Everything you ever wanted to know about the Killswitch Engage singer but were too afraid to ask. Get your Download tickets!

Where and when were you born?
Howard Jones: “Good old America. Somewhere in the middle. Ohio. I miss America! And I’m pretty sure it was a Tuesday!”

Do you have any siblings?
Howard: “I have four. There’s Kevin, Derrick, Dray and my sister TL.”

What do your parents do for a living?
Howard: “What did my dad do? Well, I think he abandoned me… My mom worked for the State. She worked for the department of health.”

What is your first childhood memory?
Howard: “That’s a tough question. I have no idea! I have a lot of memories, but I’m not sure which order they’re in. I guess my favourite early memory is when I went to my grandma’s house in New York. I think I was about three or four. It was in New York, it was a little warm out and they opened up a fire hydrant out on the street.”

Have you ever had nightmares?
Howard: “I had this recurring nightmare where I was hanging out with Shaggy, Scooby and the gang and we were on a boat. And I believe Shaggy knocked my lunch pail over the side and I had to dive into the water to get it. There was this dinosaur in the water who then proceeded to eat me. So I fought him for a while, and then I just said, ‘OK, fine. Just go ahead and swallow me, but no chewing’. Then I start going down his throat and I woke up. I remember having that dream at least four or five times.”

What’s your relationship with your parents like?
Howard: “I get on well with my mother. She gave up commenting on the way I dress pretty much after the whole tattoo thing!”

Have your parents influenced who you are today – either positively or negatively?
Howard: “To some extent I’m sure. I think I’ve probably followed a different route to than what was expected. A very much different route to what was expected. My mother was a combination of strict and liberal. I could do what I wanted as long as I abided by her rules – paying attention to times and places.”

Who was your role model when you were growing up?
Howard: “I think the first was Zenith, then RCA, I then I think it moved on to Sony. So basically just different TVs. I was addicted to TV. I’d pretty much watch everything, especially as a kid. I started off with cartoons, then got a little older, still watched cartoons and got into stuff like sitcoms. And now I’m older, I’m still just freakish about The Simpsons! I don’t think anyone understands how much I’m into The Simpsons. Other than the new episodes that have just aired in the States, I think I have every single episode on tape. I’ve also got a couple of thousand of dollars worth of Simpsons toys at my place too. It’s all coming out now!”

What was school like for you?
Howard: “It was OK. Not really the happiest days of my life. I’d say 19 was the happiest time of my life. That was good stuff. If I could relive that again, it’d be great.”

What were your main creative outlets as a teen?
Howard: “I don’t think I’m very creative. I write songs, but that’s about it. Actually, I’d say probably the most creative outlet for me was/is escapism. I’ll grab a book and be gone. I love doing interviews when they ask you, ‘so what music do you listen to at the moment?’ and they’re shocked when I tell them I listen to talking books rather than music! I have somewhere like between 75-100 books on CD and tape. That’s usually what I listen to, but I prefer books more. And I think I actually own a few hundred books too – I read quite a bit. I like to get stuff from friends or out of the library. I used to live in the library when I was a kid – and if it’s good enough material, I’ll definitely read it again and I’ll probably buy it. I’ve bought some books and then actively gone out and bought it on tape because I enjoyed it so much.”

What did you do after high school?
Howard: “I did lots of crappy jobs and started doing bands. I think the crappiest one was driving and washing cars for a car rental place. That sucked. I also used to work on a grass farm. You know the big chunks of grass people buy to redo their lawns? I used to have to cut them. They’d plough the field with a tractor and whip up 75-100 chunks of grass and dirt and I’d stack them on pallets all day long. I’d have earthworms embedded under my fingernails.”

When did you realise being a singer could be a career?
Howard: “I still don’t know about that dude! This is a pretty fantastic job, it really is. And I try to convey that to people. I get to yell and sing and hang out with friends. I get to meet people and get to see the world. It’s fantastic. I can’t fathom how some guys in bands get big headed and get really cocky and think that they’re so self important. Fella, you’re one sucky album away from getting a regular job again!”

When did you have your first alcoholic drink?
Howard: “Probably when I was 19 or 20, but I don’t drink now. It’s been a long time. I haven’t thought about drinking in ages. I doesn’t weird me out in social situations though. Most of the band likes to drink. Some a little and some a lot. But I can still hang out with the guys who drink a lot.”

Is there a difference between the way you are and the way you’re perceived by others?
Howard: “I’m probably a lot more mellow than a lot of people realise! There are things that you get angry and frustrated about, but you can write about that in songs. I’m pretty happy. I’m pretty secure in who I am and I really have nothing to get that angry about! I get to see the world. I’m hanging out with friends and making new ones, seeing the world and talking to kids who’ve really enjoyed the show, so how can I be consistently angry?”

Download will take place on June 12th – 14th at Donington and will feature sets from Faith No More, Slipknot, Def Leppard, Whitesnake, The Prodigy, Limp Bizkit, Motley Crue, Marilyn Manson, Korn, ZZ Top, Down, Journey and many, many more.

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