DENIAL FIEND
Interview with Sam Williams (Guitar) and Terry Butler (Bass)
By Kimberly Brown
Taking a break from their punk rock roots and taking a stab at metal, DENIAL FIEND shows up what happens when you mix the members of your favorite bands into one super group… true bliss. DENIAL FIEND has a passion for music that most musicians now a days lack. Not making much money and being away from home is a hard life to live but if you cared about your fans the way these guys do, you’d see why the sacrifice if worth it. After some lineup changes, DENIAL FIEND decided to go in a more thrash direction for their latest release, Horror Holocaust. Musically reinventing themselves, the band has created a sound so original that it doesn’t matter if you’re a punk rocker or a metalhead- this record is for you.
DENIAL FIEND has been called the ‘Super Group of Metal.’ Which such a melting pot of talent, how did DENIAL FIEND come about?
SAM: I grew up playing punk rock with DOWN BY LAW my whole life. I wanted to try and play some metal. So I called up some local guys I had connections with that just happened to be in some of my favorite metal bands. We’re all into each other’s bands from way back, so we enjoy working with each other. No one has really left anything to do DENIAL FIEND. Terry still does OBITUARY, Rob still does DRI, I still do DBL and Blaine is doing TOE TAG.
How does the band keep the passion for music alive after so many years in this tough business?
SAM: Well we pretty much reinvented ourselves with the last record. It is tough to keep from getting discouraged with the business side of things, which tends to be dismal. But we’re all life long musicians, so the passion for making music will always be there. We also have different outlets, as mentioned earlier.
TERRY: The passion is from passion for music. Everyone is out to make money off of you and your band in some way. If it weren’t for the fans caring for the music and coming to see you live it would really suck. That’s what keeps us going. Hoping to break it is always on your mind. Watching the crowd sing your songs or cheer for a song is an amazing feeling. That’s what keeps you going after you just drove 12 hours to get to the club.
What are the concepts behind the latest release, Horror Holocaust? How does it differ from the bands other releases?
TERRY: Well lyrically it’s not that different but musically it is. We had a line-up change for the better and musically it was headed in a more thrashy direction. The band is leaner and tighter more focused. We‘ve always been drawn to horror movies, campy movies, and old sci-fi. We primarily draw from these influences for lyrics.
Since the lyrics are so obviously influenced by horror and slasher movies, what are DENIAL FIEND’S favorite movies or the ones that influenced the band’s lyrics?
SAM: I like old Hammer horror films. I guess my favorite horror movie is still the original Dawn Of The Dead.
TERRY: I love the old sci-fi movies like Forbidden Planet, Hideous Sun Demon, and Incredible Melting Man as well as movies like Zombie, Pieces, and Creature From BlackLake. When I was kid we had a channel here with a show called Creature Feature that played a wide range of horror. Big influence.
Describe the first show DENIAL FIEND ever played together as a band.
SAM: Things were moving pretty quickly. I think the first show was actually a CD release party. It was great. At the time, we had half of MASSACRE in the band. So we did some MASSACRE songs as well. People actually flew in from all over the country to see that.
How is your hometown, Tampa, Florida’s music scene? How do you think it differs from other US cities? What are some of DENIAL FIEND’S favorite bands to play with from the area or Florida in general?
SAM: Presently, the music scene here isn’t amazing or great. Tampa has had its ups and downs for music. I’d say at the moment there are some cool bands. But the shows are really hit and miss. As far as bands we’ve played with… we just did a stint with OBITUARY, and that was great. Really great guys and a great band. We also did some shows with EXTREME NOISE TERROR a few years ago. Also really great.
TERRY: As Sam said the scene here is pretty lame sometimes. National acts fare well sometimes, but the locals suffer. Even back in the day there would be 200 people at a show and half the crowd was from other bands.
What are your favorite and least favorite things about Tampa? Music and non-music related.
SAM: I love Tampa. I was born and raised here and I’ll probably never leave. It’s a very interesting city with access to a lot of cool stuff. I’ve been all over the world and only a few other cities compete in my mind. As I mentioned, I don’t think the music scene is anything to brag about. There are some cool bands here. But sometimes it’s hard to get people to come out to the shows.
TERRY: I love it here. Born and raised in Florida. A true cracker. I love the climate, the beaches, the fruit trees, the alligators, spiders, etc… Plus being raised with some awesome metal bands didn’t hurt matters.
What are the biggest challenges and sacrifices you make being in a band?
SAM: Financial stability. Without a doubt. Also, now that I have kids, I dread going on tour for more than two weeks at a time.
TERRY: Definitely financial!!! You ain’t getting rich doing this. Being away from home is bad. You miss the family a lot.
Since metal is so known for its huge festivals, does DENIAL FIEND prefer festivals or more intimate smaller shows?
SAM: I really don’t care about the size of the show as long as the crowd is enthusiastic. The festival thing can be cool. We’ve played several. But I think my favorite might have been the LA Murderfest. I hope to get back there one of these days.
TERRY: Festivals are cool but sometimes the crowd is 30 feet away. Give me a show in a club with 500 people in my face. That’s electric!!
Do you have any advice for bands that aren’t as far along as you? Something you wish someone told you when starting out?
SAM: Hard to say. Be prepared to put everything into it and not get a whole lot back. It has to be an act of pure love.
TERRY: Learn as much as you can about the business side of things, ask questions beware of Austrian promoters, practice, and have fun!!!!
What is the strangest, most outrageous thing a fan has ever done towards the band? (Or maybe the craziest thing you ever saw a fan do to a band you were on tour with?)
TERRY: We were playing a festival in Georgia and the show fell apart. So as we were leaving these girls ran in front of the bus and dropped their pants and spread their cheeks. They were trying to keep us from leaving. Normally we would invite them in but we were in the back woods of Georgia!!
SAM: So far, not too much craziness with DENIAL FIEND fans. I remember a show with DOWN BY LAW where the audience raided our backstage area, stole our clothes and wore them during the show. It sucked at the time but I can laugh about it now…sort of.
What was the last band you played with that really blew you away? Any newcomers on the scene you think that readers should check out?
SAM: On this last tour we played with a band called DEATH BEFORE DYING in FL. They were really cool, old school sounding stuff. I believe both RICK ROZZ and me will be playing some on their next release. A band in NJ called MIDNITE HELLION was pretty interesting. Actually, there were a lot of cool bands at that show, but I don’t recall the names. I remember one was dressed like pirates.
Do you have any guilty pleasures on your IPOD? Or anything on there that fans would be surprised to see?
SAM: I have a hugely varied collection of stuff. I’m sure a lot of it would surprise your average metal head. I’m a huge fan of the 80′s band BIG COUNTRY. It’s about as un-death metal as you can get. I don’t know if I’d call that a guilty pleasure though because they’re amazing.
TERRY: You’d probably would find some GARY NUMAN or REO SPEEDWAGON on there.
What can fans expect from DENIAL FIEND in 2012?
SAM: We really hope to be touring here and in Europe in support of the new record. Maybe release an EP as well, or something. I’d love to play LA Murderfest again.
TERRY: Well we would like to tour Europe and the states for Horror Holocaust before we move to the next CD!! We are trying to nail down some last minute details.
Popularity: unranked
Thats cuz sam n terry r really rad guys who rock