July 1994, eagerly awaiting the release of Kerrang!, issue number 504 for the eight page pull out, and to read all about Faith No More's new guitarist.....
February 1995 first poster with new (new) line-up featuring Dean Menta....
February 1995, advert for Digging The Grave the first single from King For A Day, Fool For A Lifetime complete with big blue snarling dog gets me more excited then Christmas!!
Ok first impressions: where the hell is Roddy Bottum? Is this really Trey on guitar? Have
To say the band lost their most 'metal' contributor in Jim Martin this song is bursting with guitar riffs from the eccentric hand of Trey Spruance but it’s a world away from Mr Bungle. The song carves his short-lived mark on
Mike Patton's vocals are nothing but perfection. He still has the schizophrenic shifts between growl and operatic that we are used to from Angel Dust, but he is angrier, more lunatic than ever. The noises that man can produce are astounding, like a human guitar on overdrive he screams the living shit out of the middle eight!! His harmonies on the chorus are particularly amazing also and they are tighter than anything before.
Only the rhythm section is truly reminiscent of the Angel Dust sound with Bill Gould feverishly pounding on his strings. And we can only imagine how many cymbals, drum skins and sticks Mike Bordin went though to create that ferocious beat.
"On that track I wanted to get that sound we had on our first records but tighter, faster and harder. The middle section of that track came from the beat me and Bill came up with before we started trying out guitarists." - Mike Bordin
The lack of keyboards was explained when the band did interviews about KFAD. Roddy faced a few personal demons and lost loved ones and wasn't as involved with the writing and recording of the song. We can wonder how the song would have differed had Roddy been more involved. He appears in the video playing guitar and also played live throughout the touring. Without elaborating on this troubled period of Roddy's life, he did say this in response to a question on FNMblog Q&A recently.
"Yeah, I understand how that album is revered but it's not my favourite. I wasn't that present in the song writing and i was going through some tough stuff at the time" - Roddy
The most notable difference in this song to previous FNM material is the production. The band decided to use Andy Wallace producer of many revered rock albums, a shift from long time producer Matt Wallace. He took them to an isolated studio in
"It seemed ultimately self defeating to continue to do records with the same producer. Matt did some great stuff with us but over the course if your career why limit yourself to one person? We're the kind of band that prides itself on our diversity, versatility, change." - Roddy
Patton has never really elaborated on the lyrics to DTG, but finding piece in death and looking for a place to hide are an obvious interpretation.
Patton had this to say on the lyrics from KFAD in 1995.
"I can't actually write words before music. Words are the last thing: before the words, I hear sounds. Sometimes the words have no connection to anything; they just have to fit into the sound. I'm sure a lot of what was going into the words on the new record were things we all were going through at the time. Kind of subtle ways of getting revenge on those people. People you see everyday, situations your in everyday that maybe it's better if you don't confront them. Everyone will know what its about but no one will talk about it. It's a beautiful thing" - Mike Patton
The video is directed by Marcus Raboy who also directed the video for Another Body Murdered, and who is more associated with the RNB and hip hop genre. It is a masterpiece and very
The single was released on 12" coloured vinyl and a double cd pack with artwork by illustrator Eric Drooker. The full illustration was revealed when the album was released as an image taken from Drooker's book Flood! A Novel in Pictures from 1992. The snarling police dog on the cover is a perfect accompaniment to the suggested violence of the song itself, creating a perfect package.
' Like the rest of the singles released from the album, it failed to chart in the
The album was very important to the band personally and they were very positive about it.
"The new album was a catharsis for us. We made a record that was very liberating. I think we really learned how to use our power as a unit. I mean, I have a total submarine view of it, but I see it as more if a release type thing. There is a great amount of stress let off on this album" - Bill
"The new record is like being hit with a fucking fist, with one finger sticking out. This is the best record we've ever done. But it doesn't just come out of your butt on a plate. The songs, the performance, the recording process, the tones, the mix, the mastering. It's a whole bunch of shit that makes a good album". - Mike Bordin
The importance of this song in
When Bill was asked on how the writing process differed without Jim he had this to say.
"We've never written stuff with Jim, as a band. Usually we'd give him a tape and he'd put stuff to it because he didn't like practicing with us much" - Bill
According to Puffy in an interview with an Australian radio station the departure of Jim helped them focus on the new material more. 'Very to the point, very straight forward and very strong'
Here's that audio interview.
But it wasn't entirely plain sailing and the process still was fraught with difficulties; Roddy's personal problems, Trey's departure and a nasty car accident. Patton wasn't happy with appointment of his Mr Bungle co-member in the first place.
"Trey didn't come highly recommended by the only guy in the band that knew him. Patton said, 'he's a great guitarist, he'll do the job, but he's not dependable and he'll fuck us up ultimately due to his lack of any sense of responsibly' " - Bill
Although Bill also says how happy they were with the end result.
"It's heavier, it's more direct and it's the first record where we had the guitar the way we wanted it. Now it feels we're a dog who's been let of the leash" - Bill
A lot of fans miss Jim greatly from the band but there is no denying Trey is a outstanding guitarist and his input created a new phase in FNM's history. And they pull it off, DTG is an awesome tune it is all out barefaced aggressive rock!! Like the bark of Drooker’s police dog it tells no lies and there’s no fucking about.
Unlike the previous album tours FNM were only on the road for a year with KFAD. The first time I saw it live was at Manchester University 11th March 1995 before the release of the album. I remember the performance as being very intense. The crowd were excited to hear the classics but more subdued for the new material. The band looked at ease on stage and were actually having fun together and not poking fun at one other. I'm sure Patton referred to Dean as the new guy a lot!!
I'll be honest it's not my favourite FNM song and not by any means the best on the album but it is a great song to listen to when you want to jump around and let of some steam. I think that's how band play it too as a stress release. Head down all in!! Definitely out of control, out of this world and covered in mud!!
Thanks for reading.
Jim