Interviews: Droid Killer
1. How did the concept of Droid Killer originally come together, and what inspired you to build an entire musical universe around a human versus machine apocalypse?
Droid Killer came out of a jam session at the recording studio when Serpent Garden was recording Subterranean Arena Metal in 2007. Some of the NOLA doom crew and friends from other bands were hanging out and partying, people just started jumping in on whatever instrument and we would try to see who came up with the heaviest stuff. The song "Droid Killer" on our debut EP The Hive is a live recording of the jam that started it all. The whole song was freestyle and when we stopped playing, everyone present had jaws dropped and were like "that is the heaviest sound I ever heard, Droid Killer is the future." Since I was on guitar and vocals, I just tapped into this vision of these killer robots rising up from the ice of Antarctica to kill all humans. I expanded the story and we recorded the other 2 tracks at different studios along the journey passing out the Droid Killer/Humandroid 2 song demo until The Hive was released in 2014. People say that I am prophetic and I remember seeing how humanity was going, and having nightmares about it since my childhood, which lead to heavy drug use that started very early in my life. I have been clean and sober for over a decade but with all my musical endeavors I want people to have fun but also to get the gears moving to expand consciousness and think about life. I am happy. Depression and fear are no way to live. Our creative powers as conscious beings are awesome and that is what art is all about.
2. Droid Killer is based in Antarctica, which is certainly one of the most unusual settings for a metal project. Why did you choose Antarctica as the foundation for this story?
A lot of people talk about space and speculate on what is going on "out there" when we haven't even figured out Spaceship Earth yet. Antarctica is super mysterious and alien while being right here on Earth. The amount of speculation and ideas people have about what is going on there make it worthy of exploration. Also, Antarctica is the best place to forge molten, magma riffs into Metal.
3. The mythology begins with The Hive, expands through The Terminator vs. The Preacher, and now continues with 2030 JiHad. How has the larger story evolved since the beginning?
The story certainly has become quite relevant to current events. The Hive was brutal, the glaciers of Antarctica were melting and the machine hordes were unleashed and want to exterminate humans. The Terminator vs. The Preacher gets into the origins of why this is happening and does something super fun; it takes a mountain man from the old west and drops him into the modern world. What does the modern world seem like to someone from back then? This is a human story and the struggle we all have as we move through time and life.
4. What can you tell us about the title 2030 JiHad, and why was this the right title for the next chapter of the Droid Killer saga?
2030 JiHad is the battle, a fulcrum point for human life and the future we want to see.
5. The new album moves the story onto a future battlefield where conscious humanity is fighting for survival. What is happening in this chapter of the story that readers and listeners haven't encountered before?
Weapons are not what wins battles.
6. Your mythology explores the conflict between organic life and artificial intelligence. What fascinates you most about the idea of humanity eventually fighting against its own creations?
A loaded question in the phrasing, so I will shift the paradigm. I see the creations fighting the creators. The original Blade Runner explored it. Fear Fully Made on our album The Terminator vs. The Preacher explores it. It is children and their parents, humans and the planet, religion, spirituality, etc. The creation thinks it is better, whether by better circuitry, better intelligence, the whole "I am the new model" therefore an improvement thinking. Many people think that ancient people were simple, kind of like caveman, not as smart. As though it must be because that is why we have all "the stuff" now and they did not. Yet there is wealthy people in positions of power that are making choices that harm the spaceship that sustains our lives, Earth. It is the spaceship that we are living on, why are people so bent on creating that which will lead to their demise?
7. Droid Killer deals heavily with the concepts of good versus evil, life versus death, creation versus creator, and the synthetic versus the organic. Which of these conflicts sits at the heart of 2030 JiHad?
It is all in there on this one.
8. Each full-length album is accompanied by a companion science-fiction novel. How closely do the novels and albums develop together, and does one typically come first?
The novels and the albums work together, however the albums are not technically concept albums they are more thematic. Since they are written during the time I am writing the album and the artists are working on the artwork, there is points that they converge. The Terminator vs. The Preacher: Origins has instances where there is song titles or lyrics in the text which is fun because a topic was being explored. I work very closely with the artists and my whole production team to create a world that is exciting and fun to explore. It is an organic process where everything comes together.
9. How important is storytelling to Droid Killer compared with traditional songwriting? Do you approach each track as part of a larger narrative rather than simply as an individual song?
I approach each song to write a great song and I have the album concept in my head. I am writing songs all the time, some do not make the album or even get recorded. I grew up playing music, so writing a song is like sounding out a sentence. Good riffs are the foundation that lets the storytelling fall into place naturally.
