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Interviews : Deez Nuts – “We have more to offer than just the stuff that we sing about” (with Realbad and JJ Peters)

By on March 9, 2014

DEEZ-NUTS_1MBFor those of you who don’t know Deez Nuts, it’s time for an education. On the surface these dudes may seem to be all about the party. And sure, the Melbourne based hardcore band has been enthusing shots, sex and getting “drunk to death” since 2007 but that is merely the tip of a very complex and aware iceberg. Veganism, brotherhood, loyalty, fatherhood, being honest to yourself and those around you, this is what lies at the heart of Deez Nuts. Living ethically doesn’t mean that you have to walk around with a stick up your arse. These guys show us that you can care about animal lib, drink like an early 19th century sailor, tell all your haters to go fuck themselves and still put out three heavy, killer albums. Nothing is mutually exclusive as long as you stay true.

Metal Obsession: Would you consider Deez Nuts more within the hardcore or hip-hop genre or do you just not give in to being put in a box?

Real Bad: That’s what it is, it’s hardcore and hip-hop. I would say we’re more hardcore though cause we got a live band. Bands have done it, but we put our own fucking vibe on it.

JJ Peters: We’re essentially a straight up hardcore band, we just have the lyrics and…

RB: We’ve just got that flow.

JJ: I still pay a lot of homage to a lot of rappers with the way that I do stuff, so I think that’s the hip-hop influence. Essentially we’re hardcore kids, we came up in our other bands. I mean like, I’ll be 70 years old and I’ll still say I’m a hardcore kid.

MO: JJ, Bout It is the first album you didn’t write & record on your own, how did you feel about collaborating with others on this one?

JJ: It was so much better, I’d honestly gone as far as I could have possibly gone doing it by myself. I needed inspiration and more input and writing with people… I mean, we’d been playing together for a while so everyone knows the vibe of the band, knows the sound we’re going for and being able to actually bounce ideas off each other and write as a band, I could just focus on just doing vocals and stuff more, it was the best. I think it was the best album we’ve put out.

MO: There was a bit of a Twitter storm over ‘Shot After Shot’ & a few of the songs on Bout It just after its release… are people still shocked & offended by your songs or have they found a new hobby?

RB: I think anyone who’s offended ain’t gonna come watch us, so we don’t really give a fuck.

JJ: It’s corny, I mean people only ever talk shit over YouTube comments and shit. They’re not even people who go to shows, I mean I couldn’t care a less. Anyone who knows us, knows that we say those things tongue in cheek. We are talking about how we really live because we do like to party and get fucked up but we’re not pieces of shit. I think anyone who’s ever watched us play or met us in person knows that we have more to offer than just the stuff that we sing about, you know? Anyone who can’t see past what we’re doing and get a glimpse into that, we don’t really give a shit. They’re obviously not trying too hard.

MO: Deez Nuts are infamous for that “don’t give a fuck “ attitude when it comes to negativity & haters, how do you keep that strong? Do you ever have a bad day where it gets to you?

RB: Nah, fuck the haters. You can’t fuck us on negative shit, it’s whack. If I gave a fuck about everyone that gave a fuck about what I do, I’d be fucking sitting in my room, you know what I mean? I don’t give a fuck, I’m having fun with three of my best friends and even if two kids talk shit or 100 kids talk shit, I don’t care cause I’m still having a good time. I don’t give a fuck about anyone else’s opinion besides my mother and father. So whatever, you’re with us or you’re not with us, and if you’re not with us, then fuck you. And that’s just real, I mean, I’m not trying to be rude. We just fuck with people who are about us.

JJ: And also not one hater has ever put a dollar in my bank account, so fuck them [chuckles].

MO: Congratulations on your little girl! Has fatherhood changed your perceptions at all & is it motivating your music?

JJ: It definitely does, and I don’t know how it’s going to reflect in our music lyrically and stuff, because obviously we can’t just go from being a party band to all of a sudden singing about changing nappies and shit… but it just inspires me to want to do better with the band because I’m doing it for her now. It’s kind of a juxtaposition thing where I’ve gotta do a good job of making people want to get fucked up and party so I can come home and spend time with my daughter and take care of her. But I’m finding the balance and I think it’s going to have a positive effect on the band.

