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Glenn Danzig is still singing about the devil...but he still has the voice of an angel. Danzig has been around for well over twenty years and is currently on tour promoting his 'Circle of Snakes' cd. He now lives in LA but he started out right here in Lodi NJ.
Dan Lorenzo: If you grew up in L.A. instead of New Jersey would you still be the same person?
Glenn Danzig: No.
DL: What would be different?
Glenn Danzig: I don't know. I'm sure I'd have a different outlook on things and it would be much different.
DL: Would it have effected your music as well?
Glenn Danzig: Yeah, growing up on the East coast I think is much different than growing up on the West coast. It's a little more laid back here (in L.A.) and it's a little more crazy there. Although it is crazy here. You could be in, what you think is a nice area and there's gangs all around and you wouldn't even know it. Everyone out here has a gun.
DL: What are your memories of Lodi?
Glenn Danzig: Well I grew up in Lodi, and then New York and then Boston. They were all pretty similar...getting in a lot of trouble and doing crazy things that I would tell people later, and they would look at me shocked that that was my experience growing up.
DL: Did the murder of Dimebag effect how you feel about performing onstage now?
Glenn Danzig: Well I've kinda burned out on performing, well not really performing because when you're onstage it's great, and the interaction with people is great. It's why you tour. You don't make a lot of money touring because there's so many expenses. I love being onstage for that hour and a half or two hours, but the other 22 hours suck. I live here in California and if there's an earthquake or a flood and I'm on tour, I worry about different stuff.
DL: But are you more fearful going onstage after the Dimebag tragedy?
Glenn Danzig: No. We've always had crazy fans and people that aren't fans. We've always had a gun and metal check since Sam Hain. I think at one time Danzig and LL Cool J were the only ones to have metal wands before the show.
DL: What's going on with you possibly recording with Jerry Cantrell?
Glenn Danzig: Just trying to work out our schedules and make it happen. We're gonna do a dark Southern blues kind of record. And when I say Southern I don't mean like Lynyrd Skynyrd, I mean like Robert Johnson. A creepy old blues record.
DL: There's a rumour that Johnny Cash recorded more of your songs.
Glenn Danzig: I don't know about that. I wrote '13' for him and then I wrote him another one. He asked me to write him another one. He came down to the recording of Danzig 4 and I showed it to him and he really liked it. When I had my rift with Rick Rubin I never gave the song to him.
DL: Have you ever thought about doing a reunion with the original Danzig line up?
Glenn Danzig: No, not really.
DL: Do you still talk to those guys?
Glenn Danzig: If I see John out...he's a nice guy-we say hi to each other and ask how we're doing. I talked with Biscuits a little while ago. I have no correspondence with Eerie.
DL: With all you do, what are you most excited about in the future?
Glenn Danzig: Directing, because I haven't directed my first feature yet. So that's going to be exciting. The record with Jerry. You know, I've always loved recording. I finally got to finish Black Aria part 2.
DL: Do you ever look at the posts on Blabbermouth.net to see what people are saying about you?
Glenn Danzig: No. I don't give two f--ks.
DL: You don't ever type your name into Google or anything?
Glenn Danzig: No. I could give two shits.
DL: You don't speak often about your political views.
Glenn Danzig: Occasionally I'll say something, but it's not what everybody wants to hear. I think it's a more rational cut and dry point of view as opposed to a totally left or a totally right point of view.
DL: So what did you think of the Iraqi election? Did that make the war worthwhile?
Glenn Danzig: My view on war is, if you're going to have a war, you should kill everyone there.
DL: So you wouldn't worry about collateral damage?
Glenn Danzig: It's a war idiot! (laughs) You know what I mean? You're talking about war, like it's a game. It's not a game it's war! These people that are shooting back at you, they're trying to kill you and you should be trying to kill them. If there was somebody wounded and laying there I would put a bullet in them you know? It's war, it's not a game. I see all these politicians like Ted Kennedy who's a murderer in his own right, talking all this shit-your sending people out there to fight a war...this is a war! Either we're going or we're not going. Once we're there don't complain when somebody kills somebody because you sent them with a gun.
DL: So that means you weren't offended by the prison photos that...
Glenn Danzig: No! These people are taking innocent hostages and beheading them on TV-that should tell you you're enemy. There are no rules to war! Kill or be killed that's war! What's worse beheading somebody on the internet or abusing a prisoner of war? Were they really being abused? If that's abuse then don't go to an American jail system (laughs) cause there's way worse in an American jail system.
Danzig is performing on March 1st at Spirit Performance Center in New York City.
