At the age of nine, Jerome and his dad went to buy his first drums. Inside the store, as his father bargained for a discount, the aspiring percussionist stood in front of a red drum kit and felt aroused (in a rhythmic way), with vivid visions of rockstardom. Eschewing homework for records and a solid, heavy beat, Jerome immersed himself under tutelage of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Rolling Stones and Sweet; however, Sweet turned out to be a bit soft for the young man’s taste – a problem quickly rectified by turning the record player’s RPMs to 45.
Jerome spent his formative years in the lush Norwegian countryside, with little to do beyond playing drums, hangin around rehearsal rooms, and making demos at a decrepit four-track port-a-studio known as “necro-studio”. In Bob Dylan-esque fashion, Jerome hopes one day to supplement his retirement income by releasing these basement tapes, if they can ever be located.
Adult musicians who wanted to teach the kids how to play dominated the music circuit in the area. Inevitably, the kids found adults boring, so they ditched the parental supervision and went in as opposite direction as possible, leading to Jerome’s unfortunate foray into head-banging metal. Seeing opportunity for profit and love, Jerome joined his first real band, a cover group that did a lot of local gigs. Being only fifteen, though, Jerome’s visions of a rock & roll lifestyle were foiled by being underage (and thus not allowed into many of the clubs they were booked for) and puberty (self-described pimples the size of marbles and squeaky rivaling Mickey Mouse. Despite this setback – every cloud has its silver lining – Jerome soon had an epiphany (that coverbands are cheesy) and gladly quit to pursue a career as writing and performing original scores. In addition, he made the move to the big city, Oslo, where he joined up with The Lovethugs.
Jerome describes having made two albums so far as the best experience of his musical life. He still approaches drumming with the exuberance and enthusiasm of little a kid, but now with the experience of an adult. Nevertheless, his best moments are live, on stage, when he can feel like “letting go”. As an original member of The Lovethugs, Jerome and his bandmates thrive on the fact that while the message is serious and the music is artistically ambitious, as a band they still maintain a vibe of playfulness and fun.