First things first. Jet is his real name. And yes, courtesy of parents branded by the fire of classic '60s and '70s rock'n'roll, it comes from the Paul McCartney song of the same name.
''Even in '83, when I was born, I guess that was a kinda strange idea,'' muses the Adelaide-born singer-songwriter. ''But I probably grew up more interested in music because of my name. I knew I had a connection to rock'n'roll, whether I liked it or not.''
Luckily, he liked it. For young Jet O'Rourke, it was a permanent backdrop to his first love of painting, drawing and otherwise creating with his hands. With his father's records playing in the background- the Beatles, Bowie, T-Rex- he learned the power of music by osmosis.
''There were always two things going on in the house,'' he remembers. ''I was making something and there was a record playing. I wasn't writing music at a young age but I was listening to it constantly while I was using my mind in other creative ways.''
''I guess the music was going in the right side of my brain,.. he says with a laugh. ''I ended up with a pretty good idea of what makes a song work, what makes it stand up and grab somebody's attention. It became second nature I suppose.''
When Jet got his first guitar at 11 or 12, he started filtering his imagination through a new set of tools. First with his favourite songs in his room, and later in a string of band rooms and stages, he slowly mastered his craft, in good, bad and indifferent company- but mainly alone.
''I always felt like the odd one out in bands,'' he says. ''The amount of auditions I've done where you turn up and get disappointed. That's my high expectations, I guess. I always hoped I could join a real group like the Beatles, but it just never worked out that way.''
Out of school, Jet pursued his talent for art at the University of South Australia, but Visual Communications didn't offer the freedom he'd hoped for. Instead of wild, expressive brush strokes, he found himself being groomed for the commercial demands of graphic design.
''I just couldn't see myself making art for other people,'' he says. ''That seemed to be giving away too much of myself. I needed to follow my own direction and make things for myself. So I started writing songs.''
They came thick and fast. Even the first one, Reality, ''was pretty good,'' Jet recalls with surprise. ''I probably put a lot of naïve pressure on myself,'' he acknowledges, ''but I was determined to come up with five or six songs I was really proud of, that I could play to my friends and feel good about, songs that had some magic about them.''
''It's those colours that change between the parts of the song,'' he explains of his craft, the impressionistic logic of a painter still firmly in control. ''Whether it's a great bridge, a great chorus or a great riff, you instinctively know when you've got something special. When you've got it you know, cause you want to sing it over and over and over again.''
Which leads us to the EP, ARE YA GETTIN' ON?, five stunningly accomplished rock songs born in the fertile isolation of Jet O'Rourke's bedroom and brimming with the soul and swagger of a true maverick talent.
FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT, the lead track, is a classic example of Jet's dogged self-determination, an anthem of youthful individuality filtered though the magic of simple and true melody and the ragged power of an overdriven electric guitar.
The brash pop sensibility of his dad's record collection pervades the hooks of TAKE WHAT I NEED and WHAT'S GONNA MAKE YOU SMILE. The EP's title track is a far more restrained and self-aware meditation on ambition and reward than we have a right to expect from any artist before their 20th birthday.
The EP ARE YA GETTIN' ON? was released in October 2003 and reached a top twenty position in the Aria National Australia chart. The single Fight the Good Fight achieved airplay on radio across the country and the video of which was seen on Rage, Video Hits, Channel V and MTV.
In late 2003 Jet performed at the AMDI showcase at Home Nightclub Sydney, artists chosen to perform at this event are selected by a panel of Music Industry experts for having the greatest potential of achieving commercial success and radio appeal.
During the months leading up to the end of 2003 Jet continued performing with the support of a four piece backing band as well as visiting every Australian state to promote the release.
In 2004 Jet hit the road again supporting Melbourne band The Pictures while also promoting the EP ARE YA GETTIN' ON? performing gigs in Sydney, Melbourne and his hometown Adelaide. The tour proved to be particularly significant as it began Jet's quest to form a band in his own right rather than rely on backing musicians.
On the completion of The Pictures tour Jet set about relocating to Melbourne with a view of forming a band and recording with Aria winning Producer Paul McKercher in late 2004. McKercher was already familiar with Jet's material having heard and liked the songs on his four track demos.
The formation of the band, namely The Gear gained momentum when Jet arrived in Melbourne and met up with former Pictures drummer Brett Wolfenden. The pair who had become friends on the earlier tour and shared a lot of similar musical influences and style, were soon rehearsing songs and auditioning other band members. The introduction of bass player Damian Gibson completed the three- piece line up and accelerated the bands growth. The Gear were soon playing at Melbourne's most notable rock establishments in readiness for their first recordings with Paul McKercher at Melbourne's Sing Sing studios in December of 2004.
For further information on Jet O'Rourke please visit:
www.thegear.com.au
