1. State your name, instrument, and band, for the record.
T.C.S. , Lead vocalist/ guitarist , Devane
2. Do you write music with a specific listening audience in mind, or do you just write whatever feels good at the time you're working on a project?
Absolutely not...the music that we have written for Devane has been composed strictly around what we, the members of the band, want to hear. When we began, we
threw any hope for success out the window and wrote the music that we would want to listen to, that way, if we failed, at least we did what WE wanted to, and not what
someone else told us to. I guess that's why it has been truly shocking to us that we have actually discovered other people who like what the band does. we surely
didn't expect it, as much as we might have hoped for it...
3. What were the last three CDs (other than your own) that you listened to?
Hmmm....yesterday I listened to Sevendust-Animosity, Dream Theater-Images and Words and some classical music on N.P.R., it's 90.1 in Atlanta and i find it very
relaxing to listen to the Classical Masters...
4. Do you listen to your own band's CDs on a regular basis?
Actually sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. This is for two reasons actually.
1) I really do enjoy what we do. It's very easy to listen to the disc for me.
2) Since I am usually responsible for the mixing, mastering, etc., I am always looking for new ways to "tweak" our mixes and make the overall product sound better.
You never stop learning when it comes to music and recording, and the only way top improve is to go back and analyze what you have done previously and what
mistakes you might have made. Therefore I do sometimes listen to our cd more than i would like but hey, it's a job too...
5. What do you see (happening right now) as good things for the future of heavy metal music?
Unfortunately I'm a bit of a pessimist when it comes to this subject. A lot of people look to older bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest getting back together as
"saving" metal. I believe this will not happen. To save metal, new blood will have to recognized for the talent it is, and pushed out to the public via a record company
that believes in its' artists. The older acts will have a loyal fan-base but not necessarily bring new fans to the genre, and for any music to survive, as one generation
grows up, another must be exposed to that style of music in a way that they can relate to. I do believe that the number of independent labels out there currently catering
to metal is a great thing....it is there that the new metal bands are getting their chance to develop and grow, but they key word is, and will always be, exposure.
6. Was there a "defining moment" that steered you towards metal? A particular band, album, movie, concert, etc.. that was a major influence on your career (and music listening) choice?
Yes, Paul Lynde's Halloween special in the mid-70's and can be summed up in one sentence. I saw Kiss for the first time.
7. It's dinner time at the Devane household! You can invite any three guests (music-related), either past or present. Who will get to sit at your round table?
There's too many people I'd love to meet both alive and dead. This is a tough question but I'll give it a shot.
Freddie Mercury of Queen, I'd love to have the chance to sit down and talk with him. When listening to Queen albums, it's obvious he had a voracious appetite for all forms of music and the voice (and talent) to back up trying to mesh them into what Queen was doing...
Steve Vai, He's an extremely gifted player and writer with a very unique and positive view on life. I have met him once and found him to be a genuinely nice person. He would be welcome at my place anytime.
Mutt Lange, So I could ask him questions about recording and how to make Devane sound REALLY big...lol
8. While flying across to Japan for a show at Budokan, your plane goes down. You and Tom Hanks swim towards an island... but unfortunately Tom turns into shark bait. Anyyyway, once on the island, a FedEx box washes up
with a disc player, a crapload of batteries, and... three CDs. What three CDs would you like to have with you, while stranded on your one-man island for a verrry long time?
Pink Floyd-The Wall (in my opinion, one of the greatest...and most depressing albums of all time
Queen-A Night At The Opera a great album from start to finish and varied enough that I've never gotten bored with it
The Beatles-Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band contains the song A Day in the Life, possibly the perfect song...
9. What (if any) current metal bands would you pay to go see in concert?
Sevendust, gotta support the hometown boys and they always put on a brutal set
Orgy, to see if they sound as good live as they do on cd
actually probably a lot more if Devane didn't eat up so much of my time and money, I enjoy seeing other bands play but have been so immersed in trying to make Devane happen that I haven't been able to keep up with a lot of emerging artists recently...
10. Dream gig time: Devane is playing a festival with three other bands. Who joins you on the bill?
Present or past?...how about both lists?
Present-
Def Leppard, Ozzy, Judas Priest (I'd like to see that show from the audience myself)
Past-
Alice Cooper circa Billion Dollar Babies tour, Kiss circa Destroyer tour, Queen circa News of the World tour (I was too young to see any of these tours)
11. What does the immediate future hold forDevane ? Tour plans, future albums/projects, etc.
The immediate future?...Well we are finally starting to play out, and that's a good thing. We've started receiving interest from a number of sources that I'm not allowed to speak of at the moment as you never know what will work out and I don't want to jinx the group. So...what can I talk about?...I believe besides playing around Atlanta, we'll be playing the Tampa Metal Fest in March 2004 (they have contacted us even though we have no idea how they heard about us), there will be a gig opening for a UFC style event in February somewhere around Atlanta that will be videotaped and released for sale throughuot the U.S.A., we are working on the concept for the first video (probably Do You?), and soon going into a digital studio to re-cut two Devane songs so our new guitarist can be heard on the album. Oh yeah, 1000 cd's of our self-titled cd will be here right around the first of the year so that will finally be released even if only by us. As far as touring, it's a pricey proposition and will really depend on which record companies (or management companies) that we can get interested in backing us on a tour. Right now the ONLY reason we haven't toured is because we cannot, as a unit, afford to. Believe me, we can't wait to get out there and try to bring Devane's music to the masses.
And the second album is almost halfway written...
I'd like to thank UMR for this opportunity as I really enjoyed answering these questions (even the tough ones). I sincerely hope that Devane can get up and running so I can meet everyone, who has been so kind to the band and myself, in person.
