Most of us with young children have heard of Yo Gabba Gabba!. This popular Nick Jr. show entertains kids and parents alike with it's funky characters, great music and retro style.
Well, did you know that the co-creator of Yo Gabba Gabba!, Christian Jacobs (he's the one with the moustache in the picture above), also has a band with funky characters and great music? Well, he does and The Aquabats are coming to Chicago!
I was lucky enough to sit down and talk with Christian. (Well, he's on a tour bus, so I sat down at my computer and emailed him some questions and he sat down at his and emailed me answers. But hey, we were both sitting!)
After reading his hysterical answers I am now not only a Yo Gabba Gabba! fan, but also an Aquabats and Christian Jacobs fan as well!
Macaroni Kid Chicago Loop: The Aquabats? MC Bat Commander? Yo Gabba Gabba? Where do these names come from? Do they reference something or did you just make them up?
Christian Jacobs: I think they reference the fact that I watched way too much television as a child and I should sue someone to get my brain back! Seriously though, just making goofy things up with your friends and going out and making them into something is just as surprising to me as anyone else! How did this happen!? Ha!
MKCL: What inspired you to start the band?
CJ: I was playing in a band and had a number of friends in other bands. We came up with an idea to make one giant super group and pretend we were a ska band...as a joke. We liked DEVO and our buddy worked at a wetsuit company, so he sewed up some funky silver neoprene helmets and brought them to our first show at a birthday party. We practiced once and had 12 or 13 people in the band.. We were awful!! But it was funny...to us!
MKCL: Tell me a little bit about your character, MC Bat Commander?
CJ:Well, all of the characters in the band and the backstory and everything has evolved and developed over the years. The MC Bat commander is like the bold, confident leader of the band that doesn't really know what he is doing. Kind of like Captain Kirk meets John Candy! He is always trying to teach some kind of lame lesson or lead the crowd in some kind of ridiculous exercise. He is a lampoon really of a lead singer or a team leader. The Michael Scott of super hero rock! I think The Aquabats overall are a statement about live music and rock etc. And just how ridiculous it all is to go up on stage and dance and sing!! If you think about it, it's all so silly.
MKCL:What are your musical influences?
CJ: As I was discovering music as a lad, I really gravitated toward new wave and theatrical weird music with a sense of humor like DEVO, OINGO BOINGO and The Specials. Then I went through a hardcore punk phase followed by a hip hop phase! I really loved The Pixies as a young adult, and I think they are the band that really made me want to start playing music.
MKCL: How is working on Yo Gabba Gabba! and The Aquabats different?
CJ: With Yo Gabba Gabba! there is a budget, and people get paid to get things done on time. It's really fun making things for kids and having a job, you know? The Aquabats, however, is still our big garage project and labor of love...or hate, depending on the time of day! We have had a lot of fun though regardless.
MKCL: You have a pretty awesome job. Do your kids think you’re super cool?
CJ: I think depending on the time of day! Dads get grumpy and kids get grumpy, but overall we have a lot of fun together. I love including my kids in the creative process because they are so honest. If something stinks they smell it! Lately, they've rediscovered The Aquabats and have given me some more confidence. Kids are the best!
MKCL:I read that you grew up acting. Was music a passion even then or did that come later?
CJ: It's cliche, but music was my sanctuary growing up. And it was a passion as a kid. As a kid actor, I was an employee in the family business and thus my childhood was spent driving around, going on auditions and trying to get jobs. When I was 10, a TV producer gave me a Sony walkman for my birthday and that was it! I've been on a quest for the most awesome mix tape ever since. That was definitely the turning point into music. Then I got a skateboard when I was 12 and it was really on!
MKCL: Besides MC Bat Commander and your Yo Gabba Gabba! voice work, do you do any acting now?
CJ: Whenever I play soccer or basketball, I act like I am hurt a lot to draw fouls and get sympathy from the referees. I'm actually trying to start a sports acting school, to help athletes get the calls they need to win the game. I would also like to extend sports acting into less obvious sports like golf or tennis. It's the future of professional acting.. If you ask me. :)
MKCL: Where do you see yourself, Yo Gabba Gabba! and The Aquabats in 10 years?
CJ: On Broadway, spending untold millions on a musical about super heroes!! Seriously though, I hope I'm surfing with my family on a tropical island somewhere far away from the city.
MKCL: I told my readers I was going to be interviewing you and asked them if they had something they’d like to know. Hands down, the most asked question was who came up with DJ Lance’s costume?
CJ: Ha ha! Well Scott, the other creator of Yo Gabba Gabba!, myself and Lance were trying to create a Logan's Run, Willy Wonka character. Lance brought that hat in and the rest of the costume designed itself. Lance was pretty much the major collaborator on that one. Lance rules.
He's a hoot, right? And he and his awesome family-friendly band, The Aquabats, will be in Chicago this Monday, November 15, at the House of Blues. The show starts at 5:30PM and tickets are $21 in advance, and $23 at the door.
