Device was an American
industrial metal
Industrial metal is the fusion of Heavy metal music, heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating Heavy metal guitar, metal guitar riffs, sampling (music), sampling, synthesizer or music sequencer, sequencer lines, and Distor ...
band started by
David Draiman, frontman of the heavy metal group
Disturbed,
and Geno Lenardo, former guitarist of
Filter.
They released one album, ''
Device'', in 2013.
History
Formation and self-titled album (2012–2013)
After
Disturbed went into hiatus in late 2011, frontman
David Draiman announced a new side-project called Device in May 2012. He revealed that he would be working with Geno Lenardo, former guitarist for
Filter for their ''
Title of Record
''Title of Record'' is the second studio album by American rock music, rock band Filter (band), Filter, released on August 24, 1999, by Reprise Records. The album's earlier sessions were marred with slow progress due to lineup changes and frontma ...
'' and ''
Amalgamut'' albums.
Draiman revealed his intention to do a project with more of an
electronic sound, but in an
industrial metal
Industrial metal is the fusion of Heavy metal music, heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating Heavy metal guitar, metal guitar riffs, sampling (music), sampling, synthesizer or music sequencer, sequencer lines, and Distor ...
type way, sounding similar to
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988. Its members are the singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor and his frequent col ...
or
Ministry, not
dubstep
Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken ...
.
Draiman said of the band's formation:
"I was first approached by Geno Lenardo, who was working on a number of tracks for the ''Underworld'' soundtrack for the last ''Underworld'' film that came out … and he asked me if I would be interested in being a part of one of the tracks and I asked him to send me the music that he had in mind and I was able to make a really compelling and powerful song … found that working with him as a songwriting partner was very easy and fluid. He's a very strong songwriter in his own right."
The band entered the studio in the beginning of June 2012, and by June 6, had already finished vocals for demo versions of five songs,
"You Think You Know", "Recover", "Hunted", "
Vilify", and "War of Lies".
In January 2013, Draiman confirmed the exact release dates for their self-titled album and first single. He stated that the album would be released on April 9, 2013 and the song "Vilify" would debut on the radio on February 19.
He also confirmed that the album would feature guest appearances by
Geezer Butler
Terence Michael Joseph "Geezer" Butler (born 17 July 1949) is an English musician, best known as the bassist and primary lyricist of the pioneering Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He has also recorded and performed with Heave ...
(
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...
),
Glenn Hughes (
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...
, Black Sabbath,
Black Country Communion
Black Country Communion is an English-American hard rock band based in Los Angeles, California. Formed in 2009, the band is a Supergroup (music), supergroup composed of bassist and lead vocalist Glenn Hughes (British musician), Glenn Hughes, gui ...
),
M. Shadows (
Avenged Sevenfold
Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance, lead gui ...
),
Serj Tankian
Serj Tankian ( , ; born August 21, 1967) is an Armenian-American musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the alternative metal band System of a Down, which was formed in 1994.
Tankian has released five albums with System of a Down ...
(
System of a Down),
Tom Morello
Thomas Baptist Morello (born May 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He is known for his tenure with the rock bands Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave. Between 2016 and 2019, Morello was a membe ...
(
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to Rage) was an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1991. It consisted of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim ...
) and
Lzzy Hale
Elizabeth Mae "Lzzy" Hale IV (born October 10, 1983) is an American musician. She serves as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of hard rock band Halestorm, which she co-founded with her brother Arejay Hale in 1997.
Early life
Hale was born O ...
(
Halestorm
Halestorm is an American Rock music, rock band from Red Lion, Pennsylvania, consisting of lead vocalist and guitarist Lzzy Hale, drummer Arejay Hale, guitarist Joe Hottinger, and bassist Josh Smith. Siblings Lzzy and Arejay founded the band in ...
).
Draiman confirmed the track featuring Hale would be a cover of
Lita Ford and
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...
's hit song, "
Close My Eyes Forever".
The album's first single, "
Vilify", was released on February 19, along with a music video and a second "behind the scenes" video. The band also released a number of songs on the internet for streaming prior to the album's release, including "You Think You Know" on March 25, "Penance" on March 28, and "Close My Eyes Forever" on March 30.
The touring band was revealed to contain drummer
Will Hunt and guitarist
Virus
A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living Cell (biology), cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Viruses are ...
, but did not include Lenardo.
The band's first live show was confirmed to be performed the day after their album was released, at the Soul Kitchen Music Hall in
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...
on April 10, 2013. Device appeared on the 2013 version of the
Gigantour festival tour.
In a 2015 interview, Draiman stated that he has no intention of making another Device album.
Members
;Studio
*
David Draiman – lead vocals
(2012–2014)
*Geno Lenardo – guitar, bass
(2012–2014; didn't tour)
;Touring
*
Will Hunt – drums
(2013)
*
Virus
A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living Cell (biology), cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Viruses are ...
– guitar, backing vocals
(2013)
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
Music videos
Awards
Revolver Golden Gods Awards
, -
, 2013 , , Device , , Best New Talent , ,
[ “Metal Insider; And The Winners Of The Revolver Golden Gods Awards 2013 Are…” https://metalinsider.net/award-show-battles/and-the-winners-of-the-revolver-golden-gods-awards-2013-are; May 3, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2023]
Loudwire Music Awards
, -
, 2013 , , Device , , Best New Artist , ,
, -
, 2013 , , "You Think You Know" , , Cage Match Hall of Fame , ,
References
{{Authority control
American alternative metal musical groups
American industrial metal musical groups
Hard rock musical groups from Texas
Heavy metal musical groups from Texas
Musical groups established in 2012
Musical groups disestablished in 2014
2012 establishments in Texas