Davey Suicide

By Jay Oakley

Since you played in Baltimore, how have the last few shows gone and the tour over all?

Good. Yeah, it's been going really well. We just got to Texas and I think this week and the remaining week is just going to keep having a good crescendo effect until our last one in Hollywood.

How is it having Needlz out on the road?

It feels complete again. We've been working together for five years and recording music is great but performing the music that we've recorded together in obviously the ultimate thing and it's great just to have an extra ball of energy on stage with us again.

Since, it's been a while now since your first album, Davey Suicide to the current one, World Wide Suicide and leading up to your new one, how have you liked the progression of Davey Suicide so far?

I think its been exactly what it should be. It's funny when I hear an artist say, "Well, we should have done this or this wasn't our sound." It's always been what we wanted it to be and we're just growing and we're getting better at writing songs and just getting more experimental. So, I'm excited about the direction it's going. This new record's going to rule.

Absolutely. When's it due out?

It's looking like summer. The date is still up in the air.

Do you have a title yet, that you're allowed to announce?

Yeah, we're going to be calling it, Made From Fire. It's kind of the idea of the fire either makes you or breaks you and for us, I think, the fire's been the adversity that's made us a stronger unit. It kind of weeded out people that weren't supposed to be in the band and it's made us overcome a lot of the obstacles that have been presented in front of us.

On that note, I gotta tell you, the band looks really tight now. How are you liking the lineup that makes up Davey Suicide now?

Yeah, it's the best it's ever felt and I think everyone agrees. I just think we have a great cohesive unit and it's easy to do and be on the same page when your going the same direction. We're very in-sync with each other and it's just been great.

Is everyone taking part in the writing or is it still dominantly you and Needlz? Or is it you, Needlz and Drayven?

Well, Niko (Gemini) stepped out a lot on this record. On prior records there really hasn't been guitar players that did much. But, this album Niko really, really owned it guitar-wise. He's just got some killer solos, killer riffs so I think we got a really good injection of that on this record which I'm excited about. I think a lot of people that play guitar are going to be really, really happy with how the guitar playing has progressed on this album.

How do you feel about the way you get your fans involved in your live show?

I just think that it's a reciprocal situation. I mean we play off them as much as they probably play off us. It's kind of like a boomerang, you throw it out and it comes back to you. I feel like we share this together. This is for them and also for us.

There's one thing I wanted to throw in this interview and ask you. Deadstar Assembly jut put out a press release saying that they are going to have to drop off the tour, is that the case?

Yeah, they're not going to finish. They have four more shows they're going to do. They had some things come up so they had to pack it up but it happens. I'm glad they did some, better then none.

Is there any band you're looking to bring in or are you just going to finish out the shows with just the two main bands now?

There's locals in every city, ya know, so we just move on. It is what it is.

After you finish this run of shows are you going strictly into finishing the record or do you have another tour coming up if you're allowed to talk about it?

Yeah, we want to wrap the record. We have a bunch of videos we're working on and have to tie the knot on and then we'll start releasing plans for the summer and the fall.

Since you're from Maryland, how was it coming back and having your family at the show?

It's very nostalgic for me, always. Since, they were there and they gave me the courage to leave and, kind of, follow this. It doesn't matter how big the show is, it always has a special place.

When you look back at yourself as an artist, from your previous bands, all the way up until now, how do you feel you've progressed?

I think it's exactly where it should be, yeah know. I think in a lot of ways we wanted to be a little further along but you can't fight happenstance. We're in a lawsuit against our old record label and that had a lot of things but I think the whole progression of things happened the way it should have happened, down to everything. I don't regret anything and I think we're where we need to be. I think we're setting ourselves and positioning ourselves up for a lot of really good things to come.

Davey, thanks for taking some time to hook up with me so we could talk for a couple of minutes.

You got it, man. Keep doing what your doing.

Davey Suicide

I understand that you have a new record out, World Wide Suicide?

Yeah, it just came out Tuesday.

Talk a little about it?

I'm blown away by the response we've got. I think when Needlz and I were recording it and we were sending the songs to everybody and they were giving us their input we knew we had something special. But I wasn't expecting the response we've been getting even from critics. All the reviews are ten fold better then the first record and I loved the first record so having that kind of response to this record is awesome.

How long overall were you working on it?

