Deathtones interview 03/12/22
MM: Can you tell us about your Band and who’s your biggest influences?
-We are The Deathtones, a 5 piece horror rock freight train out of Milford, Pennsylvania. Our biggest influences are Iron Maiden, Sabaton, Powerwolf, Misfits and The Other.
MM: Where do you draw your inspirations and ideas from
-Anything to do with the horror genre. We watch scary movies, read about really f***ed up historical happenings or just horror fiction literature, true crime and such. The songs really write themselves as we’re just telling a story that has already been established in another medium. We have some 100% original horror ideas that we factor in, but oftentimes the stuff we wrote about is already in the pop culture zeitgeist.
MM: What would you say is your Bands favourite song?
⁃ As far as songs that we’ve written, we really can’t pick a favorite. It’s like, as soon as you groove on one song and really get to like it, another song has been written and requires your attention, then that becomes your new favorite. And on and on and on. We release new music almost monthly so you don’t get a lot of time to marinate in our existing catalogue.
MM: Plans tour and festival wise for 2022
-Well, seeing that we have about 3 weeks left in 2022 I’d say that we’re pretty much done for this year. 2023 however we have several convention dates already working as well as a bunch of other irons in the fire.
MM: What can we expect from The Deathtones live?
-Picture a Halloween haunted house in your mind’s eye. Got that? Okay. Now picture it on a stage with smoke, lighting, videos, set pieces and 5 masked musicians playing the most face melting horror rock you’ve ever heard. That’s more or less what you’ll get from a Deathtones show.
MM: What do you like best and worst abt touring?
-Travel costs. We don’t have a big multimillion dollar label footing the bill for travel so everything we do comes out of pocket. Gas, food, lodging, etc. so more often than not we just don’t tour and focus more on our online presence, record and release music and bolster our merchandise layout so we can hopefully make enough cash to get back out on the road.
MM: Which three Bands would be your ultimate touring buddies
-Ultimate: Misfits, Iron Maiden, Motörhead
-Actually Feasible: Blitzkid, Calabrese, Wednesday 13
MM: What's the most memorable concert you've been to (other than your own) and why
-I can’t speak for everyone and if they have their own opinion you’ll see it below after I send out the interview, but I’d say watching Iron Maiden at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. The set pieces were mind blowing, changing almost every song. The energy, the vibe, the musicianship. Oh man the musicianship. Freaking amazing to hear all those songs I had been singing for years in the car or playing drums or guitar to in the studio. It was like watching a Broadway show, but the cast was Iron Maiden. It was also great that outside the arena were all these Uber Christian protesters telling us we were going to hell as we all sang “Number Of The Beast” together in the line waiting for the doors to open.
MM: What do you feel has been your biggest accomplishment so far with The Deathtones
-When we managed to get signed by a record label, We Are Horror Records, after only one year of being a band. It’s awesome when people like your work enough that they’re willing to go into business with you. It’s an amazing feeling, feeling like you finally made it, you finally have your best foot forward and you feel like this project could really go the distance.
MM: Which are your Two favourite Albums of all time
-This’ll be a multiple answer thing:
-Billy:
Warning- Green Day
Americana - The Offspring
-Mr. Grim:
Danzig 1- Danzig
Inferno- Motörhead
-Mikey:
Highway To Hell- AC/DC
The Doors - The Doors
-Pat:
No Gods, No Managers - Choking Victim
Energy - Operation Ivy
-Dorian:
Volumes 1 and 2 - Pure Moods
MM: Can you remember the first time you ever played live and how it felt to have people watching you?
-Personally, I don’t remember the first time I played out. But as a band, our very first gig was part of a showcase opening for Richie Ramone or The Ramones. It was the best feeling. We got an awesome crowd reaction (beaten only by Richie himself) and that’s the show that started us down this path.
MM: Growing up which Bands posters did you have on your bedroom wall.
-Billy: Green Day, The Offspring. All the rest were posters of early 2000’s WWE divas.
-Pat: Nirvana, Spice Girls
-Mr. Grim: No Posters. Just a hand painted 8’x14’ Danzig skull logo.
-Mikey: Green Day, The Misfits
-Dorian: I never had any band posters.
MM - Who do you think influenced the world of Metal / Rock more than any other person
-I think it’s a tie between Lemmy Kilmister and Ozzy Osbourne.
MM - What's the most important thing to the band right now?
-More listeners, more merch sales, more music. The more people we get to listen to us and follow us, the better chance that people will come out to see us live and buy our merch, which will help us get further and play for more people.
MM:If you could do a cover of any song which one would it be and why?
-I honestly don’t know. Maybe something by Judas Priest or Motörhead? We like our own material so much that it’s kind of counter productive to cover someone else’s work at this point unless it’s a cover compilation album that we happen to be a part of or something.
MM: Tell us why we should buy and listen to your Band
-Because we’re the future of the horror rock genre! Taking classic metal and punk, throwing them in a cauldron with the best damn drummer in the genre, a literal mad music professor on lead guitar, the gory guru of groove on bass, a sick nasty punk rhythm guitarist and a vocalist/songwriter who can croon like Sinatra and write songs like Poe wrote poetry.
MM: Four words to describe The Deathtones. Final Words for your fans and our readers
-I don’t need 4. I only need 3.
WE. ARE. HORROR.
Check us out as well as the fine folks at We Are Horror Records from the links below!
https://www.facebook.com/TheDeathtonesBand
https://www.instagram.com/the_deathtones/
https://twitter.com/deathtonesband1
https://thedeathtones.bandcamp.com
wearehorrorrecords.bandcamp.com
