Metal Shrine recently conducted an interview with DEVILDRIVER vocalist Dez Fafara about the new album Beast, the record industry, influences and tour. Excerpts from the interview are below:

Metal Shrine: The new album then? I guess since you´re all located in Santa Barbara and close to LA, how come you ended up in Texas for the recording of the album?

Dez Fafara: “Well, we found the place out there, the Sonic Grange, and it´s a beautiful place and it´s on 3,600 acres and in the middle of nowhere. They´ve got over probably three million dollars’ worth of just gear and they´ve got the top notch recording studio in the world; it´s actually THE top notch recording studio in the world. The way that his studio is built is just unbelievable and even the sound quality and there´s nothing to do out there. You can´t even get a cell phone reception, so you go out there and you make art. Once we found that place years ago, we keep returning because you can go out there and just be surrounded by nothing other than your art and it´s important to do that when you´re making a record.”

Metal Shrine: Could you have produced the album yourselves or is it essential to have a producer?

Dez Fafara: “Well, in some cases it is, I think. I mean, you have five guys with five different ideas and it´s important to channel all those ideas to one person otherwise it could get very convoluted and all of a sudden it becomes somebody´s record, you know what I mean. If a band member produces it, it can be “Well I produced it!”, so I think the five of us with all our different ideas, it´s gotta go through a producer. You find that that guy brings a lot to the table and he brought a lot to the table when it came to the music. He took a lot of time guitar tones and stuff like that and he wasn´t afraid to speak up if something wasn´t right and you really need that. You need an outside influence I think. Those musicians that do produce their own records, I actually think they´re doing themselves a disfavor. I think the music could be better with an outside source telling you that it´s good or bad, you know what I mean. I think it´s essential to have a producer.”

Metal Shrine: Alright. How´s John doing, because I read the other day that he was sick.

Dez Fafara: “Yeah, he got sick for a show and we had to fly Kevin Talley out to do the Chicago show, but he looks like he´s feeling good now. I just saw him about five minutes ago. It looks like he´s gonna make the show tonight.”

Read the entire interview here.

Beast tracklisting:

'Dead To Rights'

'Bring The Fight (To The Floor)'

'Hardened'

'Shitlist'

'Talons Out (Teeth Sharpened)'

'You Make Me Sick'

'Coldblooded'

'Blur'

'The Blame Game'

'Black Soul Choir'

'Crowns Of Creation'

'Lend Myself To The Night'