Trad metal whizz-kids Jet Jaguar are gradually escaping their hometown of Cancun, Mexico; bassist Jorge Ramirez now resides in Spain, while drummer Jimmy Lozano is moving to Germany.
“The long-term ambition is for Jet Jaguar to become based out of Europe,” confirms Jorge. “When you live in Mexico there is always this thought in the back of your head that you are not safe. You’re always alert.”
A hotspot for both tourists and drug gangs, Cancun’s modest metal scene came as a revelation to the adolescent Jorge, after his introduction to the genre via PS2 game Guitar Hero.
“When I was 15, I saw this local band Steel Sentinel, who played in the traditional heavy metal style, with all the spandex and leather - these guys really felt it, with a passion,” he recalls.
You don’t get to see much traditional heavy metal in Cancun
Jorge Ramirez
“I was like, ‘OK so there are people here actually doing this!’ You don’t get to see much of that in Cancun. It’s amazing how even in the most remote parts of the world you find kids doing this music. Even if it stays local forever, the passion and talent are there. For me that was an important moment. Something clicked.”
Unusually for an 80s revivalist band, JJ confront very modern socio-political themes on the band’s second LP Severance.
“Fool’s Paradise calls out the anti-science people: anti-vaxxers, flat earthers, people who believe everything they see online,” Jorge explains. “Metal fans in Mexico are younger than in America or Europe, that gives it a more revolutionary side of things.”
Also with youth comes an urge to develop and expand: “I think we’re drifting away little by little from the more classic sound, maybe for a darker, heavier sound,” Jorge says. “I love what Blood Incantation are doing with synthesisers and concepts, so I see us experimenting more in the future, to keep things interesting."
Severance is out now via Steamhammer
Sounds Like: Retro-futurist power metal channelling 1985 via the 22nd century
For Fans Of: Helloween, DragonForce, Enforcer
Listen To: Mach 10
