DEVIL'S ISLAND featuring Dean Wallace and the Black Flames
Welcome to this weeks edition of Devil's Island! Every week we maroon a band or artist on the island and see what they get up to, how they cope with being all alone on a small island in the middle of the ocean. It's not your average desert island and we'll see just how each person copes with the extreme conditions.
This week when we arrived at Devil's Island we find Dean Wallace and the Black Flames sat on the beach. The island is far from their home, so how did they end up here and how did they cope with life on Devil's Island?
Find out now...
Welcome to The Razors'e Edge and our somewhat lovely, warm desert island. Don't worry about it's name I'm sure it's not as bad as that would suggest.
You're marooned here on this island, but before you ended up shipwrecked you chose one album that you couldn't live without. Which album did you each chose and why?
That would be Master of Puppets, by Metallica. That's their best album, in my opinion. Some songs are thrash and brutal, some others are atmospheric and full of emotion (Orion, Sanitarium, Battery's intro, Master's bridge). It contains my favourite Metallica song, Disposable Heroes. It's a masterpiece of songwriting and execution, made by some 23 years old musicians : respect !!
Just behind that palm tree is a shack for each of you to stay in, with enough space for you to put up a poster on the wall of one album cover. What album cover do you each chose?
I think Megadeth's Youthanasia is the cover that fascinated me the most. Their logo looks great, and the picture can be funny, intriguing or even disturbing sometimes. You keep on wondering why is this old lady hanging some babies by the foot, like she would to dry out her laundry. Very artistic. And I'm a big fan of this album.
There's also a bar on this here island. But alas each of you only get to choose one drink for the entirety of your stay. What's your tipple of choice?
Hoo, hard choice because I'm not very faithful when it comes to drinks. Actually, I get bored quite quickly, and I need to change alcohol every two glasses if I'm in the mood to get drunk. I try to lower my sugar consumption at the moment, so I have to abandon Jack and Coke, Gin and Tonic... I'm gonna choose Despardos, the tequila flavoured beer. On top of it, I could use the glass bottle to kill a boar, so yeah, Desperados.
Your suitcases were lost when your ship sank, but you each managed to salvage one item of band merch. What’s the merch and for what band?
There's a Pantera t-shirt, made for the "101 Proof" live album, that I like a lot. It's quite simple but very classy. And guess I would be easier to spot from the air with a black shirt on a white sanded beach.
You’re sat on the island thinking “I’m stuck here on this island with my bandmates for eternity”… who would you rather have been shipwrecked with?
How do you want me to answer this question, knowing that my bandmates will read this interview ? It's like having children, you must absolutely pretend like you have no favourite, and love them equally (though you do have a favourite, you know it, he knows it).
There's a walkman in your pocket, on the tape inside is the recording of the one live show that stands out for you. It could be any show, from any band, anywhere in the world. What show is on that walkman?
That could be Metallica in Seattle 1989 (at their peak), but I would say Queen - Live at Wembley Stadium 1986. Great songs, great band, awesome vocal harmonies, and Freddie Mercury playing with 80,000 people at his will... I got the DVD at home, I watch it quite regularly. And when I run out of batteries, I could use the tape to trap some squirrels, great.
You're getting desperate, you decide the only course of action is to put a message in a bottle and hope someone finds it. Your message could be to any member of any band, but should be the most suitable for a rescue attempt. Who is it?
Once again, the Desperados glass bottle is the key !! I would send a message to Bruce Dickinson, of Iron Maiden. He's a very nice guy, I'm sure he would come to rescue us. And he's also a skilled pilot, so it might be a good asset when it comes to rescue a band on an island. We would build an airstrip for him, numbered 666.
You've been stuck here for a while and food supplies are running low. There's only one thing for it... which fellow band member gets sacrificed to help the others survive?
I think we would sacrifice Neil, the bassist. He's been eating organic and healthy food for the last 15 years, I'm sure his meat is the best. And we play rock and metal, we don't need bass... (I'm joking, I love when bands turn the bass up)
Finally, when the ship sank you each managed to save one person from the wreckage. That person is the one musician that has influenced your career the most, shaped your way of thinking and your outlook on life. Who did you save?
That would be James Hetfield, no doubt. The guy has influenced me a lot, more than anyone else. I do the job that I do, and play the music that I play thanks to him. We have points of disagreement, like hunting (I know I've just been hunting some boars and squirrels, but only to survive), but I respect him a lot as a singer, a guitarist, a lyricist, a songwriter but also as a person.
