Singled Out: StrateJacket's Be My Drug

Keavin Wiggins | 03-04-2024

Northern California punky alt-rock trio StrateJacket just released their new single "Be My Drug", and to celebrate we asked singer-guitarist Jackson Roemers to tell us about the track. Here is the story:

I remember being perplexed by the Third Eye Blind self-titled debut album when I wrote "Be My Drug" back during the pandemic. The way the band wrote about love and addiction and how the two intertwined struck such a strong chord with me. I definitely wanted to write our own version of "Semi-Charmed Life" and take people on a journey.

I'm also obsessed with character and personality in narrative. I've never met an "Angie" per se but I know many people like her. Reactive, instantaneous in action and thought, always looking to turn small moments into big ones, I'm very attracted to all kinds of people like that so writing a song about an introvert making a reactive decision and an extrovert pulling someone out of their shell is sort of a personal vignette.

Recording the song in the studio changed the way we viewed our entire band's sound, our producer Brian Howes had this idea to combine electronic instruments with guitars, creating a sort of early 80s new wave sound for the instrumental hook in the post chorus. I remember he said it sounded like "punk rock Cars" (the band, of course) and that changed my perspective on how I wrote music going forward.

My buddy also told me that comparing lovers to drugs is basically a lyrical cheat code. Falling in love is an addiction but losing it is one of the worst withdrawals of all. "Be My Drug" is about what it feels like to get high on a person and the way they make you feel.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the band here