METAL PULP AND PAPER
METAL PULP AND PAPER INTERVIEW
Mike Spreitzer of:
DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California that formed in 2002. The band was originally named Deathride, but due to copyright issues and the name being taken by several other bands, Deathride changed their name to DevilDriver, which refers to the bells the Italian Wiccans used to drive evil forces away.
METAL PULP AND PAPER:
Hello Mike, thank you for sitting down and taking the time to answer a few things for the fans of you and Devildriver.
When you joined Devildriver in 2004 to fill in for guitarist Evan Pitts who for personal reasons did not go out on the European tour, did you ever think it would turn out to be a permanent job? Or was it something you just needed to play guitar in a band until the next project came along and you could sink your teeth into?
MIKE SPREITZER:
I was hoping that it would turn into a permanent job. About a week into the tour I started hearing that Evan might not be coming back and I was given the impression that my temporary position might become permanent. When we got home from the tour the band took time to look into one other guy but in the end I got the job.
MPAP:
You picked up the guitar at an early age. When you first started playing at 10 years old in 1991, what would you want to tell your future self-25 years later in 2016? Any advice, or do’s or don’ts you’d feel you should know?
MS:
I suppose I would have told myself to be more self-aware of vibrato and how important it is to a guitar player to do it properly. I developed a bad habit of wiggling the string rather than bending it in tune and making it sing. I’ve got a fairly good handle on it now, but it’s taken me years.
MPAP:
Would you change anything you did back during those early years?
MS:
I started to learn music theory when I was 15 and I’m very glad that I took the time to do so. But I wish I wouldn’t have taken it so
seriously. I stuck to the rules too much and didn’t experiment enough when writing my own material.
MPAP:
Devildriver heads out to San Bernardino, California soon to be a part of Ozzfest meets Knotfest on September 24th. This is going to be a huge weekend! How stoked are you to be a part of this huge event?
MS:
I’m always stoked to be a part of Ozzfest. I went as a spectator in
1999 and 2000 and never thought I’d be able to be a part of it as much as I have over the years.
MPAP:
Is there any band or bands on this bill that you will make sure to watch from the side stage that you can’t miss?
MS:
Opeth, Megadeth, and Black Sabbath.
MPAP:
After the Ozzfest meets Knotfest weekend with really no time to rest Devildriver heads up to Seattle, Washington on September 26th to begin a 26 city tour with Hatebreed and Devil You Know. In your music career so far have you been able to play a show in all 50 states?
MS:
Not yet. We still have not played Hawaii, Alaska, Delaware, and Wyoming.
MPAP:
Is there a city with a venue there that you always look forward to playing a show at?
MS:
The Machine Shop in Flint, MI. It’s the best small rock club in the
USA. The owner Kevin and his staff are some of the coolest people you’ll meet and we always have a great show there.
MPAP:
Is there a part of the year and area you cringe at when you see the
itinerary and the States you will be traveling to and or through for a tour?
MS:
Yes, there is one city in the USA that I believe is cursed that I
absolutely hate going to. But I’ll keep that info to myself.
MPAP:
Any white knuckle thrown from the bunk tour bus travel stories you can share?
MS:
Our trailer disconnected from our bus while driving in Germany a few years ago. We drove roughly 3 hours until someone noticed. We turned around and found it on the side of the highway. The axel on the trailer was wrecked but all the gear was okay.
MPAP:
From the stage you get to see a lot during the shows that others might not be able to see. Has there ever been something going on in the crowd that you had to stop playing because something got out of hand?
MS:
We’ve had to stop the show a few times. If Dez ever notices someone getting hurt or out of control he’ll stop everything until we get it sorted out. We had to stop a show earlier this year when a fan had a seizure in the pit. He ended up being okay in the end.
MPAP:
While playing a show have you ever looked at the mosh pit and said “Holy Shit, those kids are nuts! Glad I’m up here.”
MS:
Yes! Almost every show.