Probably about six months. I know it's not even a long time but right off the Orgy tour I started doing demos. Then I was kicking them back and forth to Needlz and then we started doing heavier recording in the summer. It came together, it was so easy to do this album. We clipped off quite a few songs and we decided it would be better to have 11 great songs then have a couple songs that we felt weren't that great. All of our fans are always excited because I think they feel that top to bottom the album has no filler, it's all killer.

When it comes to writing does it usually come pretty natural for you?

Yeah and it all comes out a lot at once. I'm the kind of person were I'll do like a bunch of paintings in one week and with this the demos just came out. Then Needlz would send me music ideas and I'd send him new lyrics and record them and send them to him. It was really, really effortless. The hardest thing was we'd have like different versions of the same song. I'd write a couple different hooks and its picking things. There'd be parts about certain things we'd like and parts about offer things we liked so it was just melding them together.

Is it still the band from the first record?

We have a different bass player and a different guitar player but they came in right after the first record was done. With the first record the people that were in the band weren't even the ones who recorded it. But with this record everyone recorded their parts and Needlz and I wrote everything.

Do you and Needlz pretty much take charge on all the writing, both lyrically and musically?

Sometimes I'll have the music and the words and I'll send them and he'll put a spin on it. Sometimes he has a bed of music and he'll send it to me. Sometimes he's had a melody idea and been like, "I don't like that but lets try this." It starts there and then it starts going around. Drayven recuts the drums and Brent recuts the bass and Mikey retracks the guitar stuff. At the end of the day its the best performance is what will stay on the record. The record's forever so there's no sparing anyone's feelings when it comes time to tracking. We're going to do the best end game.

When it comes to anyone seeing you for the first time on this tour, talk a little about you. What can they expect from you and what do you like to put out?

It's like doing arena rock in clubs. I think we have a pretty fantastic visual show. Each song kinda has its own story so I'll change my constant vibe for a different song. There's certain artists that hooked me when I was younger and it was almost like a musical play, it was visual. I always felt that I wanted to give that experience back.

When it comes to set lists are you planning to do 50/50 between the new records for fans that are already familiar or do you plan to hit the new record harder?

It's half and half. We've been having random headlining shows so we've been doing half and half. It's hard, trimming songs from our set is one of the hardest things we've had to do. I feel like we have a lot of strong material. 

How's the tour going so far? How has it been playing with William Control and CombiChrist?

Everyone's helping each other right now. It's cool. I think we all elevate each others performance. Everyone does this on such a high level. I always look at that as an opportunity to grow as an artist and get better and to enhance what I do and pick up what they do that I really like. So I love it and the vibe from the crowd that comes is very goth, very industrial, very dark and it's cool to be on this kind of tour where we fit.

How long is the tour and how far are you into it right now?

This is the fifth show and then our last show is the 2nd which is a headlining show. So we've got five weeks on this run.

What are your overall goals for this record? Are you looking for it to just be solidly received since its already getting that kind of attention or are there other goals you'd like to hit?

This record's a progression record. I know given our certain situation that our hands are tied in certain areas. This record should lead us to freedom which is good and it will set up next year and hopefully we'll be on festival season. I think it was important that people weren't going to hear the same music they'd heard for two years and it was important to show them the next part. But getting into that next tier of bands to start touring with and start getting close to touring with the big headlining bands. That's the goal. That's what the goal always is and this is the next step.

When you have down time what do you like to do? Do you mostly paint or is there music that you like to listen to?

I'm a big Chicago Bears fan so with it being football season I try to catch up on that. As far as relaxing and unwinding I don't really feel when we're on tour that we ever really get to. So it gets to a point where I get to go home and go to the chiropractor and get a massage and jump into the pool or hot tub. See my girlfriend, fuck and stuff like that. But I do also paint and tattoo and stuff like that.

As a question for your fans because there has been talk, do you still work with Kat Von D and the High Voltage shop?

I never worked with her. But I tattoo and I know her. I've met her and Nikki Sixx. They are really nice but I don't work with her or anything. But I do think she's doing a great job at what she's doing and it's cool to see an independent woman fucking owning it.

Nice, we get to call that a rumor squashing question. But thanks so much Davey. I appreciate you taking the time.

Absolutely. Thank you and I appreciate the coverage and everything.