The Living Legend of Duff (Part II)
HU: Jimmy, the cool thing with you is that you have seen all these bands come out, all these records come out and you have seen the scene change to what it is today. With that said, what is the band out there right now, that you can see 20 years from now still doing their thing? I know it’s harder these days because everything is different…
Jimmy: Yeah. Well, the music industry is so different now and it's changing yearly. Basically, it has to be the hard-core motherfuckers that are hanging in there because they love it. Not for money or whatever… I mean records are not really where it's at now. To make money you got to get out there, you got to get on the ground, you got to sell shirts and do whatever else you can do to raise some cash. Who’s going to last? Nowadays? I really couldn't tell you man, you never know who is going to drop out of a band or who is going to lose their chemistry. I mean, I hope to see Amon Amarth still fucking grooving' 20 years from now. And I think they will be. And Behemoth is another of my favorites as you know (Laughter)… It is hard to say, and anything can happen. There are a lot of bands that I want to see keep going, but the stuff that I grew up with personally is going to be extinct eventually…
HU: Right, Right…
Jimmy: Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath…
HU: Motorhead…
Jimmy: Yeah, Motorhead… Those guys in 5 years, who knows who's going to be standing of those guys. I hate to say it but that's the fucking reality, so we've to enjoy it while we can. That is why I make it a point to go to every fucking show I can. There is certain urgency because you've got to see them, and any young jack I just try to tell them: “Look man, you got to see these motherfucking bands! You got to see them now because you know what? They won’t be around forever. So get out there”.
HU: You know what band I can see let’s say 5, 10 years down the line? Type O Negative. I can see those guys keep going at it.
Jimmy: Well, I hope so. Not only are they friends of mine, but I really fucking dig the music, and every album has its own kind of vibe to it. And they've got something that is really lacking these days, which is a signature sound. You crank up a Type O Negative song and it is like: “This is Type O Negative!”
HU: Oh yeah…
Jimmy: It is not like: “Who is this?” It's not generic. And their influences are so solid; basically it's Black Sabbath and the Beatles…
HU: Right.
Jimmy: Which is where everybody else has come from. More or less…
HU: Yeah. I mean, honestly Type O Negative is one of the best live bands out there. It is funny because I like the records but when I see them is always like: “Oh my god, this motherfuckers are good!” You know what I mean? No gimmicks, no bullshit, they are amazing musicians, a great band. And as you said, hopefully they will survive. Because it all depends on all the members, the health of all the members, there are so many logistical aspects for it to work. Because they can fall through, it is such a competitive business now more than ever. But hopefully, 5 years from now we’ll be talking and Type O Negative will still be around rocking hard.
Jimmy: Knock on wood bro; I'm knocking on wood right now.
HU: (Laughter).
Jimmy: Those cats, I mean, number one: they are just the coolest and most down to earth dudes that I fucking know personally. What they do sonically is just amazing and it is heavy. It has everything, you know? And also what is amazing to me is that it's done with a sense of humor too. It is not heavy handed like Goth… (Makes depressed sounds).
HU: (Laughter).
Jimmy: They have the best sense of humor around. They can laugh at themselves, they laugh at what they do. And to me, that's what I try to do. I like to think it's done with a sense of humor and its not like: “We are so fucking Metal and…” (Makes tough guy sounds). That type of fucking over the top, trying too hard horseshit, it’s just like: “Ah, good.” Metal is great and Metal is the best thing ever, but also some Metal is hilariously bad and fucking terrible and you've got to have a fucking laugh! And you have to look at all the angles like this. It's everything, you know?
HU: Right. And since we where talking about how hard it is to be in a band and to make it in the music industry. Did you see the Anvil movie: “Anvil! The Story of Anvil”?
Jimmy: Nah, I got to be honest with you, I have not seen it. I was supposed to see it in the theaters and next thing you know it's out of the theaters. I got rid of my TV set as an experiment back in June I guess it was, and just recently bought one. But you know I never watch it anymore. Not even DVD’s or TV. It just seems like such a waste of time to me. I could be reading a book or I could be editing photos. I mean really, anything. It 's wasting my time to watch some stupid fucking TV. Once you get away from that and you rediscover… I mean, people didn't have cable back in the day, so what did you do? You wrote, you read, you found other things that were constructive. So to me TV is such a waste of time and even movies to an extent. I do love documentaries though…
HU: Yeah, that is definitely a big eye opener for anybody who is in the music industry or for any up and coming band. Its worth for them to watch and realize that it is not only having a good song, but that there are so many other elements like management, which is so important to any band and to the scene in general.
