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Disturbed Biography
Review The Artist (57)
Source: http://www.ozzfest.com
David Draiman: Vocals
Dan Donegan: Guitar
Fuzz: Bass
Mike Wengren: Drums
"What I'm trying to do from a lyrical perspective is bring back the majesty of metal," says David Draiman, defining Believe, the follow-up to Disturbed's multi-platinum debut, The Sickness. "With this album I wanted to speak about important things in a grand way, and even touch on things that may not seem so important, but come at them from a perspective that makes them inviting, delicious--even foreboding in a way."
Among his many distinguishing characteristics, Draiman has superb enunciation. As a singer, it provides his voice with scalpel-like precision that razors through the great articulated noise his bandmates generate. Combined with leather-lunged projection, his voice can both bludgeon and slash at a level that transcends his lyrics' literal meaning.
Things get really nasty, though, when his voice joins his bandmates' dexterous rhythmic assault in what Draiman describes as "a constant blend of all the elements." The resulting attack during songs such as "Prayer" and "Liberate" telegraphs contusions along a listener's brainpan.
There's a reason Draiman, guitarist Dan Donegan, bassist Fuzz and drummer Mike Wengren named 2001's victory lap around the U.S. the "Music As A Weapon" tour. Sharp enunciation and road-honed chops are merely part of the arsenal.
In conversation, Draiman's voice has the same quality that you hear on disc. But the delivery is... slower... and... more deliberate. The effect lulls rather than cuts. But when he speaks, he doesn't make small talk, he makes pronouncements. The band's second album, Believe, doesn't really require further explanation, in the way that other classic albums don't require explanation. But questions will arise when spinning the disc. Mainly, "How?"
" We have a responsibility," he begins. "Two and a half million people invested in us and believed in us with the last album. We owe it to them and to ourselves and to everything we stand for, to respect the lineage and the tradition and the purity of metal. We have to remain faithful to what metal--true, true metal--was first established to be in the name of Black Sabbath and a hundred other great bands: Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Metallica, Pantera, even Soundgarden.... All of those bands had songs that spoke about grand things."
True metal groups honor the legacy whose thumbnail history David sketches above. It's one of the genre's endearing traits: fierce loyalty expressed loudly. Metal requires that quality from its best bands and fans in order to survive.
As a product of natural selection, the oft-maligned genre has gathered strength from continuously swimming against the current over the course of its Ozzy-and-Iommi-conceived 33-year history.
Snatched by Disturbed from the flow of that tradition, this new brand of metal is like a shark. In their hands, the music is highly evolved, lean and muscular, and has a terrible efficiency and singleness of purpose. None of the twelve songs on Believe, for instance, stretches far beyond the four-minute mark, yet they each possess a strength and epic quality that requires other bands twice as long to convey, if ever.
Part of that boils down to simple math: Four musicians campaigning behind one album for 22 months. When Disturbed finally pulled off the road in late 2001, they took a month to recuperate and then began writing Believe. Two and a half months later they were recording the album in their hometown of Chicago with producer Johnny K. Like The Sickness, the disc was then mixed in New York by Andy Wallace.
A seemingly Herculean effort? Keep in mind that this is a band that doesn't like to sit idle for long. With the precious month the band had off between the road and rehearsal, Fuzz, for instance, built a garage and poured a driveway for his house. If that's what the band calls leisure time, imagine what they consider work.
" We've always had to work hard for what we have," explains Draiman. "Nothing comes easy to Disturbed. Such is life. It certainly hardened us. When you're put in the furnace for long enough, it hones you." "Being on the road for 22 months totally increased our playing ability," agrees Fuzz. "It made us much better musicians." "It's a different band," says Draiman. "We were eager to explore new territory and challenge ourselves." "We wanted to prove that there's not just one formula that works for this band," adds Donegan, who conceives the musical framework for the songs before they're arranged by the group. "I didn't want to duplicate what we did the first time around. There's nothing exciting about that."
Ironically, in order to explore fresh territory, Disturbed duplicated the working environment that produced such winning results with The Sickness. The band's loyalty--again, the true-metal variety--shines through in that decision, as does its pragmatism. As Fuzz says, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." It's a sentiment echoed by his bandmates.
" We write what we write without overthinking it," says Donegan. "That's part of the reason we chose to record again in Chicago with Johnny K., who's been a friend of ours since we were a local band. It put us back in a familiar environment where we could just do what we do." "We're our own worse critics," admits Wengren. "We're always pushing each other to become better musicians and I guess better people, too."
The results are evident on Believe. If The Sickness put Disturbed on the map with signature cuts like "Stupify" and "Down With The Sickness," the new album refines that signature into an even harder alloy on songs such as the title track, the first single "Prayer" and the pit-ready "Rise" and "Bound."
" We're not reinventing the wheel," says Donegan. "But when all of our different playing styles and influences come together, it's a fresh sound. There are old-school elements to what we do, but it's done in a modern way. Even though we're characterized as a metal band, I don't think there are any metal bands out there that sound like us."
Draiman's singular voice burns the final brand on all things Disturbed. This time out, however, he waits until "Intoxication"—a full six songs into the album--before unleashing his signature sound. Robert Plant has his "baby, baby, baby." Rob Halford has his vibrato wail. Draiman has his feral roar, the guttural noise that opened "Down With The Sickness" and subsequently launched a million extreme sporting events.
