DevilDriver: Meet The Wretched

There’s very few bands in the mainstream of heavy music with the same level of universal respect as DEVILDRIVER. Over the last two decades, the Californian outfit, led by one of the last and greatest old-school punk rockstars in the game, Dez Fafara, have released a catalogue of chart-smashing records. Initially coming to prominence in the legendary New Wave of American Heavy Metal, DEVILDRIVER’s patented brand of melodic-death tinged groove metal saw them draw huge success at home and here in Europe from album to album. But with a fresh lineup, and off the back of an incredibly difficult few years for Fafara, the Californians are back with Dealing With Demons I, their freshest sounding record in over a decade.

“In the beginning of DEVILDRIVER, right from the first album I always said that the later records we do will be better. There’s two types of bands; there’s GUNS N’ ROSES who come out with Appetite For Destruction and Use Your Illusion and that’s it, no matter what they do they’ll never top those first albums. And then there’s bands that grow where their later albums are better than everything they did, like CLUTCH, for example, but I could name a million of these bands,” Fafara begins, immediately giving an insight into his philosophy behind DEVILDRIVER. “There’s nothing worse than when your favourite band has been around for 20, 30 years and every time you buy a record it sounds the same. Of course, we have a sound, but every record has been different – Pray For Villains was nothing like The Last Kind Words. I think growth, and I’d like to see more of it, especially in metal – guys tend to play it very safe; a thrash band will just make thrash music. But if you do something different, hopefully people will be pleasantly surprised.” before explaining the musical direction change in Dealing With Demons.

“I said to the guys ‘forget the brand, forget the stuff DEVILDRIVER has done in the past, whatever your influences are, let’s put it down,’” he then says, explaining the musical change in direction in Dealing With Demons. “There’s so many different influences in this band, that’s what makes DEVILDRIVER what it is, and it’s something different now. I think we needed to do that as a band, we needed to free ourselves from the chains of who we were or what the fans want from us.”

The enthusiasm and excitement Dez Fafara feels for the Dealing With Demons saga is astounding – it has been a long time since he has sounded so ambitious, so hungry, and so pleased with the direction DEVILDRIVER are taking. When discussing Wishing, the album’s latest single and perhaps its biggest wildcard, the pride he feels is palpable. “I said I would never use clean vocals in DEVILDRIVER, but what I meant was I’d never do clean vocals on a chorus simply to get the song on the radio. That’s sell-out move, and you can smell it a mile away. The verses on Wishing have this low, gothic singing, harkening back to my goth days. I tried to be heavy, I tried screaming, I tried going low as hell with my gutturals, then I went out and had a spliff and came back with an idea.”

That in itself is a perfect metaphor for DEVILDRIVER’s growth and evolution. But is Dez utilising his stunning clean vocals a one time thing for the band, or are we going to see more of that in future releases? “I don’t know, man. If I’d done Wishing with a pretty clean chorus people would have smelt the sell-out a fucking mile away. What I will say, with the new way we write music, we will do whatever is best for the song. Let’s do what’s right for the party.”

DEVILDRIVER have never been a boring band; the absolute worst criticism you could rightfully give is that for the last couple of records they have perhaps lacked that same excitement they had from Fury of Our Maker’s Hand through to Pray For Villains. But that changes with Dealing With Demons. On a musical level this is the freshest the band have sounded in over a decade, maintaining the signature style they’re known for while injecting a refreshing, game-changing array of influences. And lyrically, this is Fafara at his most open, most vulnerable, leaving every inch of his being and society’s ills on the page before he closes the book for good.

“It’s not just my demons, it’s about society’s demons as well. I wanted to go in a different direction with my lyrics, but before I could do that I had to get all this out my system,” he begins. “Let’s highlight the first three tracks we released. Keep Away From Me was released at an appropriate time – it’s all about me being socially distanced my whole life. It’s about my agoraphobia, not wanting to be around big groups of people. I’m not going to your awards party, I’m not going to your huge event – if you ask me, I might say I’ll be there, but be prepared for me to call at the last minute with a bullshit excuse.”

“The video for Iona shows the ghost of a woman on the side of a road that hunts men. I love horror when it comes to Dracula, The Mummy and so on, but I’ve never understood slasher films. I don’t understand why people say Texas Chainsaw Massacre is anyone’s favourite movie, why is a movie with no plot except a guy killing a bunch of women your favourite? I tried to explore humanity’s ills in that sense, our obsession with that kind of violence,” Fafara continues, before explaining the slightly simpler Nest of Vipers. “Men are often bought with money, allegiances are often bought with money. I have to stay away from these people in my life, loyalty can never be bought. But every song on the album explores something deeper.”

For a man who has spent his whole career dodging the subject of the meaning behind lyrics, Dez is remarkably candid here. It’s unfortunate, though, that the release of Dealing With Demons is marred by the spectre of COVID-19. DEVILDRIVER have built a name as one of the hardest touring bands in heavy music, so with no touring prospects immediately following the release, things are certainly going to be strange. But Dez is remarkably positive – disappointed, sure, but keen to highlight the fact that the lack of touring opportunities has given him the chance to enjoy family life for the first time.

“I started touring with DANZIG, PANTERA and BLACK SABBATH about 30 years ago. I never had the chance to have a normal life, my job was to go to bed before the sun came up. Now I get up at 5am every morning to watch the sun rise with my wife. It’s the most beautiful thing, I love it so much. If I wasn’t so in love with being on a tour bus and getting on the stage, I don’t know if I’d go back to my previous life. I’ve realised after months of watching the sun rise with my wife, having dinner as a family, I’m only going to tour when it makes sense. I’m finally enjoying the life I never had for 30 years.”

If you thought you knew DEVILDRIVER before, you were sadly mistaken. As the band approaches their 20th anniversary, this is the band that is going to bring the New Wave of American Heavy Metal kicking and screaming into modern listening. Prepare yourself to Meet the Wretched, because DEVILDRIVER are here to conquer.

Dealing With Demons I is out now via Napalm Records.

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