"That Metal Show fans remain loyal to us because they know we love music."
Don Jamieson: Hi, it's Don!
Wikimetal (Daniel Dystyler): Hi Don, how are you? This is Daniel from Wikimetal in Brazil, everything alright?
DJ: Hi. How's it going, man?
W (DD): I'm great, great. I'm very happy to have the opportunity to talk to you. So first of all, let me thank you immensely for taking the time to talk to us. I know how busy you are, and also, I would like to thank you for everything you have done for heavy metal, carrying the flag for so long. So, on behalf of all Brazilian headbangers, I would like to thank you, and welcome to Wikimetal.
DJ: Oh man… It’s great to be here, and thank you from the bottom of my heart. And I speak for Jim and Eddie… We’d love to go to South America and see all our fans there, because we know how much they love metal, but, you know, we’re on VH1 Classic here in the United States, and that… They don’t have money, so we have to do our thing here. But we’re happy you found us, and we appreciate all the support.
W (DD): Don, I'll start by asking, back in the early days of your career, who were your main influences as a comedian, and who are your, I don't know, top two or three comedians?
DJ: Well, my main influences as a comedian were actually musicians. I always thought, you know, every time Ozzy does an interview, he always has a million one-liners. You know, every sentence that comes out of his mouth is a joke, you know, he always makes a joke with a quick answer. So I always loved watching Ozzy in interviews because he's always so funny. You know, Ted Nugent – one of the funniest guys of all time, you know, everything he does on stage, you know, he's always funny. Alice Cooper, you know, always tells really, really good stories with funny endings, so… For me, I always… David Lee Roth, you know, David Lee Roth was always funny, even if you didn't understand half the things he said, he was still funny. So that's where I started getting my sense of humor from, from musicians.
W (DD): Do you remember how you first got involved with heavy metal?
DJ: Yeah. I was nine years old, and my mom bought me my first Kiss album. And that was it, it was over for me. I knew I was going to like that kind of music for the rest of my life. I mean, for me, Kiss was… The best band of all time, I mean, they have the music, they have the look, they have the show, you know, it was the whole package, you know. And from then on I put Kiss posters on my walls – every single corner of my wall. And my mom always said, you know, “Where is all this going?” And it took a while, but I finally got my own heavy metal talk show, so it was a good start.
W (DD): And do you remember which album it was?
DJ: It was "Destroyer".
W (DD): Ah, that's great. And still talking about your comedic and heavy metal side, sometimes, I think, you've done your comedy show as an opening act for some hard rock and heavy metal bands, including Twisted Sister, if I'm not mistaken… So, I wonder, what's that experience like? I mean, metal fans waiting for the band to play… Is it a difficult audience, or are they cool and enjoy it?
DJ: Well, I always tell people… You know, the audience, because of the TV show, when I appear, at least people recognize me, and they know who I am. So I have about two minutes to prove I'm funny before the bottles start flying. So as soon as I come out, I unleash my best material, you know, win over the audience, and it's usually a lot of fun after that.
W (DD): And do you bring any specific material for a metal audience?
DJ: Yes, I do. I do a completely different act in front of metal fans. I wrote a whole act of hard rock and heavy metal material, which I can't do in a comedy club because…
W (DD): Nobody will understand…
DJ: Nobody would understand. But I can do it in front of metalheads, and, you know, Jim Florentine and I even did… You know, we opened for Metallica's Orion Festival in Atlantic City last summer. And that was the first time we did that… And, man, it was really, really good. Lars came and introduced me to the audience, and it was a really fun day, you know, with all my metalhead friends.
W (DD): Yes, I heard you say that you used to think the Twisted Sisters were girls, the ugliest girls in New York, and the hottest girls in New Jersey…
DJ: Yes, or the prettiest girls in New Jersey, that's right!
W (DD): That's great. So that brings me to your live album, "Live & Hilarious". Could you talk a little bit about the experience of releasing an album, especially through a metal company as big as Metal Blade Records, and also featuring Bumblefoot?