Jimmy: Yeah, it is true man. I mean, I give Anvil all the credit in the world for hanging in there and they are lifers. Like you and I are.
HU: Right.
Jimmy: And a select group of people that we know. 10 years from now, if I didn't see you for 10 years. I would run into you, you would still be the same dude. Still head banging. Same with me, you know? And that's rare. So you got to appreciate that when you see people with that kind of dedication. You know, they didn't hang it up, it is not like: “Hey we're not selling platinum, so lets hang it up.” Hey, they're still banging it out; they're hanging in there. And that early stuff… I love it. It is hilarious, it's good, a little dated but it's good. That is part of the charm…
HU: “Metal on Metal”…
Jimmy: Yeah, exactly. If we would crank it up right now, the crowd would start fucking banging their heads. It is dated, but it's also is timeless. People recognize when they hear that fucking opening riff, you know what it is.
HU: And they influenced bands like Metallica, Anthrax… a lot of the bay area bands where influenced by Anvil, which is really cool.
Jimmy: Oh yeah, totally…
HU: Slayer…
Jimmy: Slayer, yeah… a lot of those cats man. And that was one of the good things about Metallica doing that cover record. I heard from a bunch of people that know the bands that were covered, that they got royalty checks with more money than they ever made for their own fucking records. Just for a song on a Metallica record. So that's good, and kids can listen to that and they can go back and rediscover those fucking bands. See what that's all about and that is good man, I like that.
HU: Right, very positive. Since we were talking about how you like reading books. Did you start, or did you get the “I Am Ozzy” book?
Jimmy: Yeah. I read it in one day last week. It was awesome. I was sleeping; the mailman woke me up at 10 o' clock in the morning because I sleep late. (Laughter).
HU: (Laughter).
Jimmy: And I was like: “What the fuck?” After the mailman drops off the package I was like: “Ah, the Ozzy book!” You know, I got it from Amazon. And so I was like: “You know what? I'll just read a couple of chapters.” So it is 10:30, next thing you know it is 2:30 in the afternoon. I was like: “Alright I’ll take a nap.” Took a nap. I woke up and I finished the fucking book. Read it straight through, read the whole fucking book. And I'll tell you, I laugh at movies sometimes or whatever. It's very rare that printed word makes me laugh out loud.
HU: Yeah…
Jimmy: As I was reading the book… more than a few times, I had to put the book down because I was cracking up so fucking hard.
HU: (Laughter).
Jimmy: Just the honesty…
HU: Yeah.
Jimmy: And the shit that he comes up with man. It's just fucking hilarious. He's such an interesting and honest guy. And really, that is what it's all about. There is nothing funnier or better than being honest. And that's what it is. He's not like the Motley Crue book: “The Dirt”. You know: “We fucked this chick and we fucked that chick, or we did that drug.” It's more bragging and kind of posturing. Ozzy is more like: “Look. I did this, I did it because I'm fucked up in the head but I learned my lessons and maybe it's a warning to you.” It doesn't come off as bragging, and he's laying it out there in a very honest way. And that is why I always loved Ozzy, because he is Ozzy, man. He is just a fucking funny motherfucker you know?
HU: Yeah, just as we where saying before, he is the one of those guys that is very Metal without even trying. And he is just himself man.
Jimmy: Exactly. And I mean, he is the godfather. He never wrote the Iommi riffs, or the Randy Rhoads riffs, or even the Zakk Wylde riffs. But he's the guy that's out there jumping around. Getting out all this energy, to get the crowd going crazy. And there's something to be said as well for living the lifestyle, which he most certainly has. Which is part of what makes Metal, Metal! I mean, everything he has fucking done… whether it's him pissing on the Alamo or whatever. I mean, some of the stories in the book… I recommend you go get it. You are just fucking going to crack up because these things happened to him and it's just awesome. And to me that is part of the music. It is the lifestyle and kind of the craziness that goes with it and the mistakes we all make along the way. But it's all about good times man. To me that is what Metal means. It means being a non-conformist, outsider, over the top in every way and all about the good times. And that's it, I mean the best way I can sum it up. And Ozzy is the embodiment of all that. And Black Sabbath is always the number one Metal band; anybody that will tell you different does not what the fuck they are talking about. And if somebody tells me otherwise, then I automatically dismiss them. Sabbath is always number one.
