In September, just before Danzig hit the road with Ozzy Osbourne, Glenn Danzig
gave me an incisive, in-depth interview about his new album blackacidevil
and a myriad of other project's he's involved in. Alas, it remained on
hold through two issues because photos weren't available in time to meet
our deadline. Well, better late than never, as I'm sure you'll agree.
G: You've changed the band, and changed the style a bit.
GD: I'm experimenting with a lot of different stuff.
G: How did this evolution start? It's more industrial than you've been
before.
GD: Back in Samhain we were playing with it. I was a big Foetus fan and
before, in the early days of punk there was Neubaten. But this record is not
all that industrial, I don't see it as that. We still have guitar, bass,
and drums. I don't think a distorted vocal is industrial. The Beatles had
distorted vocals on their stuff and that's not industrial. What I did was,
I took elements of some industrial stuff I liked or what people had been
experimenting with over the years in industrial music, elements of techno
and merged it with what I normally do. I brought in some of the tribal
drums and other stuff that Rick [Rubin, American Recordings] never liked.
I actually started doing that around the time of How The Gods Kill,
adding stuff that Rick didn't like.
G: You and he had a falling out.
GD: This has been going on for like seven years. I'm moving on. Rick is
trying to make my life a living hell. I gave Rick the courtesy of calling
and saying, "Look, this is the last time I talk to you about fixing the
problems. You have to fix the problems, I've had it and I'm tired of not
getting paid. If you want me to stay you have to fix it." He's going, "I
can't believe this, I'll get on it right away." Sure enough it didn't
happen and I left.
G: How long before you got your Hollywood Records deal?
GD: A while. I had to let Rick know I was leaving formally before we
could even talk to anybody. There were probably people that knew about
it, on the Internet.
G: What about the lineup change? Joey Castillo is the only holdover
and he hasn't been in the band that long.
GD: Danzig was set up from the beginning so I wouldn't have to change the
name of my band anymore when people came and went. First with Chuck Biscuits
and his drug problems and then Eerie Von wanted to do some side stuff.
That line-up lasted a long time but eventually it did start falling apart.
Even when Chuck was in the band we had tried out some guitar players.
G: Was John Christ aware of it?
GD: I think he was aware of it. John wanted to do a more '70s thing. He's a
real professional. Eerie was getting more and more into stuff like the
Allman Bros and Stevie Ray. I'm not into the Allman Bros., I never like
them and never will. They're one of the reasons I started a punk band,
them and Foreigner and Journey.
G: So how did the band come together?
GD: Lazie [bass] was in a bunch of different bands. He teched for Joey on
the road for a while, after he teched for Eerie. His background was
playing bass and he asked to audition and I said sure.
G: You had Mark Chaussee in the band but replaced him with Tommy Victor
of Prong. What happend there?
GD: Mark's a great guy and I don't want to say anything bad about him. But
the level of experience I needed from him and learning the songs wasn't
happening. He's had the time but he wasn't showing the initiative to learn
the stuff. Tommy is a big Danzig fan and he wanted to try out even when
Prong was going on the road but I didn't want to screw Prong up. But when
we realized this about Mark we had the Ozzy thing and five headlining
shows coming up. I had my doubts he'd be able to do it. As soon as Tommy
put the guitar on, he's a pro. He has a better ear, he picks stuff up
immediately. Tommy knew a lot of the songs and learned two new ones in one
session. Vocally it's better with Tommy, too.
G: What about Prong's future?
GD: I can't speak for Tommy but I think he wants to do his own project now.
I said he can do that if he stays in Danzig.
G: Did Mark or Lazie play on the record?
GD: Lazie is on the newest song "Sacrifice," Mark played an extra guitar
on that. I also had Mark double the guitar on "Serpentia." A guy named
Joe Bishara did some loops and programing. I played most of it. I did all
the guitar except for the stuff Jerry Cantrell did on "Hand of Doom" and
"Come to Silver," and we flew one of his leads in on "See All You Were."
G: So this was almost a solo album.
GD: That's how the other Danzig records were, too.
G: Did you write everything yourself?