DJ: Yeah. Well, Bumblefoot has been a friend of mine for a long time. He also lives in New Jersey with all the ugly girls. So I asked him if he would, you know, like to come and do something on the album, maybe play an intro or something, and you know, he's such a cool guy, he came with all his rock star gear, he brought a double-neck guitar, and he did a really cool thing for me. He's always busy with Guns N' Roses, so I was really happy that he took the time to come and be a part of my first comedy live album. But basically, yeah… And to do it with Metal Blade… And I told everyone, I said, “I don't even care, you know, if nobody buys this or anything, the fact that I'm going to have an album that has 'Metal Blade' written on it is just the best thing in the world, I can… You know, this is more amazing than anything else, because this is one of my all-time favorite record labels.” And I said, "I don't care if they want the album to be called 'Don Jamieson is an asshole,' as long as it's on Metal Blade, it's fine."
W (DD): That's great. And do you think the album would appeal to the Brazilian audience, assuming they speak English, that they understand English?
DJ: Yeah, well, most of the world speaks English better than we do here, so I hope people enjoy it. And, you know, I basically did… I did everything wrong on this album, because most comedians record, like, six shows, and they make sure the venue is packed with people and friends and family, and then they edit the shows, they take the best parts of each night and make the perfect album. But I didn't do that, I did a show in a rock club, it wasn't even a comedy club, and I released it as it was recorded, live, with just a few edits, so the album is as live as it could be. I just wanted to capture the raw energy of what I do, you know, I'm not very refined, so doing it in a theater, or something like that, wouldn't be the right thing for me, so I did it in a rock club, and I'm very happy with what it became, so, you know, I'm already thinking of ways to ruin my second album.
W (DD): And that kind of attitude defines why you're a metal comedian, and the others are, I don't know, pop, hip hop, or whatever… So, let me ask you this: we have a classic question on our show that we ask all the guests, which is, imagine you're listening to your iPod on shuffle, or you're listening to a rock station while you're driving your car, and suddenly a song starts playing that makes you lose your mind and feel like you need to headbang immediately, no matter where you are, you can't stop, you can't contain yourself. What song would that be, so we can listen to it on our show now?
DJ: Oh man, wow, good question! I'd have to say… The first thing that comes to my mind, I'd have to say it's Accept: “Fast as a Shark”.
W (DD): This one's great, from the German legends Accept.
DJ: Yeah, that scream at the beginning, and then it goes into that heavy riff, and… You know, I used to drive a Mustang, and I got a lot of speeding tickets for listening to metal and getting so excited that I'd go 90 miles per hour before I realized it, and I'd get a lot of speeding tickets, so I had to sell the car.
W (DD): This story is great.
DJ: Alright. Next, let's listen to some music, let's headbang a bit, this is some great German metal, this is Udo and the lads, it's Accept: "Fast as a Shark"!
W (DD): Don, how did That Metal Show start? Do you remember the first time you talked about it with Eddie and Jim?
DJ: Yeah, we were in a gay sauna together, and we were washing up in the Jacuzzi, and we started to… No, I'm kidding! You know where that came from? It came from when Jim and I used to go on Eddie's radio show in New York, and we basically did what we do on That Metal Show now, we'd start talking about heavy metal, and, you know, get into these debates and talk about some band's best album, and… It was basically… We did the same thing on the radio. And then, as he got more comfortable with us, he'd let us talk to the guests, and then we both started interviewing the guests, and that's basically how it happened, we just… After a while, we said, “Hey, I wonder if we could find someone crazy enough to pay us to do this on TV,” and luckily we did.
I want Manson as a rock star. I want Phillip Anselmo to be all macho. I want to see Dave Mustaine's growl when he comes. That's what these guys are, people turn on the TV to watch them
W (DD): That Metal Show is a huge success, so now you probably get a lot of praise and comments from people in general, I think many artists are also fans of the show. So what was the best compliment you ever received from being part of That Metal Show, the one you'll never forget?