" The noises... oh, how they love the noises," he says with a chuckle. "When 'Down With The Sickness' broke as a single, some people forgot about the rest of the song. They would say, 'Come on, make the noise!' What the fuck am I? They wouldn't ask me, 'Can you sing that one line?' Or 'What are the words to that part? Or 'How does that melody go?" With this album, I was determined to let people know that I can do much more than just make animal noises."
If that point was already clear to those who listened to The Sickness as an album, the way that work was intended to be heard, it's undeniable now. The scalpel-sharp enunciation, the leather-lunged projection, the rhythmic assault, and, yes, even "the noises," combine to deliver Draiman's grand messages. The arching theme? Belief.
" I encourage self-exploration and internal truth--defining one's own belief. People need to seek out that which they are able to believe in. Do you believe in yourself? Do you believe in the future of humanity? In God? In the death of god? In the things that you cannot see in the spiritual realm? Are you afraid of the dark? The light?"
Tellingly, perhaps, the album closes with a track called "Darkness," whose intense mood is conveyed with a spidery acoustic guitar arpeggio, a pecked piano melody and a haunting cello line. As a final address to his audience, Draiman offers his most tender vocal performance, singing, "Dare to believe for one last time. Then I'll let the darkness cover me, deny everything, slowly walk away to breathe again on my own."
" 'Darkness' is a nice closure to the album," says Donegan. "It ends the album in a way that leaves us room to go in any direction we want with the third album. I don't like to concern myself with anyone's expectations but our own."
" For inspiration, we look to any band that has stood the test of time," adds Wengren. "We don't want to be a band that's known for just one song. We had a successful debut album. Now we're building on that and seeing where it takes us."
Draiman, being Draiman, puts it more succinctly: "There's so much more to prove." |
Would you please submit the latest Disturbed biography to me? Thank You.
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Review about Disturbed
the best band in the world | Reviewer: Anonymous | 9/11/09
The band disturbed is my favoret band in the world the music and lyrics are really awsome i like really havey stuff so disterbed is the band for me i have always wanted to go to a distubed concert but hearing their own words on paper is better i wish i could tell you all personaly but thats imposible so you guys rock keep up the good work! love ya all
strength through adversity | Reviewer: ben starr | 8/25/09
To the reveiwer who posted on 8/7/09, I have to inform that Disturbed isn't the most political band out there. I'm actually not sure what David's stance on the Iraq War is that this point. He was originally against it but then Disturbed played overseas and Dave wrote the song Indestructable and led chants of U-S-A! U-S-A! on the Mayhem tour. Raging against Bush and Iraq was really the only politics Disturbed ever had.
However, the reveiwer was correct in stating that Disturbed's lyrics are great. Disturbed lyrically is about having strength in the face of adversity. Overall I think their message is a very positive one. It ain't Christian music- it's still pretty dark. But overall Disturbed writes better lyrics than any other modern metal band.
real lyrics... | Reviewer: Anonymous | 8/7/09
yup, best band ever by far, i own every album and in just about every song there lyrics accrtually mean something, one of their best songs while not riff heavy has got to be "land of confusion"
look up the lyrics to it and its acctually talking about the wars in the world and how messed up our leaders have become.
also "land of confusion" is linked to "ten thousand fists"
these are my fav songs by them
Stricken
indestructable
inside the fire
land of confusion
to thousand fists
liberate
stupify
down with the sickness
Decadence
Thank you Disturbed | Reviewer: Liam Boulton | 8/3/09
Disturbed is one awesome band. There is no one in the world that are like them. The 1st song I ever heard was Breathe and it was bloody amazing, and somehow i always feel no matter what anybody say if you believe something no one should take it away from you.
Thank you disturbed. (You have changed my life.)
fuckin incredible | Reviewer: Anonymous | 7/21/09
as long as ive listened to disturbed i have jus loved them the lyrics the rifts it all works i believe they are the greatest band in the world at the moment there music is something u can put on n jus relax 2 its like they know what ppl want in music go into the studio n bust out perfection everytime keep at it guys thatnx 4 the music!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Incredible!! | Reviewer: Jake | 7/14/09
I can honestly say Disturbed has completely redefined metal. I have yet to hear a song of theirs that I didn't love instantly, and I have the first four albums. There are a lot of Kirk Hammett impersonators in metal, but Dan Donegan isn't one of them. I am impressed with how seriously they take their music and it's pretty obvious that they're perfectionists. Keep doing what you do and I'll keep buying your albums
WOW | Reviewer: nick | 6/8/09
david is a artist to be rewarded if any bodey does not agre kiss my ass seriosly disturbed if you ever read this i have to say i didnt listen to one song and get hooked i listened to your first three cd's and said holly shit what just happened i cureently have four of them plus some of your bounis tracks and am waiting on a new cd do what you do and it will bet them all.
disturbed is awesome | Reviewer: Seth Thill | 5/31/09
disturbed is such a great band. mike wengren may be one of the greatest drummers ever and the same goes with david draiman with singing. what makes them so great is that each one of their songs is so deep and has a meaning to it.
Blood in my eyes | Reviewer: ferdam | 5/30/09
I have a music called Blood in my eyes, (ie. Limp Bizkit with Godsmack and Disturbed - Blood In My Eyes) and I would like to know, in true, who composes this music ?
I can't find in Disturbed Lyrics, Limp Bizkit Lyrics nor God Smack Lyrics.
Thanks in advance.
I AM DISTURBED!!!!! | Reviewer: rachel | 5/13/09
I love this band! My brother was the first one to get me hooked to listening to Disturbed. I love it so much that my friend says that I am disturbed! From the words of AC\DC, "For those about to rock, we salute you"!!!!!
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Review the Artist Disturbed
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