Band Members
Operation J features:
Photo by Swami
The Count: Drums, percussion, backing vocals
The Count is the rockin' drummer who drives the irresistible energy of Operation J's music. His fills have to be heard to be believed. Origianlly from New Jersey, the Count has been jamming here in Portland since 1995 in bands like Orgent Ange and Wonderfuel. The Count has been jamming with Jesse since October of 2003, and with Steve since way back in 1998.
Photo by Shovey
Androclesiastes Hokemanensis: Keyboards and synthesizers
Andy Hoke has learned music both ways: by studying it and by playing it for years. He is a veteran keyboard player who also graces the lineup of Flumergex and has been a member of Rogue Motel, MorF, The Burners, Ramblin' Rose and other fine groove/jam bands. Andy and Jesse have been jamming since February of 2003.
Photo by Swami
Screemin' Steve: Bass guitar and vocals
Steve Hovey is the talented musician and songwriter/ producer who is also the creative force responsible for the new monsters of rock: The Plushies. Steve has been rocking with The Count since 1998; together they've been through several bands and triumphant public performances. Check out their collaborations on the Plushies albums "Furbeast" and "Haunted Luau", available from Basementia Records. Steve first began jamming with Jesse and Andy in the fall of 2004.
Photo by Swami
Jessiah Maximus: Guitar and vocals
Jesse managed through sheer good fortune to bring these great musicians together in one band. Formerly a member of bands as diverse as the Burners and Motasm, Jesse studied jazz theory in college, taught music to high school students in Cairo Egypt, and is in all other ways a badass, if a somewhat silly one.
About Operation J
The OpJ Story
The group started off playing songs by guitarist Jessiah Maximus (hence the group's name) but with time, the songwriting became a distinctly collaborative effort, which yielded some of our best and most interesting material.
Visit our MySpace page! www.myspace.com/operationj
Our next public performance: March 28, 2009! Stay tuned for details!
That will be our first public performance since December 2005.
After that, our guitarist and our bass player both spawned, and our drummer's other band started gigging all the time; what was initially expected to be a brief hiatus has become a permanent vacation.
But the fun continues!! Operation J released their debut album in 2006: "Undercover Operations in the Name of JAST" is now available online from Basementia Records. Also, we are going through the archives and posting live footage on YouTube. The band's members continue to jam with each other and other people. Check out Flumergex for more musical fun in many new directions!
Some gig highlights from our glory days:
On 12-3-05 we were filmed by a five-camera crew for a local cable access show called Recycled Music; so you may have seen us on television.
On 12-11-05 Operation J headlined at the Twilight Cafe in Portland, a fun evening that also featured a performance by blues-rock band T. Ray and the Shades.
Samurai Duck in Eugene OR 11-4-05 with The Decliners
The Goodfoot Lounge on September 19 with T. Ray & the Shades and 21st Century Polymers (it was an open mic night)
The best party ever: we opened for Luminous Fog and The JB Allstars at a house party in Scappoose, OR on August 27, 2005. That was a ton of fun.
The Ash Street Saloon on April 3, 2005 with The Burners and American Roulette
We played several other venues and locations but no longer remember all the dates:
A house party for Kris D.'s birthday
New Year's Eve with T. Ray and the Shades
A house party with Twice Baked and T. Ray and the Shades
Dino's Inn on Hawthorne Blvd. with American Roulette
The Arnada Cafe in Vancouver, WA with The Plushies
It's confusing because most of the same guys were also in The Plushies with Jeff "Kelly Rexroth" Dickie, which was gigging a lot at the same time; and occasionally we would play double-headers on a single night, with The Plushies opening for Operation J, or vice versa. I know we played at The Tonic, but did we only play there as The Plushies, or did we ever play there as Operation J? I cannot recall. I know we played several times apiece at Dino's, The Ash Street, and the Arnada, but which band did we play as? Written records are scarce. I remember that we played at the famous Hawthorne Theater and we have a picture of the marquee sign to prove it but we were definitely The Plushies that night.