Used with the permission Dan Lorenso of Steppin Out magazine to find out more visit www.so-mag.com
Dan Lorenzo: If you grew up in L.A. instead of New Jersey would you still be the same person?
Glenn Danzig: No.
DL: What would be different?
Glenn Danzig: I don't know. I'm sure I'd have a different outlook on things and it would be much different.
DL: Would it have effected your music as well?
Glenn Danzig: Yeah, growing up on the East coast I think is much different than growing up on the West coast. It's a little more laid back here (in L.A.) and it's a little more crazy there. Although it is crazy here. You could be in, what you think is a nice area and there's gangs all around and you wouldn't even know it. Everyone out here has a gun.
DL: What are your memories of Lodi?
Glenn Danzig: Well I grew up in Lodi, and then New York and then Boston. They were all pretty similar...getting in a lot of trouble and doing crazy things that I would tell people later, and they would look at me shocked that that was my experience growing up.
DL: Did the murder of Dimebag effect how you feel about performing onstage now?
Glenn Danzig: Well I've kinda burned out on performing, well not really performing because when you're onstage it's great, and the interaction with people is great. It's why you tour. You don't make a lot of money touring because there's so many expenses. I love being onstage for that hour and a half or two hours, but the other 22 hours suck. I live here in California and if there's an earthquake or a flood and I'm on tour, I worry about different stuff.
DL: But are you more fearful going onstage after the Dimebag tragedy?
Glenn Danzig: No. We've always had crazy fans and people that aren't fans. We've always had a gun and metal check since Sam Hain. I think at one time Danzig and LL Cool J were the only ones to have metal wands before the show.
DL: What's going on with you possibly recording with Jerry Cantrell?
Glenn Danzig: Just trying to work out our schedules and make it happen. We're gonna do a dark Southern blues kind of record. And when I say Southern I don't mean like Lynyrd Skynyrd, I mean like Robert Johnson. A creepy old blues record.
DL: There's a rumour that Johnny Cash recorded more of your songs.
Glenn Danzig: I don't know about that. I wrote '13' for him and then I wrote him another one. He asked me to write him another one. He came down to the recording of Danzig 4 and I showed it to him and he really liked it. When I had my rift with Rick Rubin I never gave the song to him.
DL: Have you ever thought about doing a reunion with the original Danzig line up?
Glenn Danzig: No, not really.
DL: Do you still talk to those guys?
Glenn Danzig: If I see John out...he's a nice guy-we say hi to each other and ask how we're doing. I talked with Biscuits a little while ago. I have no correspondence with Eerie.
DL: With all you do, what are you most excited about in the future?
Glenn Danzig: Directing, because I haven't directed my first feature yet. So that's going to be exciting. The record with Jerry. You know, I've always loved recording. I finally got to finish Black Aria part 2.
DL: Do you ever look at the posts on Blabbermouth.net to see what people are saying about you?
Glenn Danzig: No. I don't give two f--ks.
DL: You don't ever type your name into Google or anything?
Glenn Danzig: No. I could give two shits.
DL: You don't speak often about your political views.
Glenn Danzig: Occasionally I'll say something, but it's not what everybody wants to hear. I think it's a more rational cut and dry point of view as opposed to a totally left or a totally right point of view.
DL: So what did you think of the Iraqi election? Did that make the war worthwhile?
Glenn Danzig: My view on war is, if you're going to have a war, you should kill everyone there.
DL: So you wouldn't worry about collateral damage?
Glenn Danzig: It's a war idiot! (laughs) You know what I mean? You're talking about war, like it's a game. It's not a game it's war! These people that are shooting back at you, they're trying to kill you and you should be trying to kill them. If there was somebody wounded and laying there I would put a bullet in them you know? It's war, it's not a game. I see all these politicians like Ted Kennedy who's a murderer in his own right, talking all this shit-your sending people out there to fight a war...this is a war! Either we're going or we're not going. Once we're there don't complain when somebody kills somebody because you sent them with a gun.
DL: So that means you weren't offended by the prison photos that...
Glenn Danzig: No! These people are taking innocent hostages and beheading them on TV-that should tell you you're enemy. There are no rules to war! Kill or be killed that's war! What's worse beheading somebody on the internet or abusing a prisoner of war? Were they really being abused? If that's abuse then don't go to an American jail system (laughs) cause there's way worse in an American jail system.
Danzig is performing on March 1st at Spirit Performance Center in New York City.
Used with the permission Dan Lorenso of Steppin Out magazine to find out more visit www.so-mag.com