I received a call from a fan today. Let’s call her Jess. (Handy, since that’s her name.) Jess heard a rough preview copy of Days From Evil, and she called to tell me that she really liked the vocals in the song Monsters.

Now, there’s people in this world who could hear an audio recording of all three members of Jagged Spiral getting kidney stones removed simultaneously without anesthetic and they would say it sounded good. (My mother, for example.) I’ve learned to take that praise with a pound of salt. Even within the band it’s sometimes difficult to be objective about the work of each other and ourselves.

But Jess is not afraid to tell us when something is not good, and more importantly, Why. Too loud. Too lame. Too [negative adjective goes here]. Because I know she’s not afraid to tell us the truth, I value her opinion much more than someone who is only positive (Sorry Ma) or only negative.