Queensland native and Devil You Know drummer John Sankey shares the story of his band’s latest video for ‘The Way We Die,’ shot on location in LA with some of the world’s most famous porn stars including Joanna Angel of Burning Angel.
Devil You Know are a killer four-piece that also features guitar impresario Francesco Artusato, killer bass player Ryan Wombacher and Howard Jones, the one in a million vocalist best known for his work in Killswitch Engage and his ability to match Dio-level range. The band are currently touring Europe and will be out here next year with the Soundwave Festival in January.
Beyond Devil You Know, Sankey drums for legendary Aussie band Devolved and also was the first musician that Fear Factory legend Dino Cazares worked with after FF broke up. He’s since played with bands all over the world and spent years in Hollywood. Sankey shares a few funny moments on set, how to make it as a drummer and a bit more about the killer new band that has just released their second album, They Bleed Red.
What was the concept for the clip and who’s idea was it?
The whole concept was for us to do something completely unexpected, fun and sarcastic. Strip clubs and porn have absolutely nothing to do with the song and that’s exactly why we did it. It was actually our manager’s idea, he knew we had no interest in doing another typical performance video. No matter what you think of the video if you say you wouldn’t enjoy a night in a bar with porn stars stripping for you I say you are full of shit, haha.
How many other treatments were considered?
None, the strip club was the first idea and we were sold on it immediately, who would argue against doing that?
What were the biggest surprises on set?
All the girls were actually porn stars and not strippers so it was funny to see them behind the scenes getting into ‘dancer mode’. They were super cool and very entertaining just as we expected, so there was lots of laughs and no big surprises. We knew our job was to turn up, party and have a good time letting the ladies do their thing.
Watching it back how does it feel?
Great, I think it’s hilarious and I hope we can do more goofy videos like this in the future so we can laugh and piss people off, haha.
What’s been the response like to the album and the clip?
It’s been exactly what we expected, a lot of people love it and a lot hate it, but the point is we really don’t care, either way everyone is watching it and talking about it and that was the goal. More importantly we had an awesome night out making the video and this band is all about us enjoying what we do.
In DYK you’ve all played in a bunch of bands, what’s unique about the chemistry between you and the other DYK guys?
I think each of us are at a point now where we’ve all been doing music for a long time and we have all battled very hard and sacrificed a lot to make music our careers. So Devil You Know is us kind of going back to basics and just loving the fact that we get to play music for a living and we want to have fun with it. This band is for us and we really want to protect that by not worrying about critics or opinions – that might sound selfish but that’s how this whole thing started. We are great mates and have a blast hanging out together so tour is really cool and we just fuck around a lot both on and off stage.
You’ve spent a large proportion of the last few years in LA. Is the scene in the video typical of a night out?
Haha, when I first moved to LA I lived in Hollywood for a number of years and I’d say the video was pretty typical of those times. Thankfully not so much these days though. I have my moments where I still like to party hard but I try to avoid ending up in the strip clubs at 5am. Los Angeles is a great place to live but it can definitely suck you in and take you down the wrong path very quickly, I never wanted to be a casualty of that. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been kicked out of numerous clubs for being a bit too ‘friendly’ with the staff in the past though, haha.
What are three things a young aspiring drummer who dreams of a career like yours can do to get them closer to the goal?
1) Be willing to sacrifice a LOT.
2) Learn the Business side of the music industry.
3) Become the best musician you can and realise the importance of not over-playing, it’s all about the songs.
What are the three best things about the touring lifestyle?
1) Travelling the world (if you don’t like to travel you would hate tour!).
2) Watching people who can’t speak english try to sing our songs (that’s always hilarious).
3) Not being stuck in an office doing a ‘real’ job!
Which music videos resonate most deeply with you?
I’m a sucker for ridiculous tongue-in-cheek videos (obviously!) but when a band nails a really deep and confronting subject I think they resonate the most. ‘One’ by Metallica, ‘Jeremy’ by Pearl Jam and ‘Runaway Train’ by Soul Asylum are great examples in my opinion, they are brilliant music videos that have stood the test of time and bring those songs to life when you watch them.
How important is a clip to bands in a place as geographically isolated as Australia?
Where a band is based geographically doesn’t make a difference at all, videos are just as important for any band who wants to share and promote their art. The internet is an unlimited outlet and it’s a universal platform for bands to market themselves, there’s no limitations any more. I think the biggest challenge is to write great music and do something that will be noticed amongst a million other bands all trying to ‘make it’.
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