My Greatness supposes that the best place to start is with Vinnie. After Vince died, was the initial intent to continue on with the band or call it quits?

DUGAN: Initially, we thought it was over for the band. We were in such a state of shock We stayed that way for about three months.

What inspired you to begin again?

DUGAN: The undeniable spirit of what we do purveyed. We just knew we had to continue. It’s what Vince would have wanted. He would have wanted us to continue on with our lives. It’s in our blood to write and play music. We are just fortunate we were able to accomplish what we did with Vince.

In looking for a replacement for Vince, were you looking for someone who was like him or completely different?

DUGAN: We really didn’t know what we were looking for. We were trying out a bunch of different people. It all came down to finding someone that felt right. Jerry seemed to fit the bill. He was real sincere. He’s honest about everything and totally behind all his music. I think you can hear it when he sings.

Tell me the process in which Jerry became the lead singer

JERRY: Actually a friend of the band named Riki Timmon is responsible. She took me to a TYFOID MARY show. I saw Vinnie play with them. I met everyone in the band and thought they were all cool guys. Vinnie died like a month later. Ricki had invited me go to a couple of benefits they had on behalf of Vinnie, but I didn’t have the balls to go. I’ve lost people in my life and I know how hard that can be. A couple of months down the road, she told me they were looking for a new lead singer. I had listened to their music and I was like, “Well I like the music and I like the guys, so fuck it, I’m gonna go try out.” So I ended up trying out a couple of times. They were bringin’ people in before me and after me. Finally, they just stuck with me.

Were you afraid of having to live in Vince’s shadow?

JERRY: I’m usually not scared to do shit. But when I came down here I knew it was some tough shoes to fill. Everyone loved TYFOID MARY. You can’t replace Vinnie. He was a fuckin’ character, man. I only met him one time, but I could feel his aura kickin’ on me, you know? I was like, “This is my kind of fuckin’ cat right here.” I knew as I was going into this, that everyone was fuckin’ traumatized and a lot of people would try to fill his shoes. So, I try to do his songs respectfully, but to be honest, my attitude has never been to try to replace him or compete with the memory people have of him. I try to do his songs respectfully. As far as the new Tyfoid songs we are coming out with, I try to put a little Tyfoid’ love in there along with some of my own barbecue sauce.

You sound remarkably like Vinnie at times.

JERRY: God blessed me with a voice I can change a lot. I can do a lot of different voices. Vinnie’s voice was like an Ozzy voice. I try to get close to it, but I can’t quite nail it. I listen to his lyrics though, and they are incredible. I have respect for any fuckin’ singer that writes the way he did. I still get chills sometimes when I sing “Once I get there.” That’s fuckin’ Vinnie’s song.

Speaking of Vinnie’s lyrics, how do your own lyrics compare theme wise and stylewise to his?

JERRY: Because I have a lot of anger, my lyrics are about getting my frustrations out. I know a lot of fuckin’ singers do that. At the same time, my lyrics are very heartfelt. There’s one about my Dad, there’s one about my Ex, there’s one about women in general. Then there’s songs…in “Circle Down,” I went up into the mountains and watched the sunset. I wrote what I was feeling at the time. I do have really deep stuff in me, like on the “Symptoms” album, but that will probably come out on the next album. This one is more about getting out there, punching people in the face and proving something.

What was the fans initial reaction to you?

JERRY: It’s funny, cuz the more shows we played, the more Tyfoid fans came out to see if I was really doing a good job. We started to gain respect and now it’s starting to blow up again.

SCOTT: A lot of people had given up on us at first. They didn’t think Jerry could do it. We all knew he could and he’s proven it. We never heard one negative comment.

DUGAN: Sometimes people don’t come out and say exactly what they are thinking at the time because the issue might be too sensitive. But everyone had their opinion. Over the last couple of months a lot of older TYFOID MARY fans – one’s that were maybe skeptical at first, having been coming up and giving major props to Jerry and the rest of the band.

Were you guys afraid to NOT hire Jerry as your new lead singer out of fear he would kick your ass?

(Laughter)

DUGAN: Jerry kick my ass? I don’t think so. I’d pulverize him. (laughs)

Are you like on of those little yappy dogs that bites at someone’s heels? (much laughter)

DUGAN: (barks like a little yappy dog, followed by more laughter). You know, Jerry is such a cool motherfucker that it never comes up. We relate on a fuckin’ higher level dude. We have a lot of respect for each other. We are like brothers.

Well how ’bout this? Did you hire Jerry because you knew you’d get on my website faster if you hired a big, 6 foot 5 former Marine, which you knew would turn me on?

(Laughs)

DUGAN: Well, now that you mentioned it, that did weigh heavily into our decision to hire Jerry (more laughter).

I thought so! Speaking of Marines, tell me a little about that world, Jerry.

JERRY: I went straight into the Marines out of High School. I was sick of my family, sick of playing football and sick of my friends. I thought, “fuck it, I’m gonna be the baddest motherfucker alive,” which is what the recruiters fed up my ass. I don’t like to talk about The Marines too much because it’s kind of personal, but I did see a lot of good action.

What don’t you want to talk about?

