Hello Chordie-
Let me introduce myself, my name is Jason I have played lead guitar with many different rock bands and sang as well. I was the lead guitar player and back-up vocals for Peter Cornell Brother of Chis Cornell (AudioSlave & Soundgarden) in his band Black Market Radio. I was the lead singer in a Heavy Band Quick Kill Formula (www.myspace.com/quickkillformula ) we we're' talking to Dime Bag from Pantera / Damage Plan on producing our 2nd Quick Kill record in Texas before he was killed! Our lead guitar player of QKF is the teacher of the great Marc Rizzo of SoulFly. I also Have a stoner Rock Band known as the RIVA project (www.myspace.com/rivamusic ). And at the Riva studio we have worked with guys like Brant Bjork from Kyuss and early Queens of the Stone Age as well as Marcus from the Nothing Project. ( www.myspace.com/nothingproject )
I have Toured with Many great bands on the road from the jam bands like Clutch, The Bakerton Group, Beck MTV1997 to heavier groups like Sworn enemy, Anthrax, E-town Concrete, Agents of Man, OverKill, El Nino, 3 Inches of Blood, DRI, Biohazrd, FIlter, Fuel and 3 Doors Down. I recorded at SONY & the Hit Factory in NYC to make the Quick Kill Formula record, at the time Coldplay was there as well as MatchBox 20 and a girl i met yes >Britney Spears< which many of you know about since it was all over the press ( so i had a little thing with her one night geeze); she was just there practicing for the VMA's because it was the year she kissed Madonna.
I also did some guitar work for a great blues band called "Jim Hayes and the Buddha Brains" ( www.myspace.com/buddhabrains ) check it out. During my tour with Cornell at the House of Blues, hours before my show i had the first of what would become many seizures and was rushed to the hospital. Shortly after i checked myself out and played the show without a hitch just to be fired later by the band once they could find a replacement (thats support from your band huh). Turns out in my late 20's early 30's i developed adult onset epilepsy very badly which anyone can get anytime for no reason! This became hard to deal with for me physically and emotionally, All my bands stood by me except for the guys from Black Market Radio who had the nerve to do an interview an say i OD'ed before that show and was fired; ah you must love the rock & roll ego's some people have they would not want epilespy making their band look bad. Anyway Im hear to tell others who my have epilepsy not to let it get you down because i know how much i lost and how depressed i was when my world crashed. Oh and my girl of 4 years left me soon after as well.
I have had many big seizures once i stopped breathing. And yes i had to take a brake from my passion in my life which was music. I was on top of the world playing in 3-4 bands touring and recording in some of the biggest studios money can buy but it can all go away in the blink of an eye. So live, love and enjoy your talent to do what you do if you have the opportunity to do your music and your healthly. Im presently still battling epilepsy and take meds everyday, Im working on another record and Im making an acoustic record. The up's and downs of all this have been crazy and i now help the epilepsy foundation with other celebs, to raise money and attention; our spokes person Paul the piano player from the David Letterman Late Show has been helping, as well as many others like Prince who recently told the world about his struggle with epilepsy.
Im hoping others will speak out and hoping artists and bands will get involved in functions we have for epilepsy and on purpleday which is national epilepsy day. I will be posting some of my songs on this site with the words and cords, please goto my website for more information on all this and please check out the links page for the www.purpleday.org link for events to help get involved. And also respond here as well.
My name is Jason S FIlyaw and Im a Singer, SongWriter, Musician with Epilepsy!! Come talk if you have a similar problem, or know someone who does.
please visit my site and lets help these foundations-
And Bands out there work with your band mates if they have epilepsy, try and show some support as long as they can play and perform their duties as a band mate epilepsy is no instant reason for getting rid of them.
www.jsfilyaw.com
