By John Vidiadakis

Dan, first of all, some questions on the beginning of Psychotic Waltz. How did the group get formed with this line-up that remained the same for almost a decade?

It all started when I first met Buddy in 9th grade, we jammed a little bit together, showing weachother stuff.  Then I met Norm from another school in 10th grade, we jammed some cover tunes for a few months.  Then next year I met Brian, we got along really good, after his car accident we spent a lot of time playing guitar together.  Then about a year later it just all came together. Norm had know ward from school, and brought him into it.

The first name of the band was Aslan. Why did you choose it and why was it finally changed?

Brian got it from C. S. Lewis' novel,  "The Lion, The Witch & the Wardrobe".  Changed because there was another band with it we found out.  Plus PW sounded so much heavier!!!

At those first steps, which were the influences each member brought,
and who were your heroes in music?

Me = Beatles, Pink Floyd, Randy Rhoads
Brian = Kiss
Norm = All Metal
Buddy = Jethro Tull
Ward =Rush

What comments did you receive for the two demos and the first two albums "A social grace" and "Into the everflow" by the press, the record companies and the fans?

Well, the fans really loved it, it was very progressive stuff a new metal band of kids to put out.  Critics , well, Mike Keneally of Zappa wrote a killer review for it, but the rest...well. .they didn't get it.

There's a short dialogue after "Nothing" on "A social grace". What's its meaning?

Its from from spinal tap!

"Into the everflow" was surely different from "A social grace" but "Mosquito" showed a dramatic change (it's a great album, though). How did you decide to create in these different forms?

Dunno, just came out man.  People change, styles change, moods change....

"Mosquito" contains a hidden track. Is it "Darkness", a song mentioned into the booklet of the CD?

Yes it is!!!!   You found it!!!   kinda sorta "hidden" behind a msk of time, for those that could wait, read & wonder, it's there....just a little something extra....

Why did Ward quit the band? Are you still in any contact with him? Also, why did Brian quit, too?

He  didn't quit....he was kicked out!...cuz he turned into such a negative creep.  None of us really talk to him anymore, kinda sad, cuz we used to be very good friends. Brian, on the other hand, left cuz he was having a baby, & didnt want to go on tour anymore, I still see him all the time, we love each other...not in a gay way. He played on my new Darkstar album ya know....

How did you get in contact with their replacements Phil Cuttino and Steve Cox?

Well, Steve had been a long time friend of all of ours, so it was easy, and Phil had played in a band we jammed with before that had just broke up, so it worked out cool.

"Mosquito" and "Bleeding" sound more psychedelic and straight than
the first two albums. How did this change affect the audience's aspect
on you? Would you put these two albums within progressive metal?

Nah, they're not too progressive, but..they do rock!..and live, they
seemed to go over better than the 1st two albums.

In all your albums there are clear influences from Arabic music, and also some parts are similar to symphonic orchestrations. Who was responsible for these influences?

ahhh..you truly dig deep my friend.....I LOVE orchestrations....I did most of the sequencing, Butterfly actually has a real cello player, i wrote the music out for her to read, simple, yet effective.  Brian and I both love the hungarian minor scale as well, that was us.

Buddy left because of musical differences, but for a group  as Psychotic Waltz, with such a great number of influences and such an open
character to evolution, this reason is at least unexpected. Could you
please be more exact?

well, he also wanted to pursue a solo career so he could get rich & famous, and he didnt like all the heavy stuff we were doing...nor did he like his work criticized in the studio for imperfections....very touchy subject...

Buddy's lyrics and his way of performing cause the impression of
a man in doubtful mental health, you know what I mean... Is he in that
way in normal life or is it just the result of his way of expression?

i think it's just poety. he holds his day job just fine.

I talk to brian almost every week.  Buddy not too often, but were still friends, as well as Phil.  Norm on the other hand hates my guts.  he feels it's all my fault the band broke up, yet me & phil were the last 2 members left, just for the record, WE DIDN'T QUIT!

