After many years of
doing it someone else’s way in Static X Wayne Static has decided that was
enough. Going out on his own was the
best thing Wayne has conceived as Pighammer, his first solo opus, is a bomb
shell. During a recent stop at the NAMM show in the Dean Guitars booth, Wayne
took the time to talk to Exiles about Pighammer and what made it happen.
An interview with Wayne Static.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: So what made you finally commit to a Wayne Static solo album?
Wayne Static: The decision to do a solo thing made a lot of sense at the time. Static X had a long run, we did a lot of great stuff and had a great time but towards the end the guys had other things going on and the band just fell apart, nobody wanted to be there anymore. It was time to do it and I was ready to do it.
Metal Exiles: How long has this record been in the works?
Wayne: I started writing this when Static X was still on tour in 2009 and 10. I was writing and recording, finishing everything up then.
Metal Exiles: Fans that pick this up will be expecting Static X which is not completely true. What will they hear that they would not have heard on a Static X record?
Wayne: It’s very similar to Static X because I wrote all of the material but the biggest difference is I did everything myself, there was no compromise; it is true evil disco from my perspective. Pighammer is what I envisioned the first static X record to be; trancier, a bigger electronic vibe with more keyboards. I also think my guitar tone on Pighammer is crushing. So you have all of these things that I wanted but when you are in a band situation you have to compromise and when you work with a bunch of different producers things tend to shift away from what you really want. Pighammer is my pure vision of what I want to do but at the same time if you like Static X you will love Pighammer.
Metal Exiles: You said when other people do your records it tends to go in the direction of what the producer wants. Why does that seem to always happen?
Wayne: I still co produced everything but you have to compromise with other people for the greater good. Everyone needs to be happy with the end results or everyone is going to be pissed off and you do not want that. It is just the process so going into the process of recording Pighammer I knew I had to do it on my own because I had not yet had the chance to do so.
Metal Exiles: You made mention that this record has more electronics. Why did you go in that direction?
Wayne: Because I felt like it. I like to keep it fresh and I like to have a good time otherwise what’s the point? When I was writing and recording this it is what I felt like doing and it felt right. I have been getting better with the keyboards over the years so with Pighammer I finally mastered it.
Metal Exiles: Pighammer has a lot of dark imagery lyrically. What demons were you exercising for the lyrics?
Wayne: The lyrics reflect what’s going on in my life at the time and a lot has happened in life in the last few years. Static X went on break, I started my own label and my wife Tera and I moved to Joshua Tree. I was a functioning drug addict for many years so we made the decision to clean up some and get our act together. The lyrics reflect a lot of that.
Metal Exiles: Were you concerned about what the fans might think of what you wrote or do you care?
Wayne: I think if it’s from the heart you can tell, its honest. That’s all that really matters is that you stay true. Also you can’t worry about what people think about your writing, you will go insane if you do that. In the back of my mind I am always wondering if the fans are going to like this because they have supported me all of these years and I do not want to let them down but ultimately you have to stay true to yourself and do what makes you excited.
Metal Exiles: You produced this by yourself and played all of the instruments which is the only way you can get exactly what you want. Are you happy with the end result?
Wayne: I think that this is the best record I have ever made and I mean that from the heart. Everything I have done till now has been a compromise. With Static X I would spend a year at home by myself writing and recording demos and we would get together, rehearse, argue, change parts so this is what I used to but I finished but this time I did not have to change anything. Even sonically, I spent many months mixing it because I wanted it to sound perfect. The biggest difference on this record is that I did not use pro tools. I recorded 24 tracks, no editing, it is what it is. It gives a vibe and excitement that you lose when you start editing things and pasting and cutting.
Metal Exiles: So you just layered the instruments on top of each other?
Wayne: Yes I did and 24 tracks is challenging. I had to record all of these loops, drums and keyboard parts and bounce them down to make room for guitars and bounce them down to make room for vocals. It was very old school in the way we did it but it makes you work in a different way.
Metal Exiles: Your artwork on this record was inspired by your wife. What else does she inspire?
Wayne: We are absolutely inseparable and I believe if you are going to get married you should be together all of the time. I just do not understand all of these guys that get married and then want to go spend all of their time with their buddies. We have this compound out in the desert and we never leave the house. She was a big part of the artwork and the theme of the art is transition . Transition into my solo project, moving to the desert and sobering up. We wanted to think of a way to portray transition in an interesting but dark and comical way so Tera came up with this idea for me to be a plastic surgeon using a hammer to make beautiful chicks into pigs. That was the whole genesis of the idea. We got this great artist, Nelly Recchia, who did all of the art and photography. It was her idea to make it clean and not gory or comical.
Metal Exiles: It is disturbing though.
Wayne: It is disturbing but in a clean artistic way.
Metal Exiles: We are of course at the NAMM show but more importantly the Dean booth. What are you here endorsing this year?
Wayne: They are introducing their Modifier ML this year and I am the first guy to play it and I received the first two prototypes. It looks like the classic Dean ML that has been around since the 70’s but it is more streamlined and they built it to fit to my style. It is the best guitar I have ever owned and I have owned a lot of guitars.
Metal Exiles: What is your opinion of the NAMM show, what makes you keep coming back?
Wayne: For me I love to see the fans, I always want to thank them of their support but the biggest reason is to support the companies that support me with guitars, strings, amps etc.
Metal Exiles: How much longer will you be out supporting this record?
Wayne: We will be out for several more weeks as well as making plans for the rest of the year and then back to the studio to record the follow up to Pighammer. I love the way Pighammer turned out so I will do it again.
