Tenni met Jessicka while attending Piper High School in Sunrise, Florida. They had begun writing songs, but had not yet formed a band when Moulder and Inhell joined them to create the band that would become Jack Off Jill. Jack Off Jill's first show was opening for fellow Floridian and long time friend Marilyn Manson and his shock-rock outfit, Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids, at a Davie, Florida night club called The Plus Five Lounge. The female foursome quickly became one of the most exciting and controversial underground bands during their heyday. Surname-free singer, Jessicka delivered gut-wrenching lyrics in an angelic to banshee-like voice and performed shocking on-stage antics that included stripping young men on stage while the band and crowd taunted the exposed fans, as well as covering the audience with spit and real blood and candy. Jessicka even spent a night in jail when she and Manson were arrested after a 1994 concert in Jacksonville, Florida, after being accused by the town's Christian Coalition for breaking the town's adult entertainment codes. [4] Though the members of Jack Off Jill never claimed to be shock rockers, they were often labeled as such. In fact, Jack Off Jill had more in common musically with riot grrrl acts such as Bikini Kill and Babes in Toyland than they did with Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids, with whom Jack Off Jill would later be constantly compared. It did not help that after a four year relationship, then boyfriend Twiggy Ramirez, began to mimic Jessicka's dress and appearance, making critics' comparisons draw even closer.[5]
Jack Off Jill released several independent records: "Children 5 and Up", "The Boygrinder Sessions", "Cannibal Song Book", (produced by JOJ and Manson) "Cockroach Waltz", and several 7" singles. It was not until, April 8, 1994, when JOJ played a benefit show for Rock Against Domestic Violence with Babes in Toyland and 7 Year Bitch, the same day lead-singer of American grunge rock band Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, was found dead in his Seattle home, that Jack Off Jill caught the eye of record labels. Drummer Lori Barbero from Babes wanted to sign them to her now defunct Minneapolis label Spanish Fly, but it was not to be. Jack Off Jill then caught the eyes and ears of Los Angeles based Risk Records, who signed them in January 1997. They replaced both Ah Cha Cha and Inhell with new members because the two were not ready to leave Florida. The band released their first national 7" "Girl Scout"/"American Made" in March of 1997. On September 9 1997, their first full-length Sexless Demons And Scars (produced by Gumball's leader Don Fleming, who produced Hole's Pretty on the Inside) was released..
After moderate underground success, touring with Lords of Acid, and playing to sold-out crowds in 1997, Jack Off Jill headed to Los Angeles in order to complete 1998's Covetous Creature, a remix EP of songs from Sexless Demons and Scars with the help of SMP (Scott Putesky), a founding member of Marilyn Manson and new drummer Claudia Rossi.[6] The new manifestation of Jack Off Jill hit the road on a national tour with Psychotica, joined along the way by Switchblade Symphony.
The band road-tested new songs in March of 1999 when JOJ were asked to take the opening slot on the Marilyn Manson / Monster Magnet / Hole tour after Hole departed.[3] With Putesky no longer in the guitar position, JOJ enlisted the help of Jessicka's then-boyfriend guitarist Clint Walsh, original JOJ guitarist Michelle Inhell (Oliver), and drummer Norm Block (formerly of Plexi) for the tour. On July 17, 2000, JOJ released their second full-length CD, Clear Hearts Grey Flowers on Risk Records, that featured a cover by artist Mark Ryden and was produced by Chris Vrenna of Tweaker and Nine Inch Nails. The new album was different from the first having a more Gothic rock sound and a cover of the Cure's "Lovesong" was added as a hidden track. Due to pressure, poor publicity for C.H.G.F, several line up changes, tension between founding members Jessicka and Robin, and management problems, Jack Off Jill played its last show at The Troubadour in Los Angeles in April of 2000. They were joined onstage by guitarist Helen Storer of the UK all-girl band Fluffy (and later of Thee Heavenly Music Association) and producer Chris Vrenna on drums. [7] JOJ officially called it quits in late 2000.
Years after their break-up, Jack Off Jill still manage to have a growing online cult following. Reviews for Jessicka's current band Scarling. begin with critics touting JOJ as "riot-goth legends" [8] and refer to Jack Off Jill's final album as," excellent, yet under- appreciated". [9]
In 2015, they reunited for some shows. One was in Ashville, North Carolina on July 18, 2015. They performed their last show was on October 23, 2015 (Jessicka's birthday) in London.
