Interviews: Death On Fire

In this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Death Metal/Thrash Metal band Death On Fire from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

Originally I started this as a bedroom project when I lived in Chicago. A friend had this story he told about a game he wanted to develop called Lazerwulf. You were a sorcerer riding a wolf that shot lasers to kill “the man” as he tried to destroy the forest. He said we could take that name. Unfortunately, another band in GA was using a similar name so we had to go through some postering before we decided to change to Death on Fire. It took us three or four different names before we landed on that and relaunched ourselves. By that time I knew I wanted to play live shows so the band was formed and we agreed that it was a good name for the style of music we play. Perhaps a little straight forward but so are we at times and it has a good rhythm when chanted by a crowd.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

I love guitar driven music and I love extreme music. It allows for multiple styles to coexist in several different ways at the same time. I am not a fan of a ton of sub genre tags but I understand why they exist. For us, we don’t want to fee restricted so we just write what we love and get nerdy on all kinds of theory stuff behind the scenes. It’s a fun way to justify noise as art that we can all drink to and have a good time.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

I didn’t know Kyle or Sam until I wanted to take the music out on the road. I reached out to a friend that knew a lot of musicians in the Midwest scene and he connected us. It has been great because the new stuff we are working on is much more dynamic. Having a drummer that understands space and groove is so key to what I wanted but couldn’t do on my own. Sam is a beast on bass and a crazy good guitarist so it is a great dynamic group. I owe Justin a huge debt for introducing us and for playing with us when he has time.

4. Each band member favorite band?

Kyle loves him some Steely Dan. He gets into the session guys and is a pure drummer. Grooves rudiments. All that stuff. We pick on him a bit but it’s hard to argue when you hear what he comes up with. Sam loves a lot of stuff probably Maiden and System of a Down are his top though. He is eclectic so it’s hard to pick. Me personally I am a metal head at heart. If it weren’t for Megadeth, Morbid Angel, and Carcass I don’t know what I would be. The favorite is probably Carcass though. Justin is a true metal guru so anything related to Manowar.

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

This is tricky. Life, in general, inspires me personally as it is a cathartic outlet. The longer you live the more shot you deal with and struggle through. I need the music to get it out or it would be my undoing. From a nerdy level, it is all of the history before us. Atonality, dodecaphonics, Jazz, classical, all of the metal and punk and studio. We just love music and having that knowledge allows us to really be creative. It is actually getting to a point where we have a lot of side projects to accommodate our musical creations that don’t fit Death on Fire.

6. Where was your last gig?

We play out a lot. At this point the last gig was Chicago. Getting ready for PA and OH than a break to plan our next release and we head to festivals late summer and FL in Oct. We love it.

7. Where would you like to act?

We would love to play in Europe. I think that is every band's Mecca. Aside from that Australia and NZ. I have friends down there from festival encounters and playing rugby. Would be awesome to see them and snap some necks with an onslaught of metal.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Well, I love Carcass and it would be amazing to play shows with them. Megadeth because they rip. Hopefully, Dave gets better so we can climb the ladder and have an opportunity like that down the road. Revocation would be awesome. They are one of the leaders of the modern scene and sound. So many great bands but probably Carcass.

9. Whom not?

Fascists and assholes. We are pretty easy going so it is really about if you can be around nice people before anything else.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

I used to have it really bad. I went to university for music and was forced to overcome it in performance class. It was a godsend. When you are doing something that everyone knows then they know when you make a mistake. The key is don’t stop playing. Shit happens at the moment and only for a moment. It was harder for me to sing in front of people that play. I always get like I could hide behind my instrument. The best advice is to keep doing it. It is a group so no one is the focus. People are there for the event and are generally supportive. Just make sure you are tight as a band before you step out on stage. Practice! 

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

So many! Carcass, Megadeth, Death, Metallica, Morbid Angel, Dream Theatre, Type O Negative, The Cure, The Smith’s, Coltrane, Iron Maiden. It is too many to list them all. We are fans of music in general and pull inspiration from all areas.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

Nothing crazy. I always fee odd signing things. I am happy to do it but it is surreal to have gotten to a point where I get asked.

13. What do you think of your fans?

We love them, man. All different people from all different walks of life. All coming together to slay. It is awesome. Without them, we wouldn’t be doing this so we are honored, humbled, and excited to have them dig us.

14. What do you think of our site?

We love it. Anytime someone takes the time to support the scene and help bands gain a platform it is great. Thank you for doing what you do! Keep fighting the good fight and we will keep reading man!

15. Something add?

We will be releasing new music through an amazing label sometime late 2019 early 2020ish depending on the labels current schedule. We are honored and excited for the opportunity and an announcement will be coming in the not to distant future I am sure.