http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view Interview with Downtuned Despondency Monday, March 06, 2006 Devil To Pay Category: Music 1. Greetings Devil To Pay. Many thanks for your time. Let's begin with an introduction and brief run down of the band. Devil to Pay is a stoner/doom influenced rock band from Indianapolis, Indiana... Steve Janiak - guitar/vocals, Matt Stokes - bass, Chad Prifogle - drums, and Bob Bridges - guitar. 2. How would you describe your sound for those who haven't heard your work? Probably as doomy, progressive stoner rock. We mostly get compared to Sabbath, C.O.C., Kyuss, Alabama Thunderpussy, Crowbar, Karma to Burn, and Roadsaw, which we are pretty happy with. 3. What releases do you have available at this current time and where can we locate them? We just released our second album, "Cash is King," which is available on our website currently. Our first album, "thirty pieces of silver," was released nationally in the US in August of 2004. We also have a split 7" we did back in 2003 with another Indiana band, Mantis, which is also available on our website. 4. With such a massive list of influences on your page is it possible to pick out 5 major influences for Devil To Pay and explain how you feel they inspire your band? Since we changed our page to a music page, the list of bands was deleted, but I'd say that Black Sabbath is obviously a huge influence, along with C.O.C. and Kyuss, but there are also elements of early Soundgarden and Nirvana to what we do. 5. What inspires you guys outside of music? Life, death, drugs, booze, environmental or political issues? Pretty much all of those and them some. The state of the world and society today is easily a huge inspiration when it comes to writing aggressive, down and out music. 6. Let's talk about Templars. What's the overall atmosphere like? Any highlights and/or major bands you played along side of that you'd care to mention? The atmosphere was definitely one of community and good tunes. All the bands were stellar. We feel lucky to live in Indy and know the Gates of Slumber guys, the entire thing was their idea. Plus, we got to help out a little bit. 7. Who writes the lyrics in the band and are there any particular themes you choose to follow? I normally write all the lyrics and melodies. Thematically I write about struggling against things that hold someone down, be it big business, the government, or ignorance. Also, I seem to have a preoccupation with guilt and personal responsibility, you only have one chance in life to make your choices, so you have to choose wisely. 8. What's the "scene" like in Indiana? Do you have a huge following at your venues and what sort of vibe is present at your shows? The scene is pretty mixed here. Lots of different styles of music, and everyone is pretty supportive. Our following isn't huge, but it's definitely strong, and since Indy is a big city with a small town feel, everyone usually knows everyone else, which makes the shows seem like a family gathering with lots of beer. 9. Ok Myspace. How do you find the particular website as a tool for your band? We don't have any complaints. When you're meeting cool people from all over the world who discovered your music online, it makes a shitty day a little brighter. 10. So to my knowledge you guys are currently working on a new album entitled "Cash is King". What can you tell us about the album thus far in terms of track titles, release dates and anything you feel is relevant? We've got a local release set for this coming weekend, (March 10th, 2006) and after that, we'll play things by ear. The album is 70 minutes long and is a step forward from our last release, which was recorded after we'd only been a band for a year or so. Our new guitar player (Bob Bridges, who joined in Nov 2004) jumped in right before we really started writing so his influence weaves throughout the album. More of two guitars playing off each other rather than before, where we doubled the riffs on the first record. The tracklist and lyrics are on our website at www.deviltopay.net/lyrics 11. So what's the plan for Devil to Pay in 2006? Give us the gos! We have a new van, so we're not expecting any further problems in that department, and our main objective is to tour as much as our wallets will allow. Now that the album is done and ready, getting around the US and making new friends is our biggest priority. As I told someone the other night, friends last much longer than record deals, so we definitely understand that doing our own record and touring DIY is the best way to write your own history. We'd love to get overseas in 2006, we'll see what happens. 12. Plug any websites relevant to Devil To Pay. http://www.deviltopay.net is our main site, there's merch, videos, all our posters, pics, and other DTP madness over there. http://www.myspace.com/deviltopay is mainly to keep in touch with people http://www.laxwax.net is the label, but the site is due for an overhaul soon. 13. The last words belong to you... I'd just like to thank you for the opportunity. Cheers!