MB: When did you decide that music was what you wanted to do?
JD: When? Probably when I got out of High School. I realized that you had to do something for the rest of your life. So you better do something that you love, because you have to do it for the rest of your life.

MB: Who would you say were some of your biggest influences musically?
JD: You know, just Heavy Metal in general. Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, and bands like that.

MB: I heard that you roadied for Black Sabbath for a while, too.
JD: I didn’t really quite roadie. I did a lot of different things. But I wasn’t really… I never really had a sort of fixed position. I just sort of floated around and did a lot of different things with them. And I helped Geezer with some of the equipment he needed for his bass. MB: Cool. JD: I did a lot of different stuff. I did pyrotechnics for them, too.

MB: What do you think about the original line-up of Black Sabbath just doing those couple of shows, recently?
JD: I think it’s okay. I wish Bill Ward was still on drums, you know. That would be good.

MB: I know you guys are big defenders of "True Metal". How would you describe that? What does "True Metal" mean to you?
JD: "True Metal" is music that’s true to the style of classic Heavy Metal. It’s not diluted. It’s not pussied out. It’s not wimped out. It’s played from the heart, one hundred percent.

MB: What bands out there right now do you think are really on the right track, besides you guys? JD: Well, there’s a lot of bands out there. I mean, you know, a lot of the Black Metal bands are really good. A lot of these Death Metal bands are good. That kind of stuff. There are a lot of new bands starting right now coming out of Germany that are playing really, really good music. Bands like HammerFall, Sacred Steel, stuff like that. There’s a lot of stuff that’s happening.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: Yeah, it’s real good. It’s nice to see.

MB: I know you guys seem to portray the image of modern day warriors from your song lyrics, album artwork, etc. Was that your original plan to create that type of image?
JD: Yeah. Our whole thing was always to be something to people. To be able to appreciate us for being real, you know. And we sort of feel like life is a battle, and every day you gotta kick ass totally.

MB: Do you think that makes it easier for people to follow the band, makes it more interesting for them?
JD: Well, I mean, you are either into it or you’re not, you know.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: You are either into Metal or you’re not.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: For us, it’s always been question of this is what we are. This is what we do. And if you like it, good. If not, go f**k yourself.

MB: I know you guys have a very large and loyal fan base outside of the U.S., but in the U.S. the music industry seems to almost ignore you in comparison. How much does it bother you that people in the U.S. haven’t really heard of you while bands like Metallica get to play in sold out arenas here in the States?
JD: Well, you know, for us it’s always been a question of we are not into compromising what we do. We play Metal pure, you know. We don’t play radio bullshit. We don’t suck ass. So for us, that’s the most important thing.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: That’s the most important thing, period. So that’s the story. I mean, if we were into money, we would be playing happy love songs, you know. But that’s not what we’re going to do.

MB: Do you think that the United States can ever develop a Metal community like they have over in Europe?
JD: I hope so. I hope so. Something has to be done pretty soon.

MB: That would be nice.
JD: It sure would. It really would.

MB: How do you guys go about writing most of your music? I mean, what’s your main inspiration? How do you put it all together?
JD: We just blast. That’s it. We just plug in and we blast. That’s our secret.

MB: Cool.
JD: We just live the part of Metal, you know. We are here to rock, drink, and f**k. And that’s it. The power is in the music.

MB: Cool. I’ve heard that outside of music you guys are all into weightlifting, and that you are also into karate. Is that right?
JD: Yeah, we are into working out. We are into working at staying in shape. Which is having a good time. You know, if you are going to party hard, you have to work hard.

MB: That’s for sure. Is that what you enjoy most outside of music?
JD: Well, you know, we like to live life. That’s kind of what… for us, that’s the most important thing - just be yourself. You know, be happy. You just don’t give anybody any shit. Don’t take any shit. Be yourself. That’s kind of how we live. That’s always been our platform. You know, don’t mess with anybody. Be your own. Be yourself.

MB: What is it that motivates you to keep going, to keep touring, to keep writing new music?
JD: Well, we just feel that there are people out there that live for good hard music… for True Metal, you know. And we can’t let the people down. They’re our people. They’re what we’re all about, you know.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: You know what I’m saying?

MB: Absolutely.
JD: That’s what we live for.

MB: I know there have been a lot of bands coming back lately after calling it quits. Bands like Exodus, Kreator, etc. Do you feel that this is part of a resurgence? Do you feel that it’s good for Metal to have these bands back and active? Or do you think that these bands are just jumping back on the bandwagon because they feel that things are coming around?
JD: I don’t know. I mean, I’m not really sure what they are into and what they are doing, you know. Who knows? You know what I mean? I really don’t know. And to be honest with you, I don’t really care. I’m into what we are doing. I’m into our fans. I’m into our music. And everything else is just unimportant to me.

MB: Yeah.
JD: I can’t change my focus and worry about what these others are doing. I’m here just to deliver power to the max, you know. And melt people’s faces.

MB: Oh, yeah.
JD: But that’s our trip.

Published by : heavymetal.miningco.com