Aaron Grech April 3rd, 2019 - 10:03 PM
Southern California based metal band DevilDriver have announced that they have completed a new double album, which is yet to be titled. The band’s frontman Dez Fafara, made the announcement on social media, stating that the group has recorded over 20 plus songs for the ambitious project which also does not yet have a release date.
Music producer Steve Evetts who has worked with The Dillinger Escape Plan and Every Time I Die in the past will be producing the upcoming album. Evetts also worked on the band’s last release Outlaws ‘Til The End: Vol. 1, which were an assortment of outlaw country covers that were released during the summer of last year.
DevilDriver embarked on a 23 stop tour in support of the cover’s album last year, with stops from Brooklyn, New York all the way out to San Diego, California. The covers album was immensely successful commercially, landing as the number one spot for metal albums on the music charts.
Fafara spoke on his decision to make a covers album of outlaw country music, due to its authentic lyricism and stylistic origins. He explains that while he is not a fan of modern day “pop country” older country songs had a heart to them which many people tend to forget.
“I cannot stand pop country, I can’t even fucking listen to it, the stuff that’s on the radio is absolutely terrible! But these early country artists, the way they tell a story, the way they deliver lyrics, the way they live their life and broke open into touring, that’s way more interesting,” Fafara told Distorted Sound Magazine.” Additionally, you go back into history, you find that country music meets swing, meets blues, eventually meets rhythm ‘n’ blues and bingo, rock ‘n’ roll music right there!”
He also spoke that the figureheads of the movement were unique in creating their own sound, while pushing the genre forward. Fafara compared the icons of the outlaw country scene to underground music scenes and famed Motorhead bassist Lemmy Kilmeister, for making music they wanted to make.
“I think this is the same thing in country; Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, those guys are the Lemmy of country music,” Fafara elaborated. “They’re the outlaws, they’re the underground, they’re not conforming or skirting their music towards any kind of playlist; they’re writing about what they are and from their heart, the music’s making it to the public and if it gets big on its own then it gets big on its own.
