Tuned in to punk

>> MusiquePlus VJ likes
his bands loud and local

by CHRIS BARRY

Name: Rej Laplanche

Age: 31

Occupation: MusiquePlus VJ

Bio: This hunky Verdun stud and former rock-climbing instructor started out life as an army brat, living in 14 different Canadian towns before finally winding up at the University of Moncton to study communications/journalism. After paying his dues hosting college radio, Rockin’ Rej arrived in Montreal to convince the bigwigs at MusiquePlus what they really needed was a show devoted exclusively to punk rock. “So we started doing 1-2-3 Punk once a week for half an hour, and now, seven years later, we do three new shows every week, we’ve sponsored three tours, two compilation albums—yeah, it’s pretty much taken off.”

Why he created 1-2-3 Punk: “Two reasons: one was to give fans a chance to see videos they never got to see in regular rotation, and two, to give all the hardworking bands from here some visibility. That’s the most important thing to me, pushing local bands, getting their names out there, getting more people to their shows.” When he’s hosting non-specialized MusiquePlus shows, does he ever just feel like saying, “Okay, here’s the latest bullshit record by the latest bullshit artist we’ve been told to plug, I know it sucks, but maybe you’re all just too stupid to know any better, so here y’all go, enjoy”? “Yeah, I often feel like saying stuff like that, but rarely do. But nobody makes me go on about the great new Fergie record or anything. I diss things sometimes. I can definitely give my opinion, so long as it’s not too rough. It’s certainly never imposed on me personally to endorse any record.”

Is being on TV as easy as it looks on TV? “Yes and no. For me, it’s a dream job, but yeah, it can be tricky. You have to be comfortable in front of the camera, you have to be prepared for your interviews, you have to know your music. You have to know your shit and be ready to host whatever show they ask you to—always ready to fill two or three minutes of airtime with something at least remotely intelligent to say.”

What’s worse, a surly, sarcastic guest or someone who freezes up in front of the camera? The latter. “I dunno, sometimes it’s for real but other times I think it’s just a show for the camera. You know, sometimes you’re talking to bands beforehand, shooting the shit, everything is going well, then all of a sudden you turn the camera on and they just close up, giving one-word, yes-or-no answers. That’s pretty tough. It’s like pulling teeth. Like Jet, they were pretty cool off-camera, but as soon as we went on air they got this whole ‘I don’t give a fuck’ attitude, which I didn’t really mind but it makes you see how some bands really want to push an image. Then again, it’s true they weren’t exactly the most talkative guys off-camera either, but you could definitely see a difference. “

Last book read: Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy.

Musical preferences: Green Day, Rise Against, Vulgaires Machins.

Words of wisdom: “You have one life to live so go have a Jagerbomb.”

Comments: Dimwit@openface.ca