Suicide is usually a rather depressing subject. But when it comes to Davey Suicide, the it’s more of a glass-half-full kind of thing asserting that when you hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up. And with a celebratory sound that is equal parts industrial angst and heavy metal sleaze (think Rob Zombie meets Mötley Crüe), it’s clear that Davey and his band are having too much fun to want to off themselves anytime soon. With a self-titled debut album due out early next year (preceded by an EP this October), things continue to look up for this gothy-glam rock star (or, as his first single attests, “Generation Fuck Star”) in-the-making as he just finished a few dates opening for Wednesday 13 and hits the road on July 15 as the opening act for Static-X and Prong on the Noise Revolution Tour. As he prepares for his biggest tour to date, Suicide takes a moment to tell Wrestling with Pop Culture just how bright his future will be.

 

You just finished opening a few Northwest dates for Wednesday 13 before hitting the road again with Static-X and Prong. What were the shows with Wednesday 13 like for you guys?

I thought it was great. Our band goes really well with Wednesday’s band with the visuals and the crowd and stuff. I thought it was a great match, everyone got along really well and most of those fans were awesome. I like the Northwest, too. There’s a lot of trees and there’s just a different energy with the people up there.

The Static-X tour will be a much more extensive one. And the lineup is cool because there’s a thread of similarity between each band, but you’re all also unique within the lineup. What are your anticipations from that tour?

That tour goes all the way through September 2, so we’re on it for almost seven weeks. I think it’s going to be awesome, though. We’re probably the least metal of all of them, but I think we’ll probably be the one that stands out, for better or worse. We grew up listening to Static and Prong and stuff like that, so it’s cool to go from being a kid and knowing their music to touring with them. It’s a very interesting transition.

Your name has come up recently because of the upcoming album and tours, but I recall hearing of you a few years ago. Weren’t you doing some modeling or something like that?

I always get stuck being on sets with my friends and they’d be like, “Hey, we need somebody to do this shirt.” I wouldn’t say I was a victim of circumstance, but I’d always take pictures if someone wanted to take photos. But I started a clothing line called Killers Never Die, so you may have seen me doing stuff with that, if we were doing a big group thing where we had a bunch of models and stuff, I would jump in there with whatever shirt I liked at the time. But that was never an aspiration of mine. Getting photos taken is just part of being an entertainer and stuff, so it was just something that came along with being in music.

Your debut album comes out in a few months, but what’s your background when it comes to music and art?

This is the first album under Davey Suicide, but I’ve done music all my life. I also tattoo and paint and do art every second of the day. But this album embodies everything I’ve been working towards and it’s probably my proudest accomplishment. I’m excited to share it with people. I’m more excited for the future than where I’ve been. I was in some regional acts and stuff, but this is the first one that’s getting press in Revolver and doing kind of big stuff.

Who are the other guys in the band? Are they people you’ve worked with previously?

Needlz [keyboards] and Frankie [Sil, bass] grew up in Youngstown together and have been friends forever. Eric [Griffin, guitar] and Ben [Graves, drums] have been friends forever, and Ben was one of the first guys I met when I moved to Hollywood. We had talked about doing a band for a while, but the stars just kind of aligned at the right time as Frankie, Needlz, Ben and I were working together and needed a guitar player. Ben knew Eric, and the monster was born.

This tour ends just before your CD is scheduled to be released. Do you have any additional touring plans to promote that?

We’re working on a bunch of stuff. We’ll have a little bit of time off, then we’ll be back on the road again. We’re going to be road dogs and it looks like we’re going to get to the U.K. a little sooner than I thought we were. So we’re excited for people to finally hear the record. It’s tough, sometimes, playing for people who only know a song or two. So it’s going to be exciting for people to get the whole experience of what we are.

For more information, go to www.daveysuicide.com.