DJ: Well, every compliment from a fan is the best. When we go to a rock show here in the United States, and I'm sure it'll be the same in Brazil, when we go to a rock show, hundreds of people come up to us wanting photos and autographs… And then people ask me, “Don't you get tired of that?” and I say, “No, I mean, why would I get tired of that? People love the show, you know, why would I care if everyone came to talk to me?” I think it's great. When I was a comedian, performing in clubs for, you know, ten people, nobody cared who I was. Now I have a show that touches people because they feel love for the same kind of music I do, and I don't underestimate that. Every fan is important. So, you know, I think the compliments from the fans are the most important. But as for the artists, I've had, you know… Again, it's incredible to think that Rob Halford watches our show all the time. You know, Slash watches our show all the time… You know, Bill Ward from Black Sabbath is a huge fan of the show. So just knowing that these artists watch the show, come to the show, they really like the show and understand… You know, Sammy Hagar loves the show, he bugged us to come again, you know, for the second time, so that’s incredible. So I’m very grateful that… Again, that we’re doing this for the fans, but that the musicians also respect us.
W (DD): Yes, it's incredible. There's an episode of That Metal Show that I found very strange, but very incredible at the same time, it was one that had Marilyn Manson as a guest, I think it was in the ninth season, or something like that. Any memories of that particular show?
DJ: Ah, I have a lot of memories, but he probably doesn't have any. He was very drunk, you know, he was drinking absinthe on the show. I don't know if you guys have absinthe there…
W (DD): Yes, we have.
DJ: You know, here's the thing: this is Marilyn Manson. So I want him to come in like this, you know. I mean, it was almost like babysitting a five-year-old, but, you know, I don't want a happy, perfect Manson. I want Manson the rock star. So, you know, it made for a great show, people love to see a disaster, and that's pretty much what it was. So, you know, there are a lot of guys like that in metal, who, you know, sometimes divide the audience, like Phillip Anselmo, or Dave Mustaine, you know, they have… Some people love them and some people hate them, but you know what? You always watch these guys because you never know what they're going to say, and that's what I want them to do on the show, I want them to be themselves, I don't want them to be "Oh, everyone's fine, everything's fine!". I want to see Dave Mustaine's growl when he comes in, you know? I want Phil to stand up and flex his muscles, and you know, be all macho. Because that's what these guys are, and that's why people turn on the TV to watch them, so… You know, that's what I think.
W (DD): And you already mentioned Ozzy, who I think can't get any funnier than that, and you also mentioned Alice Cooper and Ted Nugent, what other metal artists do you think are funny?
DJ: Well, one of the funniest guys, unfortunately we lost him last year, was Pete Steele from Type O Negative.
W (DD): Yes
DJ: There was always humor in their music, but also, if you've ever seen Type O Negative play live, you know, he knew how to laugh at himself, always making jokes about himself and the band. And he'd say things like, you know, "If you thought we played this song badly, wait until you hear us destroy this next one." There was always a comedic element to him, and he was very dry, you know, which I loved about him, a very dry and direct humor. So I always loved Pete, I'm a huge Type O Negative fan, I try to talk about them as much as I can on the show.
W (DD): I'm sure this is the first time in my life I've spoken to an Emmy winner. So congratulations on the award. And if you look back, could you choose a moment in your career that you're very proud of, that you think, "Wow, I did it!"?
DJ: I'm proud of all of them, you know… But I'm most proud of That Metal Show, because it's something I created with my two best friends, and now I do it with my two best friends on TV, and you know, I've never… It's like, in my whole career, I've done really cool things, but I've never been called to talk to anyone from Brazil about it. So I'd have to say that That Metal Show is probably the biggest thing I've ever done, and the thing I'm most proud of. The Emmy is cool, you know, winning an Emmy as a comedian on television is amazing, you know, and you get a cool statuette. But at the end of the day, it doesn't mean anything to anyone in the audience, like in a comedy club, you know, you say "Oh, he won an Emmy," and if you're not doing well, they'll probably think "Hey, what happened to the Emmy winner? This guy is terrible!" So you know, it's a cool thing to have, and I'm happy to have won. You know, when I was single, I used to leave it next to my bed, so when I brought girls home, maybe they'd flirt with me.
W (DD): That's a good strategy.
DJ: Yeah, or, you know, if they were going to let me do something, maybe the Emmy would help me do even more.