HU: Exactly.
(We get interrupted by Ed, one of Duff’s regulars)
HU: Anyways, before we get out of here, we just mentioned Slayer; I know Kerry King was here at Duff’s watching the Super Bowl last weekend. Did any crazy shit happen that day?
Jimmy: No, you know what? It was relatively low key. I mean Kerry is a huge football fan, so everyone was pretty engrossed in the game. We were just eating and watching the game. You know, for a football fan that's like Christmas… as analogous as you can get with that. So Kerry was just into the game. After the game we just started fucking drinking and doing shots. All the usual stuff and goofing around. 
HU: He is a Jager guy right? He loves Jager?
Jimmy: Yeah. Actually, he is into Tequila now. He brought me a bottle of fucking Cuervo, family reserve…
HU: Oh nice…
Jimmy: Yeah… he was like: “Hey, this is the shit!” I go: “Dude, I like Tequila!” But we didn't drink it. I just saved it because he was drinking Vodka mostly. You know, Kerry King is just a fucking straightforward dude. If you talk to him, there is no bullshit. He's a very intelligent guy; he is very honest, straightforward. You know, we hang out with him and say: “Hey man, what was your favorite tour? Or what was it like to open for Judas Priest? Or what was this tour like? What’s your favorite Metal album?” Just being able to pick his brain is awesome and he is a genuinely true Metal head. Through and through, that's all there is to it. And the fact that he flew out here to hang out with us, to be in this environment, was very flattering to me. But also it made sense to me, hey we're just fucking Metal heads and there's no bullshit. It is not like: “Oh, Kerry King is going to be at Duff’s!” He's not going to get hassled or whatever. He is just a bro; he is just a Metal head just like you dude. I am telling you, you meet him and he is the same as you. And that to me is the highest compliment I can give a guy that is in Metal or whatever. He is just a regular guy like me, or you, or anybody else. And we hang out and drink and party. And he can talk about this album or that album, or that tour or that record. And we just had a relatively mellow, just fucking cool time just partying and hanging out. That was it man, it was good man.
HU: And of all places he could have chosen pretty much in the world, he picked Duffs to come watch the fucking game. That’s awesome!
Jimmy: Yeah, he flew across the country too! He took a red eye after he did a signing and that's why he flew to town, just to hang with us basically. Because initially we were suppose to do a party with all bands. Slayer, Testament and even Dave Mustaine was going to be here. You know, because they were supposed to be in town.
HU: Right.
Jimmy: The tour got shitcanned, so I told him: “Dude, don’t worry about it, I'll see you next time you come around”. And he is like: “No, no, I want to come out for the Super Bowl!” And lo and behold he made it happen; he really wanted to be here. And of course we wanted him to be here. I just like hanging out with the guy. He is a good man, he is a good soul, and he is like I said: just a true Metal head. And what else can you say, you know? That's it.
HU: With that said, which is your favorite Slayer song?
Jimmy: Seasons in the Abyss. Yeah, I just like the groove, the build up. I've got a lot of songs I like. But if I had to pick one, that's the one I like. It's epic! I like epic songs, you know? It's like Priest, I would have to say “Victim of Changes”. Maiden, probably “Hallowed be Thy Name”. Sabbath, maybe “Symptom of the Universe”. I like the epics. If I have to pick one song, it's the epics. It's the classics with the riffage and everything else. Yes, I would have to say Seasons.
HU: Domination.
Jimmy: Yeah… (Laughter). Woah yeah!!! (Imitates Dimebag’s voice).
HU: Alright Jimmy, thank you so much my friend!
Jimmy: Yeah, right on bro! My pleasure man! Anytime dude!
HU: Any last words?
Jimmy: I would just like to say, I 'm drinking red wine, I feel pretty fucking good! It's good hanging out with you and all the other Metal heads out here. And if you can hear we have some Black Sabbath cranking in the background. I mean, what's better than this?
HU: Life is good!
Jimmy: Yeah, right on bro! (Laughter).
HU: METAL!!!
Jimmy: Oh yeaaayyahh!!! (Imitates Dimebag voice). (Laughter). 
Click here to read Part 1!
Related links:
Duff's Brooklyn
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By: JoSchuftan