You and Norm did also the EndAmen project with the German prog thrashers Deathrow. Could you describe the final result and the whole happening?

well, it was our 1st side project really, we stayed in germany after the
1st tour back in 91, and recorded our parts.  Then Siggi released it on his label. no tour or nuthin',  just a project.

Now, regarding to the latest Waltz CD "Live and archives", the first disc contains a live performance back in 1991 that has been recorded by a fan. So, it's not strange that the sound quality is a bit disappointing, but why did you choose it? Weren't there any other recordings of this or a latest period, with better sound?

probably, but the idea was to show the band from the beginning. And that was the best beginning bootleg we could find.

The two songs from the Aslan demo that are contained in the second
CD are really great and they make me wonder why they did not make it on
"A social grace" or on a latest release.

Cuz we were going in a more prog direction i suppose, and we had plenty of other stuff to choose from.

"Burn the night" comes from the "Battle of the bands" back in 1986, where you lost. Do you remember the winner?

hmmmmm...nope.

About the Darkstar project, how would you describe "Marching into oblivion" to someone who hasn't heard it (like me)?

Well, i describe it as "dark ambient synphonic sci-fi hippie metal"

What are the future plans for Darkstar?

At the moment there are none for certain.  Personally, i would love to take the project on the road, but that would be very difficult...maybe another cd some time in the future at least....

Are there any hopes for a contract with a major record company?

HA!!!!!!...wish me luck on that one!

Have Darkstar ever played live? Are there any plans for a tour?

No, not yet.  Actually, I had rehearsed 3 songs with Norm & Phil, before
Norm decided to hate me, and we were gonna play it live, but it never happened.
=(

Psychotic Waltz is mentioned into the special thanks list of the third Sieges Even album "A sense of change" (exceptional work, in my opinion). How was Waltz related with Sieges Even and what's your opinion on them? Has this reference to do with...Jethro Tull maybe? ;)

nope, it's cuz we played a little tour with them in Europe back in 91, they were really cool guys too, i liked them.

Do you keep an eye on today's progressive metal scene? What's your opinion? Were you ever in contact with groups and artists from the prog
metal scene?

Well, i hope i dont lose any fans here, but , to be honest, no, i don't. The reason is i'm just to busy with my life right now.  I listen to tapes when I get them from bands, and some are really cool, but my fav band at the moment is Stabbing Westward, very dark, very heavy, killer keyboard sounds, i can relate with the lyrics....

Why do you think groups like you or Fates Warning remain in a cult status even within the prog metal fans while Queensryche or Dream Theater managed to access wider recognition?

It's because of 1 song on the radio.  To pinpoint the obvious...it was
"Silent Lucidity" and "Pull Me Under", before those 2 songs, both those bands remained cult.

Have you any regular occupation for a living? Would you like to be in the situation Queensryche came after "Empire", with fame and many fans that don't really understand the group's work? Do you like better the cult status Waltz was into, or do you prefer a situation between these two?

well, gee...i sure dont like to WORK for a living!!..but I do a porn web site on the side now.  I wish we had gotten bigger though, as I loved to tour, and there is a  lot of earth we never got to ya know.

What do you think about today's music generally? Will the "tyranny"
of MTV come to an end someday?

never, not when it's in such demand, so popular, and give kids something
to focus on, besides, too many corporate sponsors advertise there now.

Now could you name the best...
... albums you know?  = Abbey Road.
... groups you know?   = Beatles, Pink Floyd
...live performances you have ever been to?  = Pink Floyd, Yes, Guns & Roses
...guitarists you know? = Randy Rhoads, ok , i didnt "know" him, but he was the best to me.

