According to The Pulse Of Radio, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Jason Hook told the Evansville Courier & Press that he owes a lot of his current success with one of heavy metal's most popular new bands to his stint as a member of Mandy Moore's touring band. Hook recalled, "When I moved to Los Angeles, I was broke. I just made a pact with myself that if I could just get into the field, I was going to take the job so I could learn whatever I could. It beat working at Home Depot. I had to beat out about 50 guys at the audition. And then it was like, 'Pack a bag! We're going on tour!' I was pretty happy about it, you know?"

Hook says he learned a lot working for the pop singer that he still applies to his job today, explaining, "The [Moore gig] taught me a lot: There were rules, you had to be on time, you had to be prepared, you had to be focused, you had to be responsible. It taught me discipline and how to work in that environment. I'm very grateful to have the history that I have. Some people think it's not cool, but that's OK. I had the option to do roof tiling and all that stuff. I just didn't want to."

The Moore job led to sideman gigs with Vince Neil and Alice Cooper before he landed in the lineup of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH.

Hook added that all the members of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH are "pretty disciplined. We're doing business during the day, constantly. We spend time making music and we're always trying to prepare new material. We're very proactive in that way. We set goals for ourselves. We don't just sleep all day and party all night."

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH is currently headlining the Trespass America tour, also featuring KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, TRIVIUM, POP EVIL and others. The trek pulls into Battle Creek, Michigan on Friday (August 3).