I can't imagine that having a child is good for your focus, because it's a tough industry. You have to be very focused. And once you're successful, you have to fight harder to stay on top.
— Wayne Static
Obviously we're not Kiss, but we go out there and jump around like idiots and try to have a good time and entertain people.
For me, if we're going to have a guitar solo, it needs to be over the top.
As much fun as we had doing Ozzfest, I think it's good to try something else.
We're definitely a metal band. We push a lot of boundaries. But at the core we're a metal band.
Sometimes things get too layered and compressed or there's too many effects and they turn into mush on record. I strive to keep it raw and live-sounding, like you are in the room watching the band play.
You gotta give props to Ozzy as the creator of all evil faces. What would we do in photo sessions if it were not for Ozzy?
For many records, everyone was like, 'Oh, this next record is going to be their last, blah, blah, blah.' But here we are on our sixth full-length studio album and we debut at No. 16. It's obvious we're not going anywhere.
When I'm in a bad mood, I feel better listening to someone else who sounds like they're in a bad mood. That was especially true when I was a kid, and I was mad at my mom or dad for whatever reason.
All of our records seem to capture a certain period of time for us.
It's been a long time since I lived in Michigan, but I did grow up there for 18 to 20 years of my life. It does feel my home state.
I'm very picky about who we tour with.
I remember when we were mixing our record and our manager was in there going, 'You guys need to sing more, so it can be on the radio.' And we were like 'What? We're never going to get played on the radio. Who cares? What are you talking about?'
I can't afford another Camaro.
I actually re-signed with Warner Bros. on my own. They've been really good to us and all the people over there are great; they love me and I love them. So I'm just sticking with them.
Static-X has never been a band where the four guys get into a room together and jam and write songs and all that kind of stuff.
You know, Kiss can always go on as long as Gene and Paul want it to go on. Static-X is the same way. We're the two founding guys and the two vocalists and the driving force of the band. We can go on as long as we want, as long as the two of us are together. If I ever lost Tony, I'm sure I'd start something else.
I realized how important it was to have a good team - manager, attorney and label. It's not just about putting out a record and somebody signing you.
It gets weird with people wanting to touch my hair and beard boundaries, you know?
Mexico scares me. There's no law, there's wild dogs and people driving their ATVs down the street. I like to know I can walk down the street and not be arrested for something dumb and have to pay to get my way out.
For the most part, metal has been underground. It's too dangerous for mom and dad and schools. It will probably always be that way.
Even when metal was on the radio, it was always the watered down stuff. There were only a couple real metal bands - Metallica is one - that broke through.
We became one of those bands that could be around forever like Slayer. We can go on as long as we want to, as long as we have fun.
It's cool that MTV is making an effort to support bands like us.
I think our first record was a fluke, really. The fact that it went platinum and all that, it was all due to one video and the timing being just right.
I developed a really bad hernia. I had to cancel the tour and go have surgery.
We can't seem to put out an album without any drama.
For some reason, I don't spend enough time getting to see my family because I'm always touring or working or whatnot.
I hate it when bands keep making the same record over and over, so we're pushing ourselves to try new things and experiment in our writing approach.
My mom is about 60 years old and she loves our music because she can bounce around to it.
I had a dream I was onstage naked and I forgot how to play the songs.
This 'Pighammer' record is supposed to be a side project. And it just so happens that at the same time I'm recording this record, our contract was up with Warner Bros., so it's time for Static-X to re-sign.
I'd stay on tour for the rest of my life if I could. It's awesome.
I have some drinks at night but that's it.
We didn't have that big-label push. We weren't the kind of band that our label Warner Bros. Records was going to throw all this money at. Their idea was to support us on the road and see what happens. It was a very slow building process.
I like all kinds of shows. The small shows are a totally different vibe. I don't care how many people are there as long as they're into it.
Back in the Eighties, I used to write ballads on my acoustic guitar, so it seems very natural to me to go back to a little singing.
It's harder and harder to sell records now. You've got to give extra value. You've got to give people a reason to go out and buy it rather than burn a friend's copy.
When you write, what's going on in your life shines through in the songs.
Obviously, we've proved a lot of skeptics, who thought we'd be gone after a record or two, wrong.
Any of the bands that came out at the same time as us, they're either gone now, or they got just mega huge, like System of a Down or Incubus.
Being married has not affected my career at all other than just making me happier to be on the road.
Listening to Ozzy Osbourne at full blast always made me feel a little bit better. It made me feel like I wasn't alone.
I can play whatever I want and play whatever the fans want to hear. I don't have to be like a salesperson up there talking about my CD through the whole show.
I like playing Michigan.
I feel like my whole life I've been searching for what I want to do, searching for my identity as a musician and a songwriter, and my band's identity.
The studio can be quite tedious.
Nothing in life is free, you always pay in the end.
Here's the way Static-X has always worked: I write all the songs by myself - totally and completely by myself - I give demos to the other guys, and then they add their parts to it, and then we argue about stuff and compromise and it turns out being Static-X.
Pretty much every other question I get from fans is about my hair and beard.