W (DD): Great, so let's listen to another song. If you could choose one metal song that represents who you are and what you believe in, what song would it be?
DJ: Motorhëad, “Don’t Let ‘Em Grind Ya Down.”
That's one of the best things about Rock and Metal, you know, it has a sense of humor. Even some of the darkest stuff really has humor in it.”
W (DD): Can you tell our listeners a little bit about Gunfire-N-Sodomy?
DJ: OK. Gunfire-N-Sodomy is my acoustic death metal band. It's supposed to be funny, but mostly, when I'm singing in front of an audience, it's pretty scary. So we wanted to explore the humor aspect, I guess, but it's acoustic death metal that nobody's ever done before, and now I know why. But it's me and two other friends of mine, and we put on ski masks, and cover ourselves in blood, and sing songs about, you know, murder and stuff like that. So it was fun to do as a side project, but we got to open for Six Feet Under and Gwar, and we do our own shows in the city all the time, in New York, so… And I put some songs at the end of my comedy album too.
W (DD): Still on the subject, what do you think of this intersection between metal and humor, in things like Tenacious D, Beatallica, or Spinal Tap? We even have a Brazilian version, which is a band called Massacration.
DJ: What are their names?
W (DD): Massacration.
DJ: Massacration?
W (DD): That's right.
DJ: Cool, I want to check it out! Yeah, I think some things are better than others, you know, Spinal Tap, definitely… You know, Spinal Tap was originally a satire of Saxon… The band Saxon?
W (DD): Yes, definitely.
DJ: That's where the idea came from, when they saw a Saxon video, that's where the idea for Spinal Tap came from. So, you know, I think those guys are good. There's a band in the United States called Steel Panther, do you know them?
W (DD): Yes, I know them, and there's also The Darkness, right? From England…
DJ: Yes, The Darkness, from England, yes, yes. So there are a lot of people, you know, I don't really like parodies and things like that, as I said, I prefer a drier humor, so I don't like things that are too extravagant. But some things are really cool and funny, if done the right way. You know, that's one of the best things about rock and metal, you know, is that it has a sense of humor. Even some of the darkest things really have humor.
W (DD): Don, we're already approaching 20 minutes… I have three or four more questions, do you want me to stop, or can I continue?
DJ: No, come on! I'm talking to Brazil, man, let's continue!
W (DD): Excellent, thank you very much. We will probably soon begin our first charitable endeavor as a company, and I know you are involved with some organizations. Could you tell us a little about your involvement with that?
DD: OK. Well, I work… I’ve done some things with an organization here called “Fallen Blue,” which helps the families of widows of police officers killed in the line of duty. Because my sister is married to a police officer, so… He’s still alive, thankfully, but they have three children, and God forbid, you know, my brother-in-law gets shot, then my sister would become a single mother with three children, how would she pay her bills and all that, so… You know, I think about it all the time, so when this organization “Fallen Blue” approached me and asked me to work with them, I said, “Sure, I’d love to.” You know, I donate to many things, but I don’t like to talk about it, because I do it privately, I don’t like any kind of publicity.
I try to keep up with new things too. I can't keep listening to the same 15 albums for the rest of my life.”
W (DD): I'm sure you remember Sam Dunn's first film, "Metal: A Headbanger's Journey." It's an amazing film… There's a really funny part where Sam Dunn tries to interview these guys from Mayhem and they make fun of him. You've done a lot of interviews with various artists. Have you ever had a moment like that?
DJ: You know, nobody… Everyone was incredible, but some people… My hero is Lemmy. Lemmy, he… That’s why I chose that song “Don’t Let ‘Em Grind Ya Down,” it’s my favorite, because that’s the best advice you could give anyone. You know, don’t let anyone put you down, don’t let anyone tell you how to live your life, don’t let anyone tell you what to do, you know, do what you want and don’t worry about anyone’s opinion. And Lemmy is full of that kind of wisdom, you know, all the time. They ask him, “How did Motörhead last so long?” and he says, “Because we never gave up. If you don’t give up, they can’t get rid of you.” You know, and I love that kind of thing. But regarding interviewing him, he’s difficult because he gives a lot of short answers, and he has a very heavy accent, so sometimes when he says something, you don’t understand. So, you know, I love the guy, he's my hero, but sometimes – and he's been on our show about four times already – sometimes he's really difficult to interview.
