Machine Head: "We feel like a new band in this line-up”

Machine Head are a band who’ve been put through the wringer in their rocky career. They’ve had critical panning, obligatory accusations of ‘selling out’ and no shortage of personal demons to fight across the board, but for a band formed by a teenage speed dealer from Oakland, there’s been no shortage of more legitimate highs along the way. Their seventh album Unto The Locust sees them once again delivering the unexpected while still staying the most metal dudes around. So what’s changed during the relentless three-year tour behind their sprawling 2007 opus The Blackening?

“I think everything became a little more personal,” muses drummer Dave McClain today. “For The Blackening, there were definitely some politically charged lyrics on that album. We’re not a political band but at the time that record was written, George Bush was still in office, the war was spreading; as a band, there was a lot of stuff we were pretty fucking mad about. But since then, a lot has happened and the political stuff has gone away, only to be replaced with the more personal stuff that went on during the course of touring that album.”

A fine example of this shift can be found in the rallying call of Darkness Falls, not only a fitting tribute to the unifying power of metal but also an exorcism of [frontman] Robb Flynn’s own demons. Yet for all this, these songs still bear a comfortable resemblance to The Blackening’s epic structures, which McClain can attest to. "We weren’t trying to change our style. If anything, we just wanted to carry on the progression from our last three records, to take what we had learned and use it to write the best songs, and the heaviest songs, that we can write. We feel like a new band in this line-up, like this is our third record.”

Many fans are quick to agree, following the backlash they received after the release of The Burning Red and Supercharger, two albums that saw them dip their toe in the nu-metal waters and change not only their sound but also their style, as those who remember McClain’s leopard-print hair in the From This Day video can testify. “I think the image of the band threw people off more than anything. It made them not hear the record objectively, so people were saying, ‘Oh, Robb’s rapping on this record.’ So what! Get over it already!”

If this is how the band was perceived, McClain’s impression is considerably more forgiving. “Take the image away, and it’s fucking good! It’s dark, it’s killer and it’s something we had to do,” he exults, before lamenting the fickleness of the industry. “We got criticised on The More Things Change for sounding exactly like Burn My Eyes, but then with The Burning Red people got mad at us again for sounding different… it’s like we can’t fucking win!”

No matter how proud he remains of that album’s stylistic shift, he gratefully accepts some of the criticisms directed at its follow-up. “For Supercharger, that record, to me, is like a great EP. I think there’re maybe four great songs on there. We still play Bulldozer to this day and it’s a killer song but yeah, there’s definitely some stuff on there that, in my eyes, is not up to Machine Head standards.” Despite such personal criticisms, he remains optimistic about those works’ legacies. “I think those two, more than any other Machine Head records, people will look back on now and say, ‘Y’know, that’s a good fucking record!’”

No matter what naysayers may spout, though, metal has always been Machine Head’s heart and soul. “I think that’s the good thing about metal, that it’s always been a subculture. It’s never been the shiny popular thing to like,” he emotionally expounds. “Whether it’s the adrenaline, or just that it’s dirty and gritty, there’s always something there to latch on to. And not everyone likes it, which is one of the appealing things about it. The only thing that’s changed is that younger and younger people are coming to the shows, which is always a good thing.”

With this sunny new outlook and rejuvenated line-up, the band are gearing up for another mammoth trek to our fair isle which McClain is predictably excited about. “To be honest, I love it!” From the rise in his voice, there’s the vibe that this is no idle chatter. “I take my home time when I can get it, but touring has been my life since 1991. I love being out on the road, I love that we toured for three years on The Blackening and I hope we do it again. I look at Machine Head first and foremost as a live band and that’s how we built our fanbase.”

Perhaps predictably, McClain has little time for those who don’t share his love of the open road. “I think there’re some bands who’re just, ‘Here we go again.’ We’ll see them and ask them how they’re doing and they’ll sigh, ‘Oh, you know. Living the dream...’ Well go get a fucking normal job then!” he retorts with a derisive laugh. “If you’re gonna sit there and complain about touring, just don’t do it and find something else.”

Anyone whose borne witness to Machine Head’s explosive live shows over the years knows that a penchant for the sauce always goes hand in hand. McClain is pleased to confirm that old habits really do die hard. “Yeah, things are still the same although the hangovers definitely hurt more now,” he chuckles. “We’ve added some new drinks to the Machine Head drinks menu, like the ‘Beat the Beam’ bomb, where you take a shot of Jim Beam and drop it into Red Bull,” joining the ranks of their previous concoctions the ‘Brown Eye’ (vodka and coke) and the ‘Butt Burner’ (think a Bloody Mary, but replace tomato juice with tabasco sauce), the mention of which prompts a hearty bout of laughter on the other side of the line. “Ah, the Butt Burner. Definitely an oldie but a goodie.”

So is it safe to say that age isn’t yet getting in the way of Machine Head's life on the road? “We know when to take it easy now... we’re definitely more responsible drinkers.” With shocking statements like this, it’s obvious there’s a caveat in there somewhere and it’s not long before McClain spills the beans. “But there are those days when you know you’ve got a day off so you’re up drinking ‘til the sun comes, just rocking out to old Maiden on the bus. I don’t think that’ll ever stop. If it does, we’ll have to become a Christian rock band or something.”