The Really Long Dave Witte Interview About Nothing in Particular, Part I
Posted September 23 by nick
Disclaimer: We could have grilled Dave Witte about the kickass new records by Municipal Waste and Burnt By the Sun, but we chose to talk to him about chocolate, beer and tattoos instead.
Is it true that your pre-show ritual involves eating chocolate?
Yes, I love it. I try to eat as much as I can before I play – not too much, though. It’s a good energy source and it’s relatively healthy. The darker the chocolate, the better. I try as hard as I can to stay away from energy drinks, because they’re just plain not good for you. Sure, I fall victim to them every once in awhile, when I need to pull myself out of a slump. Chocolate makes me happy, though. And if I go into the game happy, I’m going to perform better.
Do you bring your own supply when you’re on tour?
Of course. I’ll go to Whole Foods or a health food store and look around to see what they have. I will always spend money on chocolate and beer. I’ll eat a Snickers in a pinch, if we’re touring around in the van and we stop at a gas station in the middle of nowhere. But I’ll go out of my way to find a store to buy nice chocolate. I really like the Dagoba chocolate brand from Oregon.
How do you know how much room to set aside in your suitcase?
I’ll buy the chocolate when I can, so it doesn’t melt. That’s the best thing about touring, really. If I’m in another country and I see something I’ve never had before, I’ll give it a try. Chances are, I’ll like it… if it’s chocolate. I’m not a huge fan of fruit-filled chocolates. I avoid white chocolate like the plague. It’s not even chocolate; it’s a disgrace. Milk chocolate is something I could take or leave – it has to be a really good Swiss brand. Dark chocolate is where all of the antioxidants and good stuff's at.
Dark chocolate is generally differentiated by the percentage of cocoa in the batch. What do you prefer?
I prefer anything around 70%– it has just enough sweetness to it. I do like the bitters, though: the black chocolates in the 90-100% range. I have, on occasion, purchased raw cacao. You can buy it in a mashed up form and stick a wad of it in your mouth. It tastes like dirt, but it’s really good for you. If you blend it with ice cream or a milkshake, it really brings out the sweetness.
When you have toured overseas in countries with a chocolate culture like France or Belgium, have you taken the opportunity to visit any of the fancy chocolatiers?
For sure! The first time I went to Belgium, I went wild. I brought back an entire box of truffles. I’ll seek out those type of places all over the globe. I recently tried this Italian chocolate studded with sea salt. It was incredible. I’ll go buy chocolate in bulk from a counter, too. That’s where the really good stuff is. They sell raw chocolate at health food store near me – you can buy a big block for, like, five bucks and cut it up into pieces. It’s good for baking or cooking or even plain ol’ consumption. The other rule is that the more chocolate you can get for your money, the better. I always joke that chocolate is my weed – I’ll take a piece out and roll the bag back up and stash it. I’m really methodical about it.
Do you ever get the temptation to turn your back during a guitar solo and stuff a little in your mouth?
I do. I’m not kidding! I usually have a whole spread laid out behind the drum kit – bottles of water, a beer, sometimes coffee and if I have it on me, chocolate. That way I get to “freshen up” between songs.
Are you worried that someone might snap a photo of you with chocolate smeared around your mouth and it’s going to show up on Blabbermouth?
No. You know why? To quote Chris Ross, nobody takes pictures of the drummer. It’s ok, though, because I can get away with a lot more back there. It’s quite nice – I like being in my own little world.
Do you foresee a time where you can make your living solely off of music?
I guess so. I guess I kinda am now. I’m paying the bills and all that. I have other interests. I work for a catering company when I can. The economy’s not the best right now, so there’s not much work and I’m forced to stay home. I work when I can – maybe 1-2 parties every month now, instead of every weekend. I love cooking, I love eating and I love working for that company – they let me come and go as I please when I’m touring. I’ve just recently gotten into making my own sauces – I’ll pull out a 5 gallon stock pot and reduce tomatoes, boiling the skins off. The secret to a good marinara sauce is that you have to let it simmer for a long time to boil some of the water out of it. Once it gets to the third ring, it’s ready to go. That’s straight from the Culinary Institute of America textbook. My friend gave me a copy and I’ve been teaching myself recipes from there. I’ve also been working on white, brown and hollandaise sauces.
Do you have prior experience working in the restaurant industry?
I almost cut one of my fingers off in the kitchen of an Italian restaurant. I was chopping up basil. I sliced into my finger and it was hanging off my hand. I ran out onto the sidewalk, got down on my knees and clenched my hand. I almost passed out – the pain was unbearable. I almost did the same thing again three days later. Then I decided I should probably find a different job!
It can be equally great or horrible to have this kind of lifestyle, depending on what your personality type is. Are you happy with the current state of affairs?
Oh, hell yeah! I play my instrument all around the world. I get to do what I love and people actually care about it. Whenever I tour overseas, people will come up and say hello and express appreciation for the music I’ve had a hand in creating. Getting the opportunity to travel when you’re in a band is wonderful – you get a chance to get a taste of the “local culture” and you meet a lot of nice people along the way. How can you be bummed about meeting someone who likes what you do, especially when they’re helping to pay your bills? I feel very fortunate.
Has your perspective on things changed over the last 10 years?
No, not really, man. I guess I’m a little high-strung sometimes – I always want things to get done right away and when that doesn’t happen, I get a little crazy. I like to stay busy, too, so I’ll do a lot of the tour managing duties with Municipal Waste. Everyone does their part in this band. It’s not a one-man operation, that’s for sure. We’re getting to the point where we can take someone on to handle a lot of this stuff for us; it will be a relief to just be the drummer. I can focus on playing and won’t have to worry about hunting down the car halfway through the set while I’m trying to remember the set order. Other than that, not that much has changed. I’m still doing what I want to do and I’m still enjoying it. We have not toured on a bus yet, though – and we all want to. I’d like to bring my bicycle and get up and go for a ride in the morning. There’s a part of me that thinks that once I get on a bus, I won’t have to work as hard – and I feel like I’ll be missing out on something, like the challenge or the struggle. Although I sometimes despise traveling in the van, part of me really enjoys and identifies with it.
So, even with the bigger tours Municipal Waste has been involved in, you’re still doing it in a van?
Always. We’ve never been on a bus. We’ve ridden in Lamb of God’s bus overnight, just to hang out. We shared a bus from one show to another in Spain with Voivod. Can I elaborate on this for a second? I went up to New York earlier this year with my friend’s band. They were playing ABC No Rio and it was their first out of town gig. They had played in Richmond 3-4 times. So I went up to New York with them just to hang out and support them and be a fan. They had just recorded a demo and they were burning copies on a computer and making the covers and assembling ‘em and talking about what they were doing with the set list. There’s a part of me that misses that; I know I’ll never be able to return to that state.
Do you think that spending such a long time playing in underground bands has helped you adapt well to playing in a band that’s getting a lot of attention like Municipal Waste?
Municipal Waste has provided a lifeline in a lot of ways – playing in this band has helped me to remember how to have fun again. I got to a certain point where I was hypercritical about what I was playing – if I made a simple little mistake, I’d make myself sick over it. What makes Municipal Waste work is group participation – that’s the vibe that floats through the band. I haven’t really been in a situation that was that supportive and nurturing. It’s ok to be human, it’s ok to make mistakes. I’m not dumbing things down at all with Municipal Waste – it’s still very technical music, I’m just having 100x more fun with it.
Part II of this interview follows tomorrow. In the meantime, check out Witte's musings (and tantalizing food photography) on his blog!