Jaycee Cuijpers (Praying Mantis): Carpe Diem



Every new record of Praying Mantis who represent the softer side of NWOBHM is always quite an event in rock music. The band hasn’t released a weak or a bad album and keeps on delivering a bulk of hits with every new CD. “Gravity” is the second album for the singer John “Jaycee” Cuijpers and the drummer Hans In’t Zandt. I’ve seen Mantis twice — at Aero Rock Starz in Bulgaria and at Headbangers Open Air in Germany where the above mentioned pair made their debut in the band. A few weeks ago i was able to talk briefly to Jaycee about the new album, the first live show with Mantis and some other topics.


As far as I understand, you have finished the recording of the new album. So how did it go?
It wasn’t easy and it took some planning but it worked out fine!

Where the album has been recorded? Did you fly to the UK or did you work on your parts alone?
We recorded some vocals in London and some in Belgium and of course the rough vocal lines or ideas I recorded at my house or at Hansie’s house as sort of a guide line.

Was there something you had to struggle with a little bit?
I had laryngitis and had to take antibiotics and wasn’t able to sing properly while i was in London for recordings but after a couple of days all went well. We therefore had to do some extra vocal recordings in Belgium.


Tell me a bit about the songwriting process in the band. Did you use any ideas which left from the previous release?
To be honest we didn’t so there are still some songs on the shelf for the next album.

What songs were written first? Were there any songs which you had to rework many times?
Because we all work separately on songs I don’t know which song was written first but most of them were almost right from the first takes. Some parts were reworked but that is normal after listening to it a couple of times. "Shadow Of Love" almost didn’t make it to the album because all of us were not satisfied about it. The very last day in the studio we reworked it and gave it some extra cojones and we all loved it (it’s the only song all 5 of us collaborated!!!)

Do the Troy brothers accept your ideas or are they very determined writers? Are there songs on the new album which are based around your ideas or entirely written by you?
It’s a band effort and we feel like family so everybody has got their input and they are very open to suggestions and ideas I suggested. Because of my busy schedule I did not have too much time to write songs but I did "Time Can Heal" with Andy. Some ideas are still on the shelf for later albums. 

I can only guess the meanings of the lyrics, so can you comment on the songs “Time Can Heal”, “39 Years”, “Ghosts of the Past”?
“Time Can Heal” is about making choices in your life and if a choice turns out bad you know that time can heal all wounds. I lost my father and son a couple of years ago and maybe if there were other choices made they would still be alive. Some things can be influenced and some can’t. I wrote the lyrics and vocal melody.
“39 Years” is about a man being in prison for 39 years and it turned out he is… innocent! So he got his freedom back but lost 39 years of his life.
“Ghosts of the Past” tells that some things in life happen and you would rather forget them or wished they never happened but they are a part of you no matter what.

What is the idea with the title “Gravity”? I understand the album is called after one of the songs but why especially this song?
We already had the album title in2016 because we wanted to have a catchy name like Legacy but give it some extra weight. The idea for the song was written while we were in Chania, Greece, 2016 when we were walking over the boulevard.


What are your touring plans? Have you ever been asked to play in Russia?
Our booking agent is working on a tour end of 2018 through Europe and there are plans for South America, North America, China and Japan but it all depends on the financial aspect of things. Unfortunately we have never been to Russia but we’d love to!!!

Last year you played some shows with Lionheart in Japan where both bands have a huge following. What are your best memories about the trip and the shows?
We love Japan and the guys from Lionheart were real friends so we had loads of fun and the fans are amazing. They know every song by heart!!

Touring life can be really tough and dangerous. What have been the scariest moments of your career?
Yes it can and the most scary thing is when you see accidents on the road and thank god we haven’t experienced it ourselves.

It’s been 5 years since you joined the Mantis. Name 5 brightest and exciting events or moments which happened to you as the singer of the band.
Being recognized as a lead singer and the compliments from all over the world…I have been fighting for recognition for over 35 years and besides Praying Mantis doing some great projects with Ayreon and other bands/musicians. I cannot name 5 because all events are exciting to me. I try to enjoy all moments in life and give every show 200 %. Tomorrow could be my last day so my motto is: Carpe Diem.

Do you remember your first show with Praying Mantis? As far as I remember you had only a few days to learn the songs. What was your state of mind back then? Were you nervous?
Yes it was Headbangers Open Air Festival in Germany. I just was on holiday in the south of France and as my wife and kids went to the beach I was listening to the songs. I came back a few days early for this festival and of course I was nervous but I knew I had to give it all and I did so the rest is history.

Do you remember how you got in touch with the band? Were you surprised when they approached you? Why did you decide to give this chance a go? What points convinced you to join the band?
I was playing the Very Eavy festival in The Netherlands with my Iron Maiden tribute band called Harris and also Dennis Stratton was joining us on stage for a few songs. He played with Praying Mantis on the same festival just before us and stood and watched us play. The guys watched the show and said to each other “We definitely need a singer like Jaycee” and two days later I got an email from Chris asking if I would be interested joining the band? They knew that if Mike Freeland was out the band the drummer Gary (Mackenzie) would leave because they are best friends so they asked me if Hans would be able to join as well. They send me a demo version of “Eyes of a Child” and would base their judgement on me singing that song because they only heard me singing Iron Maiden songs. I always dreamt about being in a band and touring all over the world making records and doing millions of shows but it never really happened so the decision to join Praying Mantis was easy and they are great amazing guys!

The band has very impressive back catalogue with a lot of singers. Who is your favorite singer of Praying Mantis? Whose vocal parts you like best?
I don’t have a specific favorite singer and I can only base my judgement on recording material and then I would say Mark Thompson Smith but my personal influences are David Coverdale and Ronnie James Dio just to give you an idea of what I like.  

Please say a few words to your fans.
It has been a great ride so far and would love to meet as many fans as possible!! See you on the road somewhere and thanks for accepting me to the Mantis Clan. All my love and stay safe, healthy and enjoy life as much as possible. Stay positive!

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