Damone Interview
Emo's
Austin, Texas
08/26/03

Mike Vazquez of Damone is wearing a red Vaux t-shirt as we sit down to do an interview. I ask if he or the rest of the band, got to know the members of Vaux during this summer's Warped Tour, on which both bands played. It turns out, their stages were set up right next to each other throughout the tour, and the two bands enjoyed each other's company very much. Mike shares a story about their tour adventures, describing the time when members from Vaux and Vendetta Red pulled a prank on them by putting two dead fish in the Damone van and trailer. (You can see a video about the fiasco on www.damone.net) Mike and singer/guitarist Noelle both sneer and laugh when they remember the smell the second fish left in their equipment trailer. Once their appetites had been ruined, I brought up tour food, "If you are what you eat", Mike quickly satisfies our curiosity with two words: Big Pig. (He glances at my notebook as I scribble in it, and points out that those two words should be capitalized and underlined.) Noelle, being a vegetarian, would be a head of lettuce, and drummer Dustin Hengst tells us that he would be a bucket of fermented yeast from all the beer he drinks, and the food from the Warped Tour. The band goes off on a tangent, remembering and discussing the great vegan food that was catered throughout the Warped Tour. Keeping with Bandchat tradition, I pose them each a question: "If you were jello, what kind would you be?" Mike steers us towards his Cuban heritage when he eagerly announces that he would be guava jello. Dustin, keeping up with his 'bucket of fermented yeast' physique, would be a jello shot. Noelle prefers lime. She pauses. "Could I be a chocolate snack pack instead?"

Noelle seems a bit shy during the interview, piping up and letting Mike and Dustin do most of the speaking. When I ask her if she's always this quiet, her band mates instantly shake their heads 'yes' as she says, "No, I'm obnoxious." We'll find out later that night that she isn't always so withdrawn. During the band's set, she is very outgoing- interacting with the crowd, and loving every moment on stage. Being the only girl in the band, however, she admits that she is easily targeted during interviews. She's used to hearing the question, 'What is it like, being surrounded by a bunch of guys all the time?' She answers this for us even though we haven't asked. "Obviously, I don't mind it. It's fun. They're my friends, and I like being around them. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in this band."

The band does have a natural chemistry, and it is seen when they play live. The songs from their album are full of energy and immediately get every member of the audience into the same level of excitedness as the members of the band. When asked what their favorite songs to play live are, the band seems to be in agreement. They all enjoy "Overchay with Me." Although, Noelle's favorite song on the album, "Leave Me Alone" is never played live. I ask what the band needs in order to thrive, and it becomes apparent that these four kids aren't just messing around when it comes to music. Dustin explains the band's drive perfectly: "So much time and effort is spent just getting through life and, especially for me, waiting for those 30 minutes when you get to sit down and write music. If I can use the energy I get from those 30 minutes, it's enough to make it through the rest of the time." Mike chimes in with a note: "A lot of that energy we get from writing music is justified and fueled by the audience. Just now, I was out front and there were these fans outside waiting for the show. They had Damone written down the side of their arms, and it was just amazing; that they were here to see us, and hear our music. That's just awesome."

-amelia
Bandchat.org Correspondent

PHOTOS FROM THIS INTERVIEW:
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