DANZIG: 'I Wanted To Do A '70s-Type Of Record With A Very Contemporary Kind Of Feel'

Rafi of VampireFreaks.com recently conducted an interview with Glenn Danzig. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

VampireFreaks.com: New [DANZIG"Deth Red Sabaoth"] is about to launch in June. How are you feeling about the final product?

Danzig: I like it. (Laughs) I am very proud of this record; otherwise I definitely wouldn't be releasing it.

VampireFreaks.com: I read that you chose to break away from the whole Pro Tools, overproduced sound that so many are relying on today and used quite a bit of '70s recording gear. What made you decide to go in this direction?

Danzig: I have always tried to avoid all that plug-in shit that is going around. Everything is recorded in a real studio. These are real drum tracks versus some drum-loops sequence. (Laughs) My main goal with this album I really wanted to do a '70s-type of record with a very contemporary kind of feel. Really had a blast making it.

VampireFreaks.com: You also welcome back Tommy Victor (PRONG) and Johnny Kelly (TYPE O NEGATIVE and SEVENTH VOID). What's it like working with these guys, as they seem to bring a new dimension to the music?

Danzig: I absolutely love working with Tommy; he is literally one of my favorite guitar players. It's amazing working with him in the studio; I can't even say one bad thing about working with him. He has been playing with DANZIG off and on now since '96, he's great.

VampireFreaks.com: I saw that you are bringing out Doyle and GORGEOUS FRANKENSTEIN on only the East Cost dates.

Danzig: Correct. They will only be on the East Coast dates.

VampireFreaks.com: I got to talk with Doyle and company when they came to Denver and he said he loves working with you on this and everything you are doing for the band. How is it working with him?

Danzig: Doyle is a really hard worker and I really hope that this ends up breaking for him. I really admire that he has the balls to not rely on his past and come up with a band that has its own name and its own image. What can I say?! The guy has some real guts to stand on his own and build his own following, which he has already started to do really well. He has already come out with an album and toured on his own.

VampireFreaks.com: When I saw them here in Denver, they blew the roof off of the house, I was pretty impressed.

Danzig: I think he is doing great. They played a show with us just recently and they are coming together very well; he has his own singer now. That is one thing I have told him all the time is he needs a frontman, not someone playing bass and singing but a singer who stands alone. So with that addition I think they have only gotten better.

VampireFreaks.com: I have to wonder, is there any chance that Doyle will again join you on stage and do a set of old MISFITS material.

Danzig: Well, that was just Doyle joining us on a few gigs. He came out two thirds through the DANZIG set and we did, like, eight MISFITS' tracks. I don't think that we will be doing that this time around. I think it is more important for him to step back from that and let people see him and his band alone. Also on the East Coast dates Johnny and Kenny's band SEVENTH VOID are going to be opening up.

VampireFreaks.com: Speaking of which, the metal community dealt with a huge blow with the losses of Peter Steele and [Ronnie James] Dio. What do you remember of them both?

Danzig: I remember co-headlining in '92 with BLACK SABBATH and at the time Dio was the singer. He was such a nice guy and an amazing singer. I have more of a history with Peter and TYPE O as we took them on the road with us in '94 on the "Danzig IV" tour. Peter was a bit strange, of course, but he was a very nice guy. Both will be missed very much.

VampireFreaks.com: One aspect I have always respected about that tour is that you took out bands that no one else was willing to give attention to. What made you decide to go that route rather than picking up mainstream acts?

Danzig: I just remember that nobody wanted, when I was starting out in any of my bands, to give us a shot. From the MISFITS to SAMHAIN and even early on for DANZIG, nobody wanted to take us out with them. We could be playing out and selling places out and nobody wanted to take us on tour with them. Whatever their reasons were, even with DANZIG they may have been scared of our audience or scared of us, they just didn't want to associate with DANZIG. We just didn't get any great opening slots (both of us laughing) ever! We really had to get out there and develop our own following. So I wanted to give back and take out bands that I really thought that people should see, even early on I always tried to take out bands with us that no one else would even touch.

VampireFreaks.com: Having seen so much, especially how the industry has changed, what advice would you give our readers who are aspiring musicians?

Danzig: Honestly, like anything, you have to really make sure that this is what you want to do. It's not easy, it's very tough and if you are expecting to make it overnight, it just doesn't happen that way. Also, the big thing is don't just make a demo and expect people to listen to it. You have to sit down make a CD and hit the road, force them to listen to what you have going on. Sometimes you will be playing in front of maybe 20-30 people but you have to do it, just like all the rest of us did to build a following. If you sit around at home, it is just not going to happen. (Laughs) Don't forget to be honest with yourself.

Read the entire interview from VampireFreaks.com.