DEATH DIVISION is the new heavy metal band founded by Bassist - Jerry Montano ( Hellyeah / Danzig / Nothingface / Down & Dirty ), Drummer - Tim Yeung ( Morbid Angel / Divine Heresy / Hate Eternal / Nile ), Vocals / Guitar - Sean De La Tour, and Lead Guitar - Rick Di Marco. With that bassist Jerry Montano took the time to talk about their plans for an EP release and playing some showcases here and there.
1. Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Death Division, and how long the band has been together.
Jerry: My name is Jerry Montano, I am the bassist, background vocalist and producer of DEATH DIVISION. The band has been together since Feb of 2012. Sean de La Tour and I actually started writing in 2011 but didnt reunite to start what became DEATH DIVISION with Tim Yeung and Rick unto 2012.
2. Where is the band based out of and what is your music scene like there? Are there any local bands you could recommend?
Jerry: We are based out of Los Angeles/ Hollywood CA. We never were a part of the scene. We have always been about creativity and individuality as artists and as a band. We created our own scene in Hollywood via Angels & Kings. I promote a nightclub in Hollywood actually with a few other cool friends of mine from the business. There are some very cool bands keeping the local scene alive in LA for sure.
3. Why did you want to call yourselves, Death Division?
Jerry: The name came from a documentary I saw on History channel about a place called "The Dead Letter Division" The DLD is a place where the government legally has to store every piece of mail addressed to anyone that has been returned or unopened. Letters to god, Jesus, Saints, The Easter bunny and Santa Clause are all part of these. A place where lost hopes and dreams are sent to be stored for eternity. It struck a nerve in me back in 06 when I saw this documentary. A very heavy thought.. a place right out the Raiders of the Lost Arch.
4. How would you describe your style? Which bands influenced your music?
Jerry: Our style? Hmmm I guess I would say its aggressive rock. When I started the band I knew as did Sean that we never wanted to paint ourselves into a corner or alienate any genre. We just started writing and the songs began to flow..We knew we wanted it to be original yet organic in vibe as well as in production.
5. What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)
Jerry: The song "We are the Fallen" is about the rise and fall of fame and fortune.. How people love to see you high but really love to see you lower. "I've had enough" has a double meaning.. I wrote it from a terrible relationship point of view yet Sean's original was darker and about losing faith in the divine. They blended perfectly. At first listen you think it's just about a relationship, If you read between the lines you find a darker message. Sean and I write well together I could go on all day about content.
6. Do you write your own songs? (Discuss the songwriting process in detail.)
Jerry: I have always been a songwriter from the beginning of my career and refined my skills over the past decade. I absolutely love the development stages of music. Sean and I write all the music, lyrics and melodies with DEATH DIVISION. Tim knows the exact right flow to our vision and Rick always shows up with the extremely technical solos.
A lot of times Sean or I will find a riff and you can feel the energy in the room shift.. Generally that is when everyone shuts up and jumps on it. From there I can usually feel right away what it is we have and what direction to steer the ship to.. Sean is amazing at coming up with ideas and very humble and open to suggestion so it makes writing exciting and always a good time. From there we will usually com up with a melody here and there for it.. Alot of times our ideas are very close. Writing is something DD thrives on.
7. When can we expect to hear more music from you guys, will you be releasing an EP or full-length in the coming future?
Jerry: DEATH DIVISION has since released "We are the fallen" and are planning to release an EP this summer on Gigantour. Something special for all the new fans out there. We will be releasing a full length record hopefully in early 2014.
8. This summer you will be a part of this year's Gigantour, what do you think about that and how does this it make you feel?
Jerry: We are so excited, humbled and HONORED to be sharing the stage with so many LEGENDARY artists and friends. It has been a dream come true to be asked by Dave Mustaine to be a part of the legacy Gigantour has become. It is every bands dream to be hand picked by one of your absolute favorite artists to join his tour. We have ALL been HUGE Megadeth fans forever. Very , very cool.
9. What is it you’d like a listener to remember the most when hearing your music for the first time?
Jerry: Death Division is a band with zero limitations. A band with extreme heavy yet melodic songs with aggressive screams to beautiful acoustic songs that can touch the soul. We believe that creating music is like painting a picture. You cant rely on a single color to encapsulate the tragedy, rage and beauty of the world. Vibe it, crank it and let it speak to you. Draw your own conclusion. That is what art is all about.10. What do you guys have planned for the rest of this year?
We are planning on touring and finishing writing the record. We will be recording the full length this winter.
11. Anything else you'd like to say to the fans out there?
Jerry: THANK YOU. We are very humble, hard working guy living our rock n roll dream. This would not be possible without all the good people out there supporting us. So from all that we are and know.. THANK YOU.
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