10. The title track "2030 JiHad" is already out. What can you tell us about the story behind the song, and what role does it play within the larger album?
I had the song and album title all along with a couple other songs in rotation at practice after The Terminator vs. The Preacher. 2030 JiHad sets the tone for the album, an outline as it were, other songs explore the specific concepts in depth.
11. The band describes its sound as "Death Metal / Doom Metal / Life Metal." What exactly does "Life Metal" mean to Droid Killer, and how does that idea separate the project from more traditional genre definitions?
We are clearly a mix of Doom and Death Metal, and started including Life Metal because Metal is Life! Life is good. Droid Killer tackles some dark subject matter but I am stoked to be blessed with this life and I do not condone, conform to, or support the death cult mentality. Songs like BioTech and Biological Machine are about uplifting the listener from the mundane world because we are so much more than biological machines or slabs of flesh. I am not here to tell people what to think, I am here to empower others and expand consciousness. I am merely a steward of the resources and talents bestowed upon me. That is what Droid Killer is about, Life Metal.
12. You also describe the guitar sound as "electric voodoo." How did that distinctive approach develop, and what were you trying to achieve sonically?
I live in the mountains, and spent a lot of time growing up and playing guitar in the Southern Appalachians. I have that Southern rock and blues twang in my fingertips. I always called that groove the "electric voodoo" sound. When I was learning how to play that's what I called the sound I like, that's how I describe the sound of guitarists I like.
13. How do you balance the speed and aggression of death metal with the crushing weight of doom and the more expansive sci-fi atmosphere of the Droid Killer universe?
Droid Killer makes heavy music. I do not write things to be any specific genre, I focus on powerful riffs then use the vocal textures to accentuate the dynamics of each song.
14. The production team includes Brian J. Sienkevich on mixing and production and legendary mastering engineer Ted Jensen. What did each bring to 2030 JiHad, and how important was the production in creating the sound of this new chapter?
We are making a legendary album. I have hand selected the best team to do that. A lot went into that, including releasing experimental singles until I found the right sound and production values. Even enlisting additional assistance from a mainstream/pop engineer/producer to help me improve my vocal delivery. Having played on mostly Metal albums with Metal musicians, the pressure to constantly do the most brutal vocals can lead to bad habits and writing inside the box. We are not making a pop album, but the album must sound as good as the the albums that influenced me. Ted Jensen is known for putting that golden finishing touch on an album.
15. What can you tell us about the album artwork created by Zachary Jackson Brown? How does the artwork represent the world and events contained within 2030 JiHad?
Zachary Jackson Brown is an awesome artist. We got into great detail about the characters and world creation. There is so much more, people will definitely want to buy the physical album, book, and merch.
16. Photography and visual identity are also clearly important to the Droid Killer mythology. How do the imagery, logo, artwork, music, and novels work together to create one unified universe?
I love art and being creative. I went to college for fashion design. I love designing the look, the merch, everything that goes into Droid Killer. I want everything to be awesome. Life is the ultimate canvas, it makes sense to create beautiful art in every way possible upon that canvas.
17. The Droid Killer story has a deliberately larger-than-life, almost cinematic quality. Which science-fiction, horror, fantasy, or metal influences helped shape the universe you have created?
Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Megadeth... Frank Herbert, Dune and all his novels. Frank Herbert is hard sci-fi. I love Horror and Sci-Fi movies too, films of all sorts really. The great thing about reading a book or listening to music though, they allow the readers to be creative because they are turning text into a picture with their minds. That is why a hard sci-fi novel is the perfect thing to accompany Droid Killer albums.
18. As the story continues, does Droid Killer have a predetermined ending in mind, or is the mythology allowed to evolve as new albums and novels are created?
Nothing is pre-determined, it is a journey to empowerment. I am here for this purpose which is evolving.
19. With 2030 JiHad, the companion novel, and merchandise all scheduled for May 2027, what can fans expect from Droid Killer between now and the album's release?
An adventure. The journey! The great reveal! Working on having shirts ready ship in November and the succession of singles that bring people into the story and immerse them in the Droid Killer world.
20. Bonus Question: Imagine that 2030 JiHad is the soundtrack playing during the final battle between humanity and the machines. What does the last surviving human see when the smoke clears, and does humanity actually survive?
From the shattered remains of humanity's greed and hubris a remnant will emerge to rebuild and repeat the cycle once again, until we get it right, as stewards and architects of the world we live in. I see a future primitive world, which is where the Droid Killer sound comes from. It is a world where we use technology responsibly, in a limited matter where it improves life and minimizes our negative impact on the vessel we live upon.
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