If you are a metal fan and you do not possess Pighammer, you are sorely missing out on a dark ride through Wayne Static’s mind.
Official Wayne Static Site
BUY Pighammer!
An interview with Wayne Static.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: So what made you finally commit to a Wayne Static solo album?
Wayne Static: The decision to do a solo thing made a lot of sense at the time. Static X had a long run, we did a lot of great stuff and had a great time but towards the end the guys had other things going on and the band just fell apart, nobody wanted to be there anymore. It was time to do it and I was ready to do it.
Metal Exiles: How long has this record been in the works?
Wayne: I started writing this when Static X was still on tour in 2009 and 10. I was writing and recording, finishing everything up then.
Metal Exiles: Fans that pick this up will be expecting Static X which is not completely true. What will they hear that they would not have heard on a Static X record?
Wayne: It’s very similar to Static X because I wrote all of the material but the biggest difference is I did everything myself, there was no compromise; it is true evil disco from my perspective. Pighammer is what I envisioned the first static X record to be; trancier, a bigger electronic vibe with more keyboards. I also think my guitar tone on Pighammer is crushing. So you have all of these things that I wanted but when you are in a band situation you have to compromise and when you work with a bunch of different producers things tend to shift away from what you really want. Pighammer is my pure vision of what I want to do but at the same time if you like Static X you will love Pighammer.
Metal Exiles: You said when other people do your records it tends to go in the direction of what the producer wants. Why does that seem to always happen?
Wayne: I still co produced everything but you have to compromise with other people for the greater good. Everyone needs to be happy with the end results or everyone is going to be pissed off and you do not want that. It is just the process so going into the process of recording Pighammer I knew I had to do it on my own because I had not yet had the chance to do so.
Metal Exiles: You made mention that this record has more electronics. Why did you go in that direction?
Wayne: Because I felt like it. I like to keep it fresh and I like to have a good time otherwise what’s the point? When I was writing and recording this it is what I felt like doing and it felt right. I have been getting better with the keyboards over the years so with Pighammer I finally mastered it.
Metal Exiles: Pighammer has a lot of dark imagery lyrically. What demons were you exercising for the lyrics?
Wayne: The lyrics reflect what’s going on in my life at the time and a lot has happened in life in the last few years. Static X went on break, I started my own label and my wife Tera and I moved to Joshua Tree. I was a functioning drug addict for many years so we made the decision to clean up some and get our act together. The lyrics reflect a lot of that.
Metal Exiles: Were you concerned about what the fans might think of what you wrote or do you care?
Wayne: I think if it’s from the heart you can tell, its honest. That’s all that really matters is that you stay true. Also you can’t worry about what people think about your writing, you will go insane if you do that. In the back of my mind I am always wondering if the fans are going to like this because they have supported me all of these years and I do not want to let them down but ultimately you have to stay true to yourself and do what makes you excited.
Metal Exiles: You produced this by yourself and played all of the instruments which is the only way you can get exactly what you want. Are you happy with the end result?
Wayne: I think that this is the best record I have ever made and I mean that from the heart. Everything I have done till now has been a compromise. With Static X I would spend a year at home by myself writing and recording demos and we would get together, rehearse, argue, change parts so this is what I used to but I finished but this time I did not have to change anything. Even sonically, I spent many months mixing it because I wanted it to sound perfect. The biggest difference on this record is that I did not use pro tools. I recorded 24 tracks, no editing, it is what it is. It gives a vibe and excitement that you lose when you start editing things and pasting and cutting.
Metal Exiles: So you just layered the instruments on top of each other?
Wayne: Yes I did and 24 tracks is challenging. I had to record all of these loops, drums and keyboard parts and bounce them down to make room for guitars and bounce them down to make room for vocals. It was very old school in the way we did it but it makes you work in a different way.
Metal Exiles: Your artwork on this record was inspired by your wife. What else does she inspire?
Wayne: We are absolutely inseparable and I believe if you are going to get married you should be together all of the time. I just do not understand all of these guys that get married and then want to go spend all of their time with their buddies. We have this compound out in the desert and we never leave the house. She was a big part of the artwork and the theme of the art is transition . Transition into my solo project, moving to the desert and sobering up. We wanted to think of a way to portray transition in an interesting but dark and comical way so Tera came up with this idea for me to be a plastic surgeon using a hammer to make beautiful chicks into pigs. That was the whole genesis of the idea. We got this great artist, Nelly Recchia, who did all of the art and photography. It was her idea to make it clean and not gory or comical.
Metal Exiles: It is disturbing though.
Wayne: It is disturbing but in a clean artistic way.
Metal Exiles: We are of course at the NAMM show but more importantly the Dean booth. What are you here endorsing this year?
Wayne: They are introducing their Modifier ML this year and I am the first guy to play it and I received the first two prototypes. It looks like the classic Dean ML that has been around since the 70’s but it is more streamlined and they built it to fit to my style. It is the best guitar I have ever owned and I have owned a lot of guitars.
Metal Exiles: What is your opinion of the NAMM show, what makes you keep coming back?
Wayne: For me I love to see the fans, I always want to thank them of their support but the biggest reason is to support the companies that support me with guitars, strings, amps etc.
Metal Exiles: How much longer will you be out supporting this record?
Wayne: We will be out for several more weeks as well as making plans for the rest of the year and then back to the studio to record the follow up to Pighammer. I love the way Pighammer turned out so I will do it again.
If you are a metal fan and you do not possess Pighammer, you are sorely missing out on a dark ride through Wayne Static’s mind.
Official Wayne Static Site
BUY Pighammer!
