DEVILDRIVER Frontman: 'I Want To Do Something That's Not What's Popular Right Now'

FMQB recently conducted an interview with DEVILDRIVER frontman Dez Fafara. An excerpt from the chat follows:

FMQB: You guys keep getting heavier with each album. What is the reason behind the progression?

Dez: Personally, it's where I always wanted to go. When we first started the band everyone was feeling out our oats and seeing where we wanted to go. The second record was a step forward in the direction where we were starting to define ourselves. With this one, I put my foot down and said, "Don't deliver any music that isn't really, really heavy." I want to do something that's not what's popular right now with all the sing-song radio metal that's going on. It's important for us to do something that's a cut above.

FMQB: Would you say you experimented more on this album, because a song like "Monsters of the Deep" sounds like something different for DEVILDRIVER?

Dez: Yes, we knew we wanted to do something sludgy and slushy, and we had that riff for about a year. We thought, "If we're going to do one song like that, let's use that riff." But we definitely experimented more. Everybody stepped up, especially with the guitar work. There's a lot more solos and the riffing is more complicated. The drums are really intense, the tempos are faster. I am singing way heavier than I ever have. I caught a lot of first takes vocally, and that's the live feel of the record. Jason Suecof and Mark Lewis are killer producers and they got the best out of us. I'm real pleased with this record.

FMQB: There is quote in your bio where you say, "It's of the utmost importance that we clarify our sound for the masses on this one." What did you mean by that?

Dez: When you hear DEVILDRIVER you know that it's DEVILDRIVER. So on this record, we want to make sure that is defined even more. If you're listening to metal all day long and then DEVILDRIVER comes up on your iPod or wherever, you know that it's us. What we do within ourselves defines what we do — we want to make sure that we keep our sound and we don't stray off into what's popular or what somebody in the band may be listening to at the moment.

FMQB: Do you feel like it's especially important to carve out your own niche right now when there are so many metal bands out there?

Dez: It is. Right now is the most crowded that it's ever been. There are so many bands. Anybody that can scream is picking up a microphone whether they can write a lyric or not, and everybody that can play something fast and heavy is doing it. It's very important for any band that's out right now to define themselves with their sound so they can last over the years. On one hand it's good that there's so many bands, but for the scene it could be bad. Then there's the whole thing about having to have the right hair style and wearing tight pants. There's something about not being in your 20s that you just don't think about that shit anymore. You do what you wanna do, and if people follow it, then cool.

Read the entire interview at www.fmqb.com.