DAVID DRAIMAN Says Writing And Recording Away From DISTURBED 'Has Been A Wonderful Experience'

Australia's Heavy magazine recently spoke to DISTURBED frontman David Draiman about his new project, DEVICE. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Heavy: So where did the idea for DEVICE come from?

Draiman: It came about quite accidentally, to be honest. [The members of DISTURBED] always intended during this hiatus to do some of things we'd never had a chance to. I'd planned to do some producing, working with the guys from TRIVIUM on their new record, but I'd not really planned another project. Geno Lenardo from FILTER, a friend and colleague of mine, reached out to me about participating in the "Underworld: Awakening" soundtrack. I told him to send me some music, and I listened to what he sent me and was really into it. I wrote something to it, and then called him the next day and said, "Alright, when are we tracking this, because it's big?" So I flew to Chicago within a week and tracked it, then kind of sat back and was really amazed at what we'd done. Lakeshore wanted to use it as the lead track on the soundtrack, but we had a DISTURBED track from "The Lost Children" B-sides compilation out on radio at the time and we didn't want the two tracks competing with each other. So I said, "Let's hold on to it, and wait for the next opportunity." Then the song grew on us, and we started talking and said maybe we should write some more, so Geno came out to my home in March 2012 and we started writing. "Hunted" was the track for the soundtrack, and it set the template for what the project was to become.

Heavy: Has it be a different experience writing/recording away from DISTURBED?

Draiman: It's been a wonderful experience. [laughs] I've been loving it, really, just free to go and create. With as much respect as I've had from the people I've been working with, with as much great input I've had from the people I've been working with, it's really been an amazing new experience and process. Like, imagine you have an opportunity to create something really amazing and unique after already being in the business of doing that for 16 years; being given the chance to start over again with all the knowledge and experience that you've already accumulated, and being a better musican as well — I'm chomping at the bit. I love being the guy where nobody has any idea what this is about yet. Although that has some weird consequences. I think it's pretty ridiculous I'm nominated for a Golden God award, for instance. I don't get it — I'm very thankful and I thank everyone so much for the nomination, but no one has heard this! How can you nominate something for "best new act" when you haven't even heard it. I appreciate it, but … it's almost an overwhelming vote of confidence, and it can be quite a burden to have to live up to that kind of hype.

Heavy: You've seen a lot over the past 16 years in the industry. Would you rather be launching DEVICE in 2013 or in 2003?

Draiman: Oh, I would so have preferred to put it out in 2003! It's just night and day … even as hard as it was in 2003, it certainly wasn't as bad as where we are now. As a business, it has gotten so much worse. It's trench warfare out there, everybody fighting for everything, everybody expecting to do everything with nothing. [laughs] Really, it's an unreasonable state of affairs; as an industry, it's very frightening. We all, no matter who we are, no matter how strong a record we've created, we all need all the luck in the world right now. And I believe if you're going to go into battle, you better bring your biggest guns — that's what I'm doing with DEVICE.

Read the entire interview from Heavy magazine.