Filth Friends Unite (Celldweller Remix)
TMN: Today I have the pleasure of interviewing our wonderful June resident artist Celldweller, or as he is known to friends and fans alike, Klayton. Thanks so much for taking the time to sit down and answer some questions, where are you writing to us from today?
K: A place that goes often completely unused – the lounge of my studio. (That would require relaxing and I haven’t quite figured out how to do that yet.)
TMN: Let’s start from the beginning, before there was Celldweller, before the red hawked hair, let’s go all the way back to when you were a kid. Many artists talk about their musical upbringings. Did you have any music in your house or were you exposed to any instruments or singing early on in life?
K: Yes and no. Definitely surrounded by music, but not necessarily instruments. My grandfather had a massive collection of vinyl and the highlight of my childhood was when I was able to visit, getting to sit in his “music room” and put on headphones and listen to anything from classical to disco to the progressive electronic music of the 70’s & 80’s.
K: Hard to say. I wasn’t permitted to listen to the radio due to my parents trying to protect me from the evil messages of modern lyricists, but I did remember sneaking in some early Billy Joel, Queen & eventually Judas Priest’s “Screaming for Vengeance” vinyl which I had to hide outside in my shed so I didn’t get in trouble. (Just for the record, I love my folks and they did an awesome job raising me, although they still can’t figure out why I have a red Mohawk. I blame Judas Priest.)
TMN: Who was your musical idol as a kid?
K: If I had to go back to when I was discovering the music that I was initially trying to emulate in my teen band days, as generic as it sounds, it was Metallica. I was a drummer first, so Lars was the man.