Original Line-up
* Jessicka (Jessicka Fodera) vocals
* Tenni Ah-Cha-Cha (Tenni Arslynian) drums
* Agent Moulder (Robin Moulder) bass, piano
* Michelle Inhell (Michelle Oliver) guitar
Former members
* Lauracet Simpson (Laura Simpson) – drums 1996-1997
* Ho Ho Spade (Jeff Tucci) – guitar 1996-1997
* SMP (Daisy Berkowitz / Scott Putesky) – guitar 1997-1998
* Claudia (Claudia Rossi) – drums 1997-1999
* Clint Walsh – guitar 1999-2000
* Norm Block – live drums 1999-2000
* Hellen Storer (Helen Storer) – live guitar 2000
* Chris Vrenna – live drums 2000
Jessicka is now singing with Scarling
Robin is now writing, recording and creating with TCR
The current musical status of the other members can be found by going to www.jackoffjill.com
Working with Meat
Jack Off Jill Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Television did not break me
Been broke since I was born
I'm breaking up with you
We are desensitized
Shove comfort up my nose
I feel dysfunctional
But numb enough for two
I lost my only friend
Left here alone again
You left me here alone
We are the meat you work with
This is your sense of failure
If you work me way too long
The failure stains your hands
We are the meat you've eaten
Cut us with your sharpest knife
You've been away so long
The maggots eat away
We are desensitized
Television does not hate me
Had hate for way too long
I hate you very much
We are desensitized
Shove comfort up my nose
I feel dysfunctional, but numb enough for two
We are the meat you work with
This is your sense of failure
If you work me way too long
The failure stains your hands
We are the meat you've eaten
Cut us with your sharpest knife
You've been away so long
The maggots eat away
We are all new-wave faggots
Digesting old drug habits
We've been away so long
The maggots eat, the maggots eat away
The song "Working with Meat" by Jack Off Jill is a commentary on the dehumanization and objectification of individuals within modern society. The opening lines of "We are desensitized / Television did not break me / Been broke since I was born" speak to the numbness that is commonly experienced by people who are bombarded by constant stimulation and the normalization of violence in media. The chorus "We are the meat you work with / This is your sense of failure / If you work me way too long / The failure stains your hands" is a metaphorical reference to the way in which workers within certain industries become desensitized to the suffering of animals or other workers. This sense of detachment can lead to a devaluing of human life and a lack of empathy for the plight of others.
The verse "We are all new-wave faggots / Digesting old drug habits / We've been away so long / The maggots eat, the maggots eat away" speaks to the self-destructive tendencies that can arise when individuals are confronted with the harsh realities of life. References to drug abuse and the imagery of maggots eating away suggest a gradual decay that occurs when people are left unchecked in their struggles. The final lines of "Working with Meat" are a bleak commentary on the state of society, where those who suffer are left to rot and decay, while those who perpetuate their suffering go about their business as usual.
Line by Line Meaning
We are desensitized
Our emotional responses have been dulled and we are no longer easily affected
Television did not break me
Watching TV did not cause my emotional numbness
Been broke since I was born
I have always had emotional and psychological issues
I'm breaking up with you
I am ending our relationship
Shove comfort up my nose
I am seeking temporary relief from my emotional pain
I feel dysfunctional
I am not functioning normally due to my emotional issues
But numb enough for two
My desensitization has reached a level where it can affect two people
I lost my only friend
I no longer have any friends
Left here alone again
I am once again by myself
You left me here alone
You abandoned me and now I am by myself
We are the meat you work with
We are the objects you handle, manipulate, and exploit
This is your sense of failure
Your inability to succeed or make progress is reflected in the way you treat us
If you work me way too long
If you use and exploit me for too long
The failure stains your hands
The negative consequences of your actions will have an impact on you and your reputation
We are the meat you've eaten
We have been consumed and used up by you
Cut us with your sharpest knife
You have exploited and hurt us in the most effective and brutal way possible
You've been away so long
You have been absent or distant for a long time
The maggots eat away
The consequences of your actions continue to worsen and decay
We are all new-wave faggots
We are part of a subculture that is viewed as unconventional and unorthodox
Digesting old drug habits
We are trying to move on from our past drug addiction and cope with our addiction-related trauma
We've been away so long
We have been distant or absent from society for a long time
The maggots eat, the maggots eat away
The negative consequences of our past mistakes continue to worsen and decay
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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