MO: JJ, you’ve been a vegan for a number of years now, do you feel that your passion for animal rights has affected or inspired your music?

JJ: Yeah it does, we’ve done two songs that focus on that, but they’re all of like 10 seconds. I just want to put my opinion across but I don’t want to beat people over the head with it. Not that it’s not an important issue that I don’t want to share with people, but we’re not that band that are about all that depressing shit and are about the ills of the world. We want to keep people happy. Get it out real quick like, “go veg, yeah yeah yeah”, then on with the party song. I would love to use my influence to do some good, but I’ll find other avenues to do it. I mean, we work with PETA and do things like that, but in the music I don’t want to push it too hard.

MO: What about you Realbad? What are you dietary preferences?

RB: I’m a vegetarian, as of yesterday it was eight weeks. I’ve done it before for like six weeks, but now I’m like ready for it for life. I feel good, I dropped weight.

I put so much shit into my body…. I wanted a challenge. I felt good while I was doing it and I’m actually into it. When you get older it’s hard to find shit that you’re actually about. I’m proud of it.

MO: Your lyrics are saturated with brotherhood & loyalty, these translate very emotively in your music & I think they ring very true to a lot of your fans, just how important are these components in your life?

JJ: Oh, heart out! We’re boys, even though he lives in New York, I live in Melbourne, we still talk every day. We only tour with our friends, we don’t tour with anyone we don’t know. We don’t have anyone work on our shit that we don’t know. Everything for us is all about friendship. It’s very important. We don’t just sing about that shit, it’s real.

RB: It’s like the same shit with what you said about haters, we only fuck with people that we want to fuck with. And those attributes in a person; brotherhood and loyalty, coming from a man standpoint, that makes you a man. If I can’t trust you, why am I wasting my time for you? That shit means a lot to everyone. If you’re a real person then that means a lot to you. I’m sure it means as much to you as it does to me.

JJ: We roll deep with a lot of friends in a lot of bands, but they’re like people that we struck it off with straight away. We have that same connection, people we can trust with anything, and they’ve got our backs in the same way, that’s the whole DTD [Drunk to Death] thing.

MO: I gotta say when I’m having a particularly shitty day I like to blast your second album Stay True to get myself centred & to a place where I no longer give a fuck about whatever or whoever was bugging me. Are writing and performing a cathartic process for you?

JJ: Yeah definitely, it’s like any form of expression, it’s a good way to lift the weight off your shoulders and make you feel good about things. Honestly, writing the last album was probably the most like that because doing it together, everyone was vibing off each other. When I was doing it myself it was kind of stressful. There was a payoff in knowing that I’d done it all myself. But it was very stressful and very taxing. There was no one to tell me when some of the songs sucked. I feel like it’s definitely a therapeutic thing to write music.

MO: Any plans in the works for fourth album?

RB: Soon!

JJ: We’re writing right now and our boy Andrew from Comeback Kid is going to be producing the album. So, we’re really excited to see what happens with that once again that’s one of our close friends but he’s also a musical genius.

MO: Last question… If you had to date a dude in metal/hardcore, who would it be & why?

JJ: I’ve been having a bit of a man crush on Ed from Your Demise. We were just out in Eastern Europe and we were all on the bus together and he was like my neighbour, he had his bunk across from mine. We got pretty tight. So I think if it came down to it, he might be my boy.

RB: I’d say JJ Peters…

JJ: You know we could make that happen…

RB: Cause I know what he’s like in the movies, I know what he’s like in the sack…

MO: I think I feel a bit of a love connection happening.

RB: It is a love connection, there is one.

About

Amber has been a writer and photographer for 2020 BMX Mag, Reverb Street Press and 3DWorld. She has booked and managed hardcore bands and takes an interest in anything from hardcore to hair metal, particularly if it screams dirty Hollywood. Amber is also the author of a sex blog. You can follow her on Twitter Twitter or check out her blog.