Jon Wayne and the Pain

Jon Wayne and the Pain

Jon Wayne says, “I first met Mark Murphy in a hotel room in Duluth in 2003. After playing a couple of acoustic guitar jams I mentioned to him that I’d like to start playing shows. He told me to get off my ass and do it. What has kept us going as a band is that unexplainable blissed out phenomenon we get from people enjoying our music at live shows.

“Being a part of the Minneapolis music scene has helped getting us connections to play at various, more well known venues and opportunities to play with bigger and better artists & musicians. Our new record label “Healing Records” has helped tremendously with getting our name out there locally and within the Midwest.

“We think bands that we know and hang out with do push us to be better musicians as well as better human beings, but there isn’t too much competition within the genre of music we play. Reggae music as a whole, typically expresses unity and love so we don’t find ourselves being very competitive with other bands.

“Why Fargo? It’s where I first started writing music and first had a band (Happensoften in 2003-04). When we started Jon Wayne and The Pain in 2005 we just always loved playing here. The people and venues like the Nestor have always treated us so great we’ve continually returned.

“Bands we admire? Strictly musically, bands like Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, And Pepper have always inspired us in a creative way, but as far as message and intent bands like Matisyahu, Wookiefoot, and Spearhead have shown us a more inspiring spiritual path and lifestyle choice as musicians.

“We’ve gained an abundance of knowledge from Mark and JoJo of Wookiefoot, and we’ve learned a lot from trial and error. Today we’re just trying not to be Alligators (having a big mouth and no ears). We are always open to learning new things about the music business and about life.

“We would love to get a chance to go on a U.S. tour with Slightly Stoopid or Spearhead, and do a follow up tour on a national and global scale.

“2007 was a landmark year for us. We are moving past the whole sex, drugs, and rock and roll ideology that has crippled us as a band and as individuals in the past. We’ve been playing more shows in more cities than ever before. Things have really started coming together.

“More people have reacted to the song “Relax Myself Inside” than any other. Just the other day we got a myspace comment from a guy who just got out of treatment that said the song was helping him to stay sober. I have battled with heroin addiction and alcoholism myself, the music reflects that struggle, as well as the hope for recovery of addiction. Big Ups to friends of Bill and Bob and the Island Park Clique.

We produced “The Pain E.P.” in 2006 with John Baillie at 32 West Studios, otherwise known as the Playhouse. We are currently working on a new full-length album Produced by Mark Murphy at his house in South Minneap and at Winterland studios in New Hope. We’re really stoked to have the album done this spring. Our next venture will be getting our band involved with charity work and helping create something bigger than ourselves or our music alone. No matter what happens, in 2008 we will be making new things happen. We will be taking it somewhere else.