happy, you know?
They, they were, um, I don't feel bad talking about it now because they're both
gone now.
But they, you know, they probably shouldn't have gotten married.
And they both, and that's one thing is, like, an adult, like, looking back, you
can kind of, you see your parents as human beings and not, like, these magical
creatures that, like, feed you and take care of you.
Right.
And, you know, they got, they got their, their dreams and their, their, you
know, crush dreams, like, they're humans.
So I have a lot of compassion for them now as an adult.
It's like, oh, I get it now.
You know, it's like, they weren't bad people.
They were just people.
And it's just being a child in that environment.
Yeah, because that, because that's, you have nothing to compare it to.
Right.
It's just reality.
Yeah.
It's like, oh, I guess this is what being a kid is, you know?
Kind of sucks.
Yeah.
It can.
Yeah.
But through that suck, a lot of times, that's where you sort of get your drive,
unfortunately.
Oh, I'm a firm believer that growth is the result of trauma.
Mm-hmm.
Like, you need that, that thesis, antithesis, synthesis, you know?
Mm-hmm.
That, like, Stephen Jay Gould called it, pertaining to evolution, punctuated
equilibrium, where, like, evolution tends to stay stable if there's no
pressures.
And, but as soon as there's this introduction of new pressures, usually the
result of some cataclysmic event, it's not a gradual thing.
It's usually sudden and extreme.
And that's where these new evolutionary pressures are introduced.
And it's like, on this level of species, you adapt and survive or you die off.
So, I kind of like putting that template on the individual.
Like, you kind of cruise through life and then something fucked up happens.
And then, you know, hopefully you step up and grow from it.
You know, learn from it.
All that stuff.
So, you go to New York City, you were there for a few years.
What were you doing while you were there?
So, initially, I worked in a warehouse.
And it was, it was fine, you know?
I was, like, paying my rent, living in Alphabet City, like, having, having this
urban life that I never thought I would have had otherwise.
Did you know anybody there?
Yeah, I had friends there from touring and stuff.
And so, that was kind of my, my foothold for moving there.
Um, like, didn't, didn't play music.
Like, I brought some equipment over.
Like, initially, I went over, um, with, like, a backpack.
And that was it.
And I had a friend of mine's band who were on tour pick me up at JFK and drive
me into the city.
I still remember this.
Like, the day before, like, I was doing different kind of, uh, work to save
money for the move.
So, the, the day before I flew to New York, I was, like, bucking bales of hay
in, like, a hayfield.
Like, farm stuff, right?
And my buddy Spike, who I'm still good friends with, uh, played in this band
called Mind Over Four.
They picked me up at JFK.
And I remember sitting in the van and looking at my, my Converse.
And, like, I still had, like, straw stuck in the Converse from baling hay the
day before.
And I was, like, okay, this is, here we go.
That's an adventure.
Yeah.
Wow.
So, you're there for a few years, living that life.
And how do you transition out of that?
So, I went back to Seattle at some point during the first year in New York to
ship more of my personal belongings over.
And I actually, I went to Sub Pop because they had, they had UPS shipping there.
And I'm, like, boxing up my stuff in the Sub Pop offices and, like, getting
ready to ship it to New York.
Like, including, like, a Marshall cabinet.
Like, some music gear.
But I had this vague notion of, yeah, maybe I'll play there.
But, honestly, I probably didn't touch a bass or a guitar for, like, the first
year after getting fired from Soundgarden.
It just, it still kind of had a bad taste in my mouth.
But what changed that was summer of 91, maybe?
I was friends with this band called Skunk.
They're this indie rock band on Twin Tone Records.
There are three Matts.
Matt Sweeney, Matt Quigley, and Matt Coleman.
So, Matt Quigley, the bass player, quit right before a European tour that they
had booked, supporting Babes in Toyland, another amazing band.
And so, I get a call from Matt Sweeney.
And he's, like, hey, dude, like, Quigley quit.
We got this tour coming up.
Do you want to fill in on bass for this tour?
So, I'm, like, I could work in this warehouse in New York, like, in the sweltering,
you know, New York summer heat.
Or I could, you know, go to Europe for eight weeks or whatever and tour.
So, I'm, like, yeah, okay, I'll do it.
So, learned the songs and did that tour.
And, to this day, it was the funnest tour I'd ever done.
And I think that was because I really had nothing emotionally invested in the
band.
Like, I like the music.
I like the dudes.
But, it's just, all I had to do was go out and play to the best of my ability.
And, yeah, it was just fun.
There was no burden, no heaviness to it, you know?
Like, be