MPAP:
When it’s time to start recording new music, where do you find inspiration?
MS:
Sometimes it comes from nowhere while I’m playing guitar and
improvising. Other times I’ll listen to something to get inspired.
Usually something non-metal.
MPAP:
Do you have to lock yourself in a dark room and just see what happens?
MS:
Yes, but I don’t like writing in the dark. I lock myself in my studio
and I keep the lights on.
MPAP:
In 2009 you co-wrote three songs for a video game feature on MX vs ATV Reflex alongside Raymond Herrera, Christian Olde Wolbers, and Jeff Kendrick. Do you play a lot of video games while out on the road?
MS:
Not really. I’ve been thinking of getting a gaming console recently. There have been a couple tours where we all played Tiger Woods a lot. But its not a regular thing for us.
MPAP:
Do you plan on doing this again in the future?
MS:
I’d like to if the opportunity came about.
MPAP:
Before Devildriver, in 2001 you formed an industrial-metal band called No Love Lost with friends Cliff Ross and Dan Bellinger. Although an album's worth of material was written and recorded, nothing was ever been released.Why is this?
MS:
No Love Lost ended when I joined DevilDriver.
MPAP:
What music style would you compare No Love Lost to?
MS:
Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein, KMFDM……..ish
MPAP:
Will the recordings ever make the light of day?
MS:
Nope…..Never. Those songs are not a good representation of the way I write these days.
MPAP:
This tour with Hatebreed finishes up in Poughkeepsie, New York on October 28th. What’s next for Devildriver?
MS:
We are doing The 70,000 Tons of Metal cruise in February and are currently putting together more tours for 2017
MPAP:
What’s on the horizon for you?
MS:
Lots of touring and surfing when I’m home.
MPAP:
Thank you Mike for taking the time to answer these questions for Metal Pulp And Paper. Any last words you’d like to say?
MS:
Big thanks to all the DevilDriver fans that have supported us for the last 14 years.
MPAP:
Thank you Mike. Horns up!
Hello Mike, thank you for sitting down and taking the time to answer a few things for the fans of you and Devildriver.
When you joined Devildriver in 2004 to fill in for guitarist Evan Pitts who for personal reasons did not go out on the European tour, did you ever think it would turn out to be a permanent job? Or was it something you just needed to play guitar in a band until the next project came along and you could sink your teeth into?
MIKE SPREITZER:
I was hoping that it would turn into a permanent job. About a week into the tour I started hearing that Evan might not be coming back and I was given the impression that my temporary position might become permanent. When we got home from the tour the band took time to look into one other guy but in the end I got the job.
MPAP:
You picked up the guitar at an early age. When you first started playing at 10 years old in 1991, what would you want to tell your future self-25 years later in 2016? Any advice, or do’s or don’ts you’d feel you should know?
MS:
I suppose I would have told myself to be more self-aware of vibrato and how important it is to a guitar player to do it properly. I developed a bad habit of wiggling the string rather than bending it in tune and making it sing. I’ve got a fairly good handle on it now, but it’s taken me years.
MPAP:
Would you change anything you did back during those early years?
MS:
I started to learn music theory when I was 15 and I’m very glad that I took the time to do so. But I wish I wouldn’t have taken it so
seriously. I stuck to the rules too much and didn’t experiment enough when writing my own material.
MPAP:
Devildriver heads out to San Bernardino, California soon to be a part of Ozzfest meets Knotfest on September 24th. This is going to be a huge weekend! How stoked are you to be a part of this huge event?
MS:
I’m always stoked to be a part of Ozzfest. I went as a spectator in
1999 and 2000 and never thought I’d be able to be a part of it as much as I have over the years.
MPAP:
Is there any band or bands on this bill that you will make sure to watch from the side stage that you can’t miss?
MS:
Opeth, Megadeth, and Black Sabbath.
MPAP:
After the Ozzfest meets Knotfest weekend with really no time to rest Devildriver heads up to Seattle, Washington on September 26th to begin a 26 city tour with Hatebreed and Devil You Know. In your music career so far have you been able to play a show in all 50 states?