GD: Yeah. Throughout my career, I write every note of the songs, every record
from The Misfits to Samhain to Danzig. I write everything.
G: When you write, do you hear all the parts in your head? Do you arrange
it at the same time?
GD: Usually, yeah. Sometimes I arrange it at rehearsal and sometimes in the
studio, some of these were arranged in the studio. Sometimes you think you
have stuff all ready to go and you don't. I have a direction I want to go in,
I know where I want a song to go and I pick up something along the way.
G: Do you come up with music or lyrics first?
GD: Sometimes I have the lyrics and write a song around them, sometimes
I'll write the song on guitar first, sometimes on piano, or drums and
then work it back together.
G: Of the new songs, which came the easiest to you and which was hardest?
GD: "Come to Silver" was like that, "Deep" was like that, "Ashes." I was
really energized by this record because a lot of the bullshit that I'd
had to deal with over the past few years was gone. It was a lot easier,
and working with people who are really enthusiastic about playing, the
new guys-people who were excited about going on tour and recording and
playing, that was something I missed. I've always been like that, but I'd
come down and to the other guys, it was just a gig to them. It was
exciting in the beginning and then eventually it became...
G: A job?
GD: It did, yeah. You'd have to ask them why but I think it was because
they wanted to go in a different direction. I always want to play crazy,
loud music. Though occasionally I will do a soft song like "Ashes."
G: You produced yourself. Is that harder, without an objective sounding
board?
GD: It's not something that I've never done before. I produced How the
Gods Kill but I never got credit for it. Everyone assumed Rick
produced it though it said "produced by Glenn Danzig." Danzig IV
was produced by me and Rick, but Rick wasn't at the recording sessions.
On Danzig IV he came down for maybe 15 minutes at 1:00 am. He's
a very uninvolved producer and that's why he wasn't allowed to be
involved in How the Gods Kill, cause he didn't show up for
Lucifuge.
G: How would you compare making this album to previous ones?
GD: It was definitely more fun. I had a blast doing it. Live it's going
to be a blast.
G: What approach did you take going into it?
GD: I wanted to fuck shit up. I wasn't about to do a punk retro thing.
I wanted to do something unique. I don't follow trends, I just do what
I like doing. Each record I try to shake it up a little and try and
redefine what Danzig is. I don't think I've ever been accepted by any
musical genre. I like to blend lots of different stuff together and
make something that's original, and not imitate too many different
people. What I wanted to do here was create something unique and I think
I've done it. Most people who've heard it are blown away by it. I'm
happy. And in the end that's what matters. I did a good record. I'd be
the first one to say I did a shitty record and I wouldn't put it out.
G: Do you think White Zombie paved the way for what you're doing now?
GD: I don't think in those terms. If it does, fine. I love Zombie, we took
them out when nobody was.
We took Korn and Manson out and both those bands are doing great now.
It's cool seeing that, it's a cool feeling. No one ever gave Danzig or any
of my previous bands a shot, they were too scared and wouldn't do it. I
vowed I would never do that. I listen to bands I like whether they're
selling records or not and take them out. I took Godflesh out and they
were awesome. I wish more people would take bands they like rather than
what's trendy or what their management thinks they should. We've been offered
a lot of bands that sell records and I say no. I don't care. When people
come to a Danzig show they know they will get good bands.
G: That gives them more for their money.
GD: Exactly, I agree. I don't like it when certain management companies make the
headliner take their bands that suck. It happens a lot and it's not fair
to the people or the bands. It makes them look stupid, too.
G: Why open for Ozzy Osbourne instead of headline?
GD: I'm a big Ozzy fan. They called up and asked if we'd be interested.
Ozzy's one of the few bands who'd have the balls to let Danzig do the tour.
Throughout my career we've had people interested in having us on their
slots, but in the end they'd say "Your crowd is too crazy" or "You're too
satanic." AC/DC's management told us we were too satanic. I've seen people
say so many studpid things about me and about other people, too and assume
so much, you get used to it and say, "asshole." I don't say "Maybe I should
write songs like so-and-so." That's bullshit.
CONTINUED...........