Justin Maurer has worked to earn longevity within the punk community, attributed to fronting Clorox Girls and LA Drugz, but his newest creative endeavor, J Mau & The Kiss Off, deviates from his usual songwriting by delivering more personalized lyricism supported by a dark Country music foundation. “I was going through a tough divorce and reached out to my favorite country records like Hank Williams and Gram Parsons. You have to grow creatively and not be stagnant,” said Maurer.
He believes country and punk share songwriting links such as themes of failure, uncertainty, and even rebellion. “I really feel both genres share that youthful enthusiasm and some rebellion. But for me, I feel capturing trials and tribulations within the lyrics is where they are most similar,” he said.
J Mau and The Kiss Off began as an outlet for Maurer to embrace his evolving lyricism, kick-started by a sense of loss from his divorce while feeling seemingly trapped in a new neighborhood that appeared to be tough on outsiders.
“At that time, I was living in Pico-Union, which is home to the notorious MS13 gang. I would hear gunshots, but luckily, no violence was directed at me. I eventually befriended some neighbors, and it turned out ok. I used the experience to write and had some characters as reformed criminals working to make amends,” shared Maurer. “The debut single and those writings feature tough protagonists, but they eventually find their way,” he added.
The debut single, Poison, is accompanied by a video paying homage to tough, uncompromising characters in spaghetti westerns, often played by actors like Lee Van Cleef. The video’s authenticity was achieved by filming in 8mm, courtesy of Maurer’s former bandmate, Zache Davis. The result successfully reinforces Maurer’s protagonist and drives home the image of tough, country music he works to create with his new band.
Born in LA, Maurer was introduced to Punk at a young age, with the subculture making a lifelong impact on him, before moving to the Pacific Northwest in 1994, where he discovered a new and robust DIY music community. He moved back to LA in 2010 and shared his thoughts on the city that helped the now iconic punk community grow, which ultimately gave way to the meteoric rise of gangster rap.
“People still categorize the area as some glamorous place to live, but the reality is, it’s a hard place to grow up. There’s always been a lot of pollution, police violence, terrible wildfires, and most recently, ICE raids that continue dividing communities,” said Maurer.
A self-described “creature of the west coast”, he is quick to celebrate the DIY music communities of Portland and Seattle that expanded his role within Punk. “The scenes were phenomenal, the shows were really awesome to play. After Kurt Cobain died and put the final nail in Grunge, the Punk scene saw a resurgence, and that really became my language, I finally felt I had a language of my own,” affirmed Maurer.
Growing up in an abusive home, Maurer was uniquely tasked with supporting and advocating for his deaf mother, noting that American Sign Language was actually his first language. “Growing up as a Child of a Deaf Adult (CODA) had me take things very seriously at an early age. My mother relied on me, and I didn’t feel resentment; it was something that had to be done. I learned that a lot of CODAs share similar experiences with first-generation immigrants. The challenges of adapting to a new society and the intense language barriers. I experienced all that with my mother,” reflected Maurer.
Maurer’s music career and his successful career as a sign language interpreter have obvious contrasts, but he carefully works through these dualities to achieve the same goal: communication. His creative journey within the punk subculture has rewarded him with a sense of longevity and creative purpose, while his career as an interpreter has enabled communication on larger stages, with the rewards being leveraged to push his music forward.
“I have worked on a lot of high-profile requests, like working alongside Michelle Obama, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. I always felt I was not serving famous people, per se, but really helping to provide access to communication for the deaf and hard of hearing. They will always be my priority. They are my clients,” said Maurer. He proudly shared his highest profile client is deaf actor Troy Kotsur, whom earned an Oscar for his role in the 2021 movie, CODA. Maurer worked with Kotsur at the 2022 Oscars and on dozens of television and film productions. He likens interpretation requests to a live band performance, despite different nuances, they can share similar challenges.
“There’s so much that goes into interpretation. Much like a show, I am onstage, and everything happens in real-time. I want to convey the emotions to the people, just like when I communicate through music.”
Maurer uses his talents to serve clients within hospitals and even employment interviews. “Significant challenges are associated with working with different populations that are really reliant on accurate interpretation. It has created a new sense of gratitude and empathy. Not sympathy, but a strong sense of inspiration because the clients are working to overcome communication barriers as seamlessly as they can, and I recognize that resiliency,” shared Maurer. He shared his own resiliency by leveraging his writing to create Falling on Deaf Eyes in 2019, an autobiographical play that detailed his life growing up in a small town, supporting his deaf mother, and his discovery of punk.
He says plans are in the works for additional J. Mau & The Kiss Off releases, but music plans can quickly turn into a ‘hurry up and wait’ outcome. “Of course, things don’t always go as planned within music. I know a record can be completed, and it could easily take a year before being released. With this group, I like the ability to write in new ways. Vocally, it’s still me, but the delivery is different, and it’s always good to creatively grow.”
Clorox Girls, whom Maurer affectionately terms his ‘first love,’ have recently been playing live again and returned to Portland for the first time in years, bringing their raucous live show to an audience that gladly returned the favor. “It was a full-circle moment, since these are songs I wrote when I was only 19. The crowd was at the right level, and they went off from the first notes. When I first discovered Punk, I finally felt I had discovered my own language, and it still feels cathartic to play onstage,” concluded Maurer.
https://jmauandthekissoff.bandcamp.com/track/poison
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fBvGsOxQMM
Photo: Zache Davis
