Words by Sean Moeller//Illustration by Shannon Palmer
Mondays were the best when Jed Maheu was at his former job, as the regional and tour publicist for Seattle’s Sub Pop Records. Mondays, however, could turn out to be Tuesdays or Thursdays depending on when the little greaser wanted to get offensive. We’ll just say mornings (though that really means early afternoons) were the best with Jed. He could be counted on to deliver some insane bowl of entertaining chatter about his previous night’s co-ed excursions that were often alive with implausible plot twists that sometimes got pornographic, but often just sounded like the Champ Kind monologue from “Anchorman” – “maybe go to Sea World, take my pants off…” His wacky adventures involved jumping out of windows, bizarre injuries and an encyclopedic array of other dastardly things that he really should have hired a stunt double for, in hindsight. He says that he’s embarrassed by his past transgressions now, admits they were his own and they helped to make him the man he is today – living in Los Angeles, doing freelance writing for the Seattle, OC and San Francisco Weeklies, running Dudes PR and hosting a love-oriented dating show (Cats & Dogs on www.friendsation.com) that has him being more of a rapscallion-version of Adam Corolla (without the callers), retelling of the kinds of stories that get shared over a case of beer and finding time to slide prank phone calls into the conversations for added spice. He once was the funniest indie rock public relations dogg in the business (working with the loverly Rogue Wave “when they had the hot bassist”) and still would probably take most bets (saying, “You’re on” to the wackiest things imaginable). Here he is, Jed Maheu.

The Daytrotter interview
Can you take me through how a basic episode of your show goes?

Well, the original idea of the show was to have it be kinda like a Loveline call in show, but hosted by a guy and a girl. We realized quickly that it wasn’t easy to get people to call in to a show that they had never heard of so we added some more elements to it. The show is basically discussions between Lindsey and I that include personal stories, phone calls, and then humorous bits that we come up with like prank calls etc…

How’s this Lindsey Jackson for a worthy adversary? Can you shake it up with her? Are you already wise to the right buttons to push with her?

Lindsey is very stubborn. More so then I am, so she is definitely a worthy adversary. I think I figured out which buttons to push within five minutes of meeting her. I have a great skill when it comes to angering women.

For so long you regaled all of us music journalists with accounts of your weekend excursions with the ladies, now you’ve found another job that pays you to dish out your dirtiness. How DO you do it?

I have to say I’m a little embarrassed about this question. I’m a couple years older now and I’d like to think that I’m more respectful of others, although I’m probably not. I’ve always been a class clown and I have no problem putting my foot in my mouth as long as people laugh. Sometimes it gets mistaken as I’m trying to be a jerk. I’m really not and actually really sensitive about what people think of me. That didn’t answer your question. The ladies like smart good looking guys like me.

Has your social life just gotten crazier since you started this gig (when did it start anyway?)? If it hasn’t, have you felt a need to escalate your carousing?

The show started in October of last year, I believe. Since we started doing the show Lindsey and I moved to LA. We’re kind of in a down period right now where we’re looking for another studio to do the show out of and trying to get sponsors, etc… It costs money to do the show and when you’re doing it entirely on your own it makes it difficult. That being said moving to LA makes your life instantly crazy.

What do you talk about on the show? How explicit does it get?

As of now the show is available online and in podcasts as well as a couple regular radio stations in the UK and Australia. That means we can pretty much say anything we want. I like to use foul language if it’s funny, but not if it’s just gross for the sake of being gross. We don’t get any raunchier then Howard Stern and again I have a female co-host so there aren’t any girls in the studio stripping or cavorting around. We’ve interviewed everyone from porn stars to people that work on Planned Parenthood. Most of the show revolves around our own lives though.

Why IS slutting it up different for dudes than it is for girls (a recent topic of discussion for Maheu and Jackson)?

I think a lot of girls go through a “slut phase.” Usually it involves their early 20’s and alcohol. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that at all. I’ve never really liked that term as far as it being negative anyway. I’d like a slutty girl more then a prude one any day. Until I start dating her of course. Then I want her to stay home, while I go to the bar with my friends.

Are your parents proud/excited about your new occupation?

My parents gave up on me a long time ago and by that I mean they are proud of me for whatever I want to do. Without them I wouldn’t be able to sit on this couch answering these questions while worrying about paying my rent. If anything I think I would have benefited from them being less supportive. They bought me every guitar, paint set, football equipment or whatever else my passion was at the time. They probably should have just told me to shut up and focus on something.

Do you miss Sub Pop?

Yeah, I do. I think about it a lot actually. I started working at Sub Pop when I was 19 and worked their about six years. It was like going to college, becoming an adult, dating the most popular girl in town, and constantly trying to figure what I wanted in life all at once. Sub Pop let me be myself, which is rare in an office setting. I feel very good to be where I am now and to have had that experience. The people there are truly great. There are a few of my favorite people in the whole world there.

Can you give me a brief account of your Postal Service gold record selling debacle? Was it a debacle? It seems to be how it was made out to be. Did Jimmy T or Ben G ever contact you about your actions?

I don’t know if it was a debacle as much as it was a joke that got blown out of proportion. Basically my friend and I were sitting around one night and we thought it would be really funny to put the gold record on eBay. I just wanted to see what would happen. We used to make these kinds of jokes at Sub Pop all the time, but when you work for someplace you can’t always go through with them without bumming someone out. For example, I heard that Sub Pop was thinking about selling Postal Service gold records on their site as a way of saying, “These things really have no value.” Of course they didn’t because what it comes down to is a lot of people worked hard on all aspects of that record and they deserve to be rewarded. Not everything has to be so stuffy or serious though. The parts I wrote about the music industry, swordfish, money etc… were all jokes. Everyone that knows me got it and most people who read it thought it was a joke. The problem is I’m an extremely talented writer. So talented that some people thought I was serious. Ben and I talked during the auction. I’ve always got on real well with him. He thought it was funny. Jimmy and I only really hung out during work stuff, but I’m pretty sure he didn’t mind either. By the way, I still have the gold record in storage if anyone wants to buy it.

“Cats and Dogs”:http://www.friendsation.com/blogs.php