Did you know Jeff Hardy had a music project? Yes, the extreme acrobatic wrestler with the crazy style! Why, of course you already knew! It's his band called PeroxWhy?Gen -- one of the dumbest names in the history of music. You've heard some of their songs and you know the deal -- they kinda suck... they are the opposite of Jeff Hardy -- skinny, unkept, and unoriginal. But guess what! More than 6 years before their first release (Similar Creatures), Jeff Hardy put out some demo tracks and they sound like nothing we have heard before. These demos are unique in their lack of awareness and the dirty overly-compressed industrial instrumentals. Hear for yourself:
Little is known on whether Jeff wrote and produced the music, himself, or if someone else was involved. The instrumentals sound like they were made by someone who doesn't have much experience making or recording music. The drums and synths are crudely cranked up and compressed together so tightly that it's sometimes difficult to distinguish any specific instrument. Contrast that with Jeff's nonchalant singing and you get something truly unique. He also has a melodic approach and delivery that's very unusual (maybe because he didn't have any musical training). Being oblivious to "the rules" of music is what makes these tracks special, and that's an exception, because usually, this approach leads to disaster.
In 2006 some of these demos were released as a special feature on a DVD (the third disc in the box set MATT & JEFF HARDY: ULTIMATE INSIDERS). But people cared so little about Hardy's music that the publishers got the song titles mixed up. We had to carefully listen to the lyrics to make sure we had the correct names.
Track highlights
"Another Me" is a demo that was later turned into a "studio" nu-metal song on the "Similar Creatures" EP. It's fascinating how different the final version sounds. We prefer the first version for its bizarre tension-rich instrumental and Jeff's creative take on the vocals. And holy shit, this song is written in A# Locrian! It's rare to hear songs in that musical mode, because of how difficult it is to work with.
"In Tune" is another interesting number. I love the irony of Jeff's flat singing during the chorus: "In tuuu-une". The bass line also does something weird that's totally out of tune. But it sounds great nonetheless!
The beat and percussion in "Challenges" are pretty sweet, with drum sounds changing every other measure, and the reversed cymbals creating a fluid motion of the rhythm. The guitars also serve a percussive purpose here. The vocals are entertaining and catchy, especially the way Jeff sings "an invitation to a party!". "Love" is another track with a notable beat - it's heavy, distorted, and well-spaced out, because of the clever positioning of the kick drum. The synth lead is also sick, especially when the same melody gets doubled in a different scale for a weird dissonant effect that sounds like multiplying bacteria. And we know love is all about spreading disease, so this makes perfect sense in the context of the song!
"X-World" is a song that goes beyond scales -- the main tune seems to be in C# Neopolitan, the bassline rocks in C# Phrygian, while the vocals transcend scales, or so it seems! There's a low-register backing voice that speaks the lyrics, sort of like hip-hop ad-libs -- except, it's unsettling and creepy. Curiously, the track "Not Me At All" uses the same modal mixture between C# Neopolitan and Phrygian. Never had we heard industrial/rock music adopting the Neopolitan mode before!
Rating: Why? / 10
PeroxWhy?Gen began as something alien to this world. Few people understood its accidental genius. However those who know now, take great inspiration from listening to these poorly-produced demos. Props to Jeff Hardy for pushing the limits of music.
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