Jade Puget
The architect behind AFI's transformation from hardcore punks to dark, synth-laced rock icons, crafting anthems for a generation of outsiders.
Born 1973 (age 53)·American musician and producer·Birthday: November 28·Generation X
Biography
Jade Puget didn't just join AFI; he catalyzed its reinvention. A classically trained pianist turned hardcore guitarist, he entered the band in 1998, bringing a love for electronic music and a sharp pop sensibility that clashed perfectly with Davey Havok's gothic romanticism. Their creative partnership became AFI's engine, steering the band away from its East Bay punk roots toward the sleek, dramatic sound of 'Sing the Sorrow' and 'Decemberunderground,' albums that dominated alternative radio and MTV. Puget's signature is his seamless stitching of urgent guitar riffs with icy synthesizer lines, creating a tense, cinematic backdrop. Beyond AFI, he channels his straight-edge ethos into the militant hardcore of XTRMST and explores pure electronic pop with Havok in Blaqk Audio, proving his versatility as a writer and producer obsessed with mood and melody.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Jade was born in 1973, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Jade Was Born
The biggest hits of 1973
#1 Movie
The Exorcist
Best Picture
The Sting
#1 TV Show
All in the Family
Jade's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1973Born
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1978Started school
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1986Became a teenager
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1989Could drive
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1991Could vote
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
1994Turned 21
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2003Turned 30
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 40
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 50
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 53 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-wrote and produced AFI's 'Miss Murder,' which hit number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in 2006.
- Helped guide AFI's 'Sing the Sorrow' to debut at number five on the Billboard 200, the band's first major commercial breakthrough.
- Founded the explicitly straight-edge hardcore project XTRMST, releasing a self-titled album in 2014.
Did You Know?
He is a lifelong vegetarian and has been straight-edge since his teenage years.
He composed the score for the film 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' (2019) with his brother, composer Bear McCreary.
Before joining AFI, he was in the influential hardcore band Loose Change.
“I've always been interested in the marriage of electronic and organic sounds.”