W (DD): Yes. Every time I'm going to interview someone – we're already approaching episode 100, so we've interviewed a lot of people – every time I'm about to start an interview, I think, "Well, maybe today is my Mayhem moment."
DJ: Right, exactly. You know, some people are better at interviews than others, even Slash said, on our show, he said, “I’m sober now, for three or four years, I’m starting to get used to doing interviews sober, you know, because if I were… If I were on a show like that back when I was with Guns N’ Roses, I’d have to drink at least a bottle of Jack Daniels to get through it.” You know, because deep down he’s even a shy guy, and he doesn’t like publicity, so, you know, he’d get really drunk to do each interview. But some guys love doing it, you know, like you said. I mean, I’m sure Eddie talked enough for four, five, maybe six episodes.
W (DD): I know you're a big Thin Lizzy fan. What are some of your other all-time favorite bands or artists, besides Kiss, that you've already mentioned?
DJ: Yeah, Thin Lizzy, Motörhead, Black Sabbath, AC/DC… You know, a lot of the classic bands, because we’re all in our forties, so those are our roots: Judas Priest, Sabbath, AC/DC, Thin Lizzy, Motörhead. But there are a lot of new bands that I love too, I love Amon Amarth, I love Catatonia… So, you know, I try to keep up with new stuff too, because I can’t keep listening to the same 15 albums for the rest of my life, you have to find other things.
W (DD): And any Brazilian heavy metal bands?
DJ: Ah, Sepultura. That's from Brazil, isn't it?
W (DD): Yes.
DJ: OK, Sepultura. I have to think about who else is from Brazil… I don't know who else is from Brazil.
W (DD): There are many bands, if you want, maybe we can prepare a package of CDs and send it to you.
DJ: Yes, sorry, I don't remember who's from which country, but if you want to send me some suggestions by email, I'd love to check them out.
W (DD): I'll definitely do that. We're almost at the end of our interview, but before we let you go, we usually ask musicians what advice they would give to young people starting a music career, so what would you say to a young comedian, or even to us, as a metal show that started two years ago, what would your advice be for someone starting a career?
DJ: Well, I'd say this... I'm going to ask you a question, Daniel: why did you want to start Wikimetal?
W (DD): We started doing this because… Much like you guys, I'm doing this with two of my best friends in life, and we wanted to help the heavy metal scene here, and spread the word about these really, really good bands that exist here in Brazil, that don't have the recognition and space they deserve…
DJ: Right, and because you guys love music.
W (DD): Yes.
DJ: So that's your answer. You know, do whatever you want to do in life, whether it's being a comedian, or a musician, or whatever, but do it for love. Don't do it because you think you're going to make 10 million dollars and live in a mansion and have a fancy car and a bunch of women. If you do your job for love, you'll get all those things. But it has to come from the heart, you know, like you said, we both do this with people we love and who care about the music the same way. So it has to come from that place, otherwise it's fake. And that's why the fans of That Metal Show remain loyal to us, they know we love the music. If we like something, we say so, if we don't like something, we say so too, you know. We kick each other's asses every day on the show, but, you know, we're still brothers, and that's it, man. We're all doing the same thing, we're all trying to keep the music we love alive. Everyone: you, me, all the magazines, you know, all the rock stations that still play heavy metal, you know, we're trying to keep the music alive, because let's face it: it's the best music on the planet.
W (DD): That's right. Once again, Don, thank you very much for your time. I hope to have the chance to meet you, whether in the United States, or if you come to Brazil, you can count on Wikimetal to promote That Metal Show, or anything else you do in the future. Thank you very much, Mr. Don Jamieson.
DJ: Hey, thank you so much, and please send me the link, I want to send it to everyone, and thank you so much to all the fans out there. I hope I can come someday, and we appreciate the support.
W (DD): Excellent, thank you very much, Don. Bye.
DJ: Bye.
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