He who played in Nirvana and Soundgarden and then ended up in the army

Jason Eveman He played guitar and bass in a couple of groups that made the history of grunge music and beyond, then left everything and entered the army.

In 1989 he joined the Nirvana As second guitar and also finished the registration sessions of their first album “Bleach” And, although he hasn’t actually played on the disc, appears in the credits. He played on tour with the Cobain group in support of the album, but then was fired.

After which he entered the Soundgarden To play the bass after the abandonment of their founder bass player Hiro Yamamoto. He played with them on tour to support their second album “Louder Than Love” And then he left immediately after replaced by Ben Shepherd. He played in other bands for a short period, finally decided to leave the music and enter the army.

During an interview with Joe Rogan, Jason Eveman He explained that becoming a professional musician was not something he wanted to do. “I liked to play in the bands and I love playing, but at this level of punk rock you could never have earned to live. It was simply something fun to do.”

Everman recalled that when he joined the Nirvanathey were not so known-not even in the northwestern Pacific scene-like other groups such as Soundgarden And Mudhoney. It is said that Everman was fired by Nirvanabut his point of view is another: “At the beginning, I thought I could contribute creatively to the band, but then I came to the point where I understood that this would not have happened”, adding, during the interview, that there was a poor communication and passive aggression within the group. Even when he tried to contribute with ideas, Kurt Cobain He passed on it and focused attention on something he had written. In the end, dissatisfied with the situation, he left.

After the experience with i Nirvana Everman thought he was close with music and dedicating himself to something else. He dreamed of making a Himalaya holiday. But it happened that, “at the end of the summer of 1989, Kim of Soundgarden called me.” Thayil asked Everman if he wanted to make an audition instead of Yamamoto and, since i Soundgarden They were his favorite band from Seattle, he accepted. He did not expect to get the place, but that was also an experience that lasted little.

This time it was not his decision. “I was fired. It’s complicated, but I think in the end I didn’t get along very well with Chris (Cornell, ed) … And of course, who would have gone from the two?” Speaking with Avunt Magazine of the period in which Everman was part of the Soundgarden Kim Thayil He said: “Sometimes his mood changes led him to dissociate himself from the rest of us. We were perfectly able to manage him, but unfortunately he made it difficult to tie and merge as a unit and as a team, which we really needed. The loss of Hiro had really upset us.”

The only recordings of Soundgarden in which the bassist played were their cover of “As Together” of the Beatles and their home video “Louder Than Live”. A posteriori Jason Eveman He confides: “I would never have thought that they would become so famous and, sincerely, I was a little surprised when they succeeded. They were a great band, but I always thought they were a little too eccentric to become famous, despite the factor Chris. I loved that band and I loved playing with them, and seeing all this for a while really destroyed me.”

After being fired by Soundgarden A difficult moment passed, so he moved to New York to try to change things. “I found work in a warehouse, I took an apartment and started my life in New York. The plan was to get out of the period of depression in which I was.”

Even on the east coast he played in some bands, especially in Mind funk. In 1993, when he still played in the Mind funkhe returned to the West Coast and settled in San Francisco. He fell into the spiral of drugs and understood that the time had come to really change. He remembered that he was always very interested in military life because both his grandparents had served in the Second World War. “I endeavored to be actively author of my life … creating a life that kept me busy, interested and that was significant for me. So the army seemed more and more a practical option for that next page and for that next step.”

Basic military training began in 1994 and was selected for the 2nd Ranger battalion where he served for four years. He took a break for a few years, before enrolling again in the army. “I was at the qualifying course for the special forces when it was there on September 11. Everyone knew that everything was changing at that moment. This is 100%true.”

As, Jason Eveman He passed from playing rock music when I serve in Iraq and Afghanistan. “War and fighting were certainly the deepest experience of my life. I never had doubts that I could be injured or killed.”

After leaving the army, Everman returned to study. He studied philosophy at Columbia University and obtained a three -year degree. He moved to Argentina for a few years and returned to the United States. When, two years ago, the interview with Rogan came out, he said he mainly dealt with yacht deliveries and sailing. “I am really happy that things have gone as they went. I never look back and I say: ‘I would like to have been a rich rocker’. I am happy not to be for so many reasons. I think with all the heart to have come out better in every aspect. I am happier now, at 55, than it has never been in my whole life and every year it is better.”