Violin & Rhythm Guitar: Jez King
Adam: We are excited to bring Jez into the band as both a studio presence and in a live context. His musicianship is off the scale (pun intended) and he’s a tonne of fun to be around.
Dave: Adding a violin to our live band has really given us a whole new layer of sound to work with at gigs. Rehearsals have been incredible, opening up new ideas for old and new songs alike.
Adam: Jez helps to showcase some of the more subtle aspects of IO Earth’s music when it comes to live performance. Being able to add in violin lines to the layers of strings that I put down with keys brings even more life to the songs. Your ears are constantly excited and he compliments Luke’s Sax and Flute beautifully.
Dave: We’ve also been working on making sure that our music showcases Jez. His background in electric guitar means that he has a unique perspective on how he uses the violin as both a lead and a backing instrument. He often uses guitar effects with his violin and it sounds amazing. We can’t wait to show you what he can do …
Adam: Yeah. IO Earth have yet ANOTHER secret weapon!
Jez: As corny as it may sound, joining IO Earth has been a real life long dream come true for me. I have been a lifelong fan of Prog, from Yes to Dream Theatre, Jethro Tull to Pink Floyd, Genesis to Devin Townsend… All the guys and gals in the band are so down to earth, easy going with a solid grounding and real passion to drive the music forward. I’ve been a ‘jobbing musician’ for over 25 years and to get the opportunity to work with the musicianship and songwriting talents that exude from the brain cells and fingertips of Dave Cureton and Adam Gough is just mind blowing. Exciting times ahead I feel…
Drums & Percussion: Christian Jerromes
Adam: CJ on the drums – Known as CJ partly because they’re his initials but mostly because his name is Christian, and we can’t confuse ourselves with two Christians in the band!
Dave: CJ is a great, solid player with some incredible chops. His background contains a lot of styles, but mostly metal … although he does like bands that blur the lines between genres. Sound familiar?
Adam: Yeah, he’s very much into complex rhythms interesting beats. Some examples of which you’ll hear on the new album. We think you’ll really like his style. He brings huge amounts of energy to everything he plays.
Dave: Probably down to his age – a youthful 23. Making us all feel old!
Adam: He’s gonna kick your ass in our live show.
CJ: It’s been really cool. Everyone in the band is so easy to get on with, they’re all legends! As for learning new material, that’s been awesome too. Can’t wait to get out there and smash it! Peace! x