MS:
Not yet. We still have not played Hawaii, Alaska, Delaware, and Wyoming.
MPAP:
Is there a city with a venue there that you always look forward to playing a show at?
MS:
The Machine Shop in Flint, MI. It’s the best small rock club in the
USA. The owner Kevin and his staff are some of the coolest people you’ll meet and we always have a great show there.
MPAP:
Is there a part of the year and area you cringe at when you see the
itinerary and the States you will be traveling to and or through for a tour?
MS:
Yes, there is one city in the USA that I believe is cursed that I
absolutely hate going to. But I’ll keep that info to myself.
MPAP:
Any white knuckle thrown from the bunk tour bus travel stories you can share?
MS:
Our trailer disconnected from our bus while driving in Germany a few years ago. We drove roughly 3 hours until someone noticed. We turned around and found it on the side of the highway. The axel on the trailer was wrecked but all the gear was okay.
MPAP:
From the stage you get to see a lot during the shows that others might not be able to see. Has there ever been something going on in the crowd that you had to stop playing because something got out of hand?
MS:
We’ve had to stop the show a few times. If Dez ever notices someone getting hurt or out of control he’ll stop everything until we get it sorted out. We had to stop a show earlier this year when a fan had a seizure in the pit. He ended up being okay in the end.
MPAP:
While playing a show have you ever looked at the mosh pit and said “Holy Shit, those kids are nuts! Glad I’m up here.”
MS:
Yes! Almost every show.
MPAP:
When it’s time to start recording new music, where do you find inspiration?
MS:
Sometimes it comes from nowhere while I’m playing guitar and
improvising. Other times I’ll listen to something to get inspired.
Usually something non-metal.
MPAP:
Do you have to lock yourself in a dark room and just see what happens?
MS:
Yes, but I don’t like writing in the dark. I lock myself in my studio
and I keep the lights on.
MPAP:
In 2009 you co-wrote three songs for a video game feature on MX vs ATV Reflex alongside Raymond Herrera, Christian Olde Wolbers, and Jeff Kendrick. Do you play a lot of video games while out on the road?
MS:
Not really. I’ve been thinking of getting a gaming console recently. There have been a couple tours where we all played Tiger Woods a lot. But its not a regular thing for us.
MPAP:
Do you plan on doing this again in the future?
MS:
I’d like to if the opportunity came about.
MPAP:
Before Devildriver, in 2001 you formed an industrial-metal band called No Love Lost with friends Cliff Ross and Dan Bellinger. Although an album's worth of material was written and recorded, nothing was ever been released.Why is this?
MS:
No Love Lost ended when I joined DevilDriver.
MPAP:
What music style would you compare No Love Lost to?
MS:
Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein, KMFDM……..ish
MPAP:
Will the recordings ever make the light of day?
MS:
Nope…..Never. Those songs are not a good representation of the way I write these days.
MPAP:
This tour with Hatebreed finishes up in Poughkeepsie, New York on October 28th. What’s next for Devildriver?
MS:
We are doing The 70,000 Tons of Metal cruise in February and are currently putting together more tours for 2017
MPAP:
What’s on the horizon for you?
MS:
Lots of touring and surfing when I’m home.
MPAP:
Thank you Mike for taking the time to answer these questions for Metal Pulp And Paper. Any last words you’d like to say?
MS:
Big thanks to all the DevilDriver fans that have supported us for the last 14 years.
MPAP:
Thank you Mike. Horns up!
DevilDriver is:
Dez Fafara - Vocals
Mike Spreitzer - Guitar
Neal Tiemann - Guitar
Diego Ibarra - Bass
Austin D'Amond - Drums
Dez Fafara - Vocals
Mike Spreitzer - Guitar
Neal Tiemann - Guitar
Diego Ibarra - Bass
Austin D'Amond - Drums
24/7 365
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