JERRY: I lost some friends. It’s really personal. I experienced a lot of good things too. I made some of the best friends I’ll ever meet.

You got the Black Flag tattoo as a result of being in The Marines, correct?

JERRY: We were stationed in a hostile desert area. Every morning we would get pumped up by listening to some Black Flag. So I got a Black Flag tattoo along with seven of the those guys that I left the Marine Corps with.

It’s a good thing that those guys didn’t get pumped up every morning listening to Backstreet Boys

(Laughter)

JERRY: Dude, we were in a hostile environment with live weapons. If someone would have woke me up with Backstreet Boys there would have been some friendly fire (more laughter).

Is there anything you gained from The Marines that helps you in life?

JERRY: There is a lot of honor and discipline in the Marine Corps. There’s also a lot of work. I work my ass off. I’m totally honest. I don’t lie. I’ll stand up for anyone that’s close to me, but if you cross me once, it’s over. I learned how to be an idiot, but at the same time stand up for myself. I had a lot of anger, but I learned to release it through fighting a lot, because that’s what Marines do.

Oooh, how hot. How do the rest of you deal with handling stress?

SCOTT: I used to go out with my rollerblades and hockey stick and hit pucks around until I broke my stick. Once it was broken, I’d go home. Lately I’ve found alcohol is pretty good to me (Laughs)

IGOR: I feel very blessed to be alive. I don’t stress too much about anything. As long as I get to play music, which is what I love, I’m happy. Since I get to do that, I think my life is fuckin’ amazing. I don’t let the crap of the world get me down. I’ve been depressed before. I don’t need it in my life.

How do you relieve stress Dugan?

DUGAN: (sings his answer) SeeeeEEEEEeeeeeEEEEeeeeeEeEEXXxxxxXXXXX!

(Everyone laughs)

You remind me of (Muppet character) Animal when I watch you on the drums.

DUGAN: You aren’t the first person to say that (laughs) I need to get an Animal tattoo or something.

Jerry, let’s pretend for a second that Dugan and you were both gay lovers. Would you feel embarrassed having a lover that is as small as Dugan in comparison to your big body?

JERRY: Well, I love petite women, so if I were homosexual, Dugan would work for me. (Laughter). But I don’t think someone his size could say no to someone my size anyway (more laughter). I’d be like (In a deep growl) GET OVER HERE!!

I think it would be some funny shit if it were the other way around and you were Dugan’s bitch.

JERRY: Yeah, it would be like in the Southpark movie with Satan and Saddam Hussein. (Imitates “South Park” Saddam) “Shut up bitch and take it like a man!”

(Everybody roars with laughter).

You are one of the few Marines I’ve met that doesn’t have a problem with homophobia.

JERRY: I used to. But I dated a girl who had a lot of gay friends. I was like, “It’s Ok, as long as you all don’t hit on me all the time.”

So you’re saying it would have been OK if they hit on you part of the time?

JERRY: There was this one guy who would say “You’re like a big jungle gym. I want to crawl all over you.” (Laughter)

Igor, you are other new member of the band. How did you land the gig as their bassist?

IGOR: I actually auditioned for Rocket Ajax, but didn’t get the gig. Ryan got the gig, but told me that TYFOID MARY was auditioning for a bass player. I called Dugan and a week later I was here. I guess I was good enough because I’m still here. So thanks Ryan!

SCOTT: Igor is actually a better guitarist than I am so I don’t know why he’s playing bass. He is the most incredible musician I’ve ever met.

I know it’s a delicate topic, but my website is about honesty. Let’s talk about Ryan Morrow, your former bassist.

DUGAN: Ryan has been my best friend for ten years. We were in Hallucinasia together. I was fortunate enough to have him and Vinnie come to my door and ask me to be the drummer for TYFOID MARY. The whole reason I’m in this band is because of Ryan.

How sweet and pathetically mortal! However, I want to know the dirt on Ryan leaving the band.

SCOTT: It doesn’t do any good to talk bad about anyone….but we’ll let Jerry tell the story (much laughter)

JERRY: I’m not going to be mean, but I got close to Ryan real quickly. I thought everything was going great. But he was lying to us behind our back. He was playing with Rocket Ajax behind our backs. I got pissed off and so did everyone else. He came down and told us he was going to play with us, but then he came back after we left and got all his shit (equipment). He took all of Vinnie’s stuff as well. I’m sorry, but the truth fuckin’ hurts. Ryan, I was good fuckin’ friends with you and I still like you, but that’s what fuckin’ happened dude. But you know what? I don’t fuckin’ regret it. When he walked out of here, we got Igor, which in my eyes is a far fuckin’ better bass player than Ryan ever was. Hail Tyfoid, hail Igor!

SCOTT: There always has to be drama with us Rock and Roll bands when someone leaves. You try to make is amicable as possible It doesn’t always work out that way though. It’s unfortunate how a lot of the stuff went down. I still consider Ryan a friend and I talk to him all the time. I wish him the best. I’m happy for him and I wish Rocket Ajax the best as well. They are one of my favorite bands and one of the best local bands out of Denver.

Let’s talk about the new CD, “Nu Strain.” How does it compare to “Symptoms”?