Could you enter a short comment on...
...Rush?  = very prog early stuff, whiney vocals some people cant stand.
...Yes?    = Extremely prog band, masters of time changes!  Rick Wakeman, (!)
...Pink Floyd? = mind melding music, incense, candles, introspective, dark.
...The Beatles (he he)? BEST BAND IN THE WORLD! variety, ya gotta find the
good stuff though, lotta people never dig deep enough into this treasure.  Groundbreaking, harmonies, texture!!!
 ...Jethro Tull?  = very prog stuff, some a little TOO prog, flutist 1st
class.
...Watchtower? = heavy 80's style metal, prog, yet, power.
...Dream Theater? = mixture of prog with commercial, top notch players, cool guys. ( we did a few shows with them too)
...Queensryche? = Former fav band, awesome singing and guitar harmonies,
dark.
...Fates Warning? = Some realy good music, epic, prog, heavy grooves.

What kind of books do you like to read? Could you name your favourite ones and your favourite writers?

read?...books?...nah...no time for that with the internet available! Well, ok, i found this book very helpful "Everything you need to know about the music business", by Donal Passenheim.  In former times I loved Mark Twains writings, or Alfred Hitchcock stories.  Star Trek Novels, instruction manuals....

Dan, I don't appreciate the intellectual ability of the ordinary American, and you can be sure that I am not the only one...Well, is the majority of this nation stupid puritans whose only desire is wealth, a TV and low prices at McDonald's? And if not, why nobody dares to disagree with the dictatorial methods against human rights and world democracy the "land of the free, home of the brave" (ha ha!) uses in every way? After all, are you proud of being American, or "must we all play the losing game" because of US (and not only, of course) and its "little people" (to use some Waltz lyrics)?

   Well, very delicate subject there.  You see, we americans do have lotsa luxuries i didn't find in europe, and it's because of lotsa different reasons. The fact is, we do have lotsa resources, so we produce lotsa waste.  We didnt introduce recycling unti way late in the game, McDonalds cheap food is actually really good, for the poor person who can now feed his family four $0.99 cheesburgers.  The downside, of course, is the rain forrest.
But in this example, who wouldn't go there?  Sure, it's easy to stand up for something you dont believe in from far away, but when it's in your face, and you have not many choices, and everyone else is doing it....how can that be stopped?

    I could talk about this subject for hours man....but i'll sum it up with this....
...not ALL americans are  as dumb, plastic, greedy & destructive as ALL
europeans assume.

"Aspiring and reaching for the highest of beings, we've lost our search for the world's basic needs". Lyrics from "Aliens" a song written by Bill Tsamis of Warlord back in 1983. A U.F.O. mania grows bigger every day, and I would like to know if you believe in the existence of life in outer space. But, after all, are such questions THAT important in such a suffering world?

...well, i never SEEn a ufo, or a llittle green, or grey man.  Of course, I've never SEEN  oxygen either, but i think it exists, doesn't it?

What do you know about Greece? Have you ever come here? What impressions did you get from the countries you met in the Waltz tours and what kind of people did you meet?

Never been to Greece, wish I had.  I love to explore new places, meet new people. I've met all kinds of people.  The basic impression I get from Europe though, is, everything is old!   hahahahah!!!!!!>..sorry, but it's kinda true. And thats cool, the cities in a lot of places were really dirty compared toover here, the price of everthing is about double, and you have to pay for ketchup at mcDonlads (unheard of here)

According to almost checked rumours, Jim Matheos, Geoff Tate and Warell Dane are all vegetarians. How do you see such ideologies? Would you ever follow the straight edge movement (no alcohol, drugs or smoking)?

never. I love eating dead cooked animals, it's why god gave use those sharp canine teeth, to rip flesh!  I have nothing against vegetarians though, i was one once, it just wasn't what i believd in.

It is known that some years ago you had an accident while doing extreme sports that could cost your life. Do you still like such sports and what do you think is so interesting on these activities?

Well, i was rope jumping (repelling) off a bridge with Mike Clift, my friend & former PW artist.  I fell about 40 feet in rocks....what did I see in it?...I guess it was the rush of falling, dangling so high between earth & heaven... 
...I don't do it anymore, but today is my birthday, and i am going skiing with my roomies up to mammoth!!!

(skiing carefully of course)

Dan, thanx for everything, and we hope to meet you in a Waltz, Darkstar or whoever else's performance here in Greece.

take care man...