The Deadthings - Formed 2002 in the inner city of Melbourne, Australia on the sleazy streets of St.Kilda by Frontman Julez Mephisto and Rhythm Guitarist Leigh Van Hell (Ex Voodoo Lovecats) and completed with Dave Scythe (Lead Guitar), Trixxi Trash (Bass) and Nick Caligula (Drums). The Deadthings tell dark and grim tales of sleaze and heartbreak in their own unique melodic morbid way.

Having toured throughout their native Australia and in the USA, The Deadthings have toured with many International acts including;

WEDNESDAY 13

LA GUNS

PRETTY BOY FLOYD

TUFF

FASTER PUSSYCAT

LYNCH MOB

Hailed by the International press as Australia’s Premier Glam/Sleaze band and with their Rock N Roll soaked in blood, guts, beer and glitter, The Deadthings continue to build a strong live following from show to show and a worldwide fan base with their infectious songs, with no plans on slowing down until the whole world screams their name!

The Deadthings - how and when did the band come together and what's the inspiration behind the name?

We started out back in late 2002, Myself and guitarist Leigh Van Hell had known each other for years , he had previously been playing in the Glam Punk outfit Voodoo Lovecats and I approached him about the idea of starting a new band with a particular style and sound and he had very much the same ideas. Leigh already had the name and the logo which he designed, he took the name from the classic Horror film “Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things”, the film which we had our video clips included on as part of the bonus features on the films DVD re-release back in 2007.  We played our first show at The Espy on October 7th 2002, from there Leigh and I worked with several different players until we found what was the right mix and that was the line up that ended up recording our EP “When Hell Sleazes Over” in 2004.

Can you introduce each member of your band and give us a little known fact about each of them, preferrably as rock 'n' roll as possible!!

Leigh Van Hell - Guitar

Leigh has to be one of the nicest guys in the world and he’s really the soul of the band. Easily one of the biggest if not THE biggest Heavy Metal fanboy of all time, He has the broadest taste in Metal I’ve ever seen, from Burzum to Foreigner. His Metal knowledge is astounding, as is his Vinyl collection of albums. Whenever we are on the road , he’s always on the lookout for some Rare Heavy Metal Vinyl that may have eluded him so far.

Dave Scythe – Lead & Acoustic Guitars

Dave is hilarious, the funniest guy I know and always keeps the band in hysterics with his quips and antics. A great guitar player, fantastic on an acoustic guitar, and the guy that pushes us to be the best we can be.

Trixxi Trash – Bass

One of the easiest going people there is, almost always has a drink in his hand. Always up for a party. Between this guy and our drummer, their bizzare collection of 70’s and 80’s Exploitation films is something to behold.

Nick Caligula – Drums

Our newest member of the family having only joined the band in 2008, an awesome drummer that adds some much welcomed double kick to our sound and Nick’s also a great singer which is another asset. Again with the Exploitation film collection!!

For those yet to experience The Deadthings sound, how would you describe it?

The Deadthings sound I think is very much an early 90’s Hollywood Glam style with chant along choruses, at times it can be a little more melodic in more of an 80’s hair band Warrant/Black N Blue direction. All the while with a Halloween type tongue in check lyrical theme.

What bands did you grow up listening to and how did they help in creating the style of music that can now be heard through The Deadthings?

I grew up on a diet of Arena Rock, the whole genre and spectacle of 80’s hard rock drove me to get up on stage and do it myself. I think the biggest influence on me is KISS, both musically and visually. KISS made a lot of people pick up a guitar and want to rock out. Later bands like Ratt, Black N Blue and Poison all made a big impact on me and I have no doubt it all comes through in our music.

What could one expect spending 45 minutes rocking with The Deadthings?

Blood , Sweat , Beer & Glitter!! We give absolutely everything we’ve got. We try to give the same performance that we would want if we go see a band perform. A high energy show that will have you singing along before the end.

If you could travel back in time and play your music to one of your musical hero's, or record label's or musical era's, who, what or when would it be?

I just wish we’d have had the thrill of playing up and down the Sunset Strip Club scene during the late 80’s/early 90’s when hair bands were in their prime and everything was in excess!!!

What do you think set's The Deadthings apart from other rock bands out there today?

We do this because we love it, not because its cool, not because we think we can “make it”.  Our love for what we do and this style of music is what gives us our conviction. If we had wanted to have a real stab at “making it” we’d have gone for a more bland “middle of the road” rock vibe (see Nickelback/ Alter Bridge and thousands of other faceless rock bands) , instead of the underground sounds and image of Glam and Goth combined.

You have played a bunch of shows with some of hard rock's biggest names here in Australia and even at the infamous Whiskey on L.A's Sunset Strip, what have been some of your memorable moments from these shows?

The coolest thing for us is getting to tour with the people we grew up idolising, if you had told a 16 year old Julez Mephisto that one day he’d be in a band that will go on tour with the likes of Faster Pussycat, LA Guns, Pretty Boy Floyd and Lynch Mob he’d never believe you. One of the coolest things was seeing George Lynch up on stage during sound check while the whole stage was decked out with The Deadthings back drops.

With your Myspace page describing your music as Rock N Roll soaked in blood, guts, beer and glitter, what kind of movie could you expect your movie to feature in?

Horror films for sure!!! I’d love to see our songs set to a death scene in a horror film, something like Return of the Living Dead part 2 or 3 would be excellent!! Actually part 2 has an awesome soundtrack with Leatherwolf, Anthrax and AOR band Lamont.

In your opinion, what do you think are the most important ingredients for a band to succeed these days?

Tenacity and heart.

Lastly, here is your free advertising space to say anything else you wish and promote what you might have in store for 2009...

We are currently in the editing stages for our most recent video clip for “Crimson Rain” from the “Dead Over Heels” album, the footage was take while we were on tour with Lynch Mob and Faster Pussycat across Australia. In addition we are going through archival footage dating back to the start of the band for our long time coming DVD which we plan to finish for release in July all going well. It will be a mix of Live footage through the years as well as the full show at The Whisky Ain Hollywood opening for LA Guns and also feature all 6 of our video clips. In the second half of the year we hope to demo new songs for the follow up album to “Dead Over Heels” that should see a release sometime in early 2010!!

I just want to say thanx to May The Rock Be With You for the interview and Support, it’s people and websites like you guys that help give artists like The Deadthings a vehicle to reach a wider audience.

Keep Rockin’ Like Dokken!