IGOR: That’s a tough one because basically, I think it’s a brand new band. I came into all of this very late. I joined the band in April (2002). I didn’t know Vinnie and I hadn’t even heard of this band until I joined ’em. So I think of this a brand new band, but one that is building on what TYFOID MARY was before.

SCOTT: It was strange recording “Nu Strain.” It felt really good though. Some of the songs really come across like “Kitty Hospital.”

I love that song!

DUGAN: A lot of people do. But a lot of people also hate it. It’s the one song on the album that everybody has an opinion about.

SCOTT: That and “Cavity Creeps.” I think it shows that we are able to have a lot of fun with our music. Musically, I think “Nu Strain” is every bit as good as “Symptoms.” Everything sounds great. Mark Obermeyer of Rudy’s Studio did an awesome job.

DUGAN: It’s a very diverse album. We have some really heavy stuff as well as some stuff that’s more just Rock. It all has a degree of heaviness, but we like to spread things out and have a lot of different sounds. “Over The Rainbow” is a track on the album that was written by Vinnie. It’s a quiet song. It features Vinnie’s girlfriend, Jennifer Beiknana sharing vocals with Jerry. Johnny Bollack, Mark Obermeyer and Jonny Redman played on it.There are a lot of people we want to thank that were connected to the album. Morris from Hapiskratch has been unbelievable. There aren’t enough words to thank Bill Terrell. He’s incredible. Nick Jackson, from ThroCult did the artwork. He did a tremendous job. Mark Obermeyer of Rudy’s Studio.

What’s your opinion of the local scene?

JERRY: We have gotten nothing but mass-fuckin’ love from all the fans. We’ve had total support from all the bars around here as well. Bill Terrell of Rogue has been totally fuckin’ cool to us. He’s always hooked us up. I appreciate how close all the fuckin’ bands are around here. I’ve been in bands before where there is always a rivalry with other bands. It’s like, “Fuck them, I’m not helping them out! We’re better than them.” I swear to God it’s different in Denver. Everyone that’s down here at the DAV (a building with numerous rehearsal spaces) is like fuckin’ family. I don’t know half these motherfuckers from my ass. They are all fuckin’ cool. They totally hook us up, you know? Everyone’s great. I love that fuckin’ camradry between the bands.

DUGAN: I totally agree. I can’t remember a time when there were as many really good bands as there are now. Not only are they good fuckin’ bands, as in Heavy Metal bands, but there is such a good family atmosphere between them as well. The whole Rock scene is made up of people being friends with each other. If there is a local band that sees other bands as competition, they are the oddballs. They are on the outside because we are all friends. If a new band comes along, they kind of get welcomed into the circle too. We’re all jammin on stage and trying to get gigs with each other. I’ve lived in many cities and I’ve never felt such a family atmosphere. I’m glad to be a part of it.

Is TYFOID MARY Nu Metal?

JERRY: Actually, if you listen to the guitar licks in “Symptoms,” TYFOID MARY is still fuckin’ hard. Right now, I’ve changed my voice to add some melodic end, but when everybody comes to a show they know are stuff comes across as heavy. If we are on a bill with bands like Brutal Infliction and Rogue – who I consider very heavy, people are still down with our music. I wouldn’t say we are totally, Metal, Metal, but somehow we fall into that category. There’s some kind of Nu Love sound in there. We’re Tyfoid’, we’re different. That’s how Symptoms started out. It was way different.

If you guys had to all leave Metal and a be in a band of a different kind of music, what would it be?

IGOR: Actually, I play all sorts of music. I’ve had the pleasure and opportunity to play Jazz, Pop, Latin, as well as Metal. I love to play music regardless of style. I love playing music with great musicians. It doesn’t matter if it’s Death Metal or Polka

JERRY: Polka? (Laughter)

IGOR: It could be a wedding band. As long as I get to play with great musicians, it’s all beautiful. I’ll play music until the day I die.

DUGAN: If I had to do something other than Metal, I would be in a band that only did acoustic versions of songs from the Soundtrack for “Grease.” (Laughter).

SCOTT: I would do stuff like Stevie Ray Vaughn. He’s one of my favorite guitarists. I had the pleasure of seeing him and Lonnie Mack in Laromy Wyoming. We drove through a blizzard. They closed the road behind us. We drove through it anyway just to go see him.

Jerry?

JERRY: I’d do Punk music all the way! I’ll be a punk rocker until the day I die!

My last question is for Jerr-bear. Jerry pretend we are on “The Homosexual Dating Game.” You are bachelor number one. This is the final question and you need to impress me with your answer in order to win. What qualities do you have that make you a better date than bachelor number two and three?

JERRY: First of all, I love candlelit dinners, moonlight walks and shopping at Bloomingdales (Laughter). I like diversity in my sex. I like to get wild. I like objects like cap guns and big, foam, red, cowboy hats! (Everybody Laughs). I like to slap ass. I believe in chains, whips, chips, dips, candle wax and barbed wire underwear. I believe in screaming, moaning, whistling, hissing, licking, smacking, fucking, sucking…and…I enjoy crocheting!

(Everybody laughs)