Time off makes Droid stronger

The band took a year off after the Korn tour.

By JOHN BENSON

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

You know a band is cool when it’s named after something in “Star Wars.”

That’s exactly what Droid vocalist James “Buddy” Eason was thinking when the Long Beach, Calif., act was formed in the late ’90s. For the record, his favorite droid is the Probe Droid, which appears in the opening moments of “The Empire Strikes Back.” Adding more credibility to this hardcore/thrash outfit is the fact Eason, who was born in Winter Haven, Fla., correctly cites the 1980 movie as the best of the George Lucas flicks.

As for Droid, which opens for Korn on Wednesday at Chevrolet Centre, it’s been one long waiting game. While the quintet appeared to be on the fast track to success in 2003 after it was pegged by Jonathan Davis and Co. as a supporting group on Korn’s “Back to Basics” tour, the truth was Droid wasn’t ready.

“After we came back from the Korn tour, we all took a year off,” said Eason, calling from Edmonton, Canada. “We were kind of burnt, and weren’t really into the musical direction we were doing. Then we got back together a year later and started writing music we really wanted to play and not what our managers wanted at the time. We started playing metal, which we’re all about. We were playing metal to begin with, and then we kind of got caught up in some crap we didn’t want to get caught up with, so it kind of took its toll on the band. But then we came back 10 times stronger.”

Act signed

Stronger and focused is how Droid returned. Eventually the act was signed to Korn guitarist James “Munky” Shaffer’s music label Emotional Syphon, which recently released Droid’s self-titled debut effort. It’s been a long time coming for Eason and his band mates. In fact, there was a sense the group could have been signed after the 2003 Korn tour, but the singer doesn’t waste his time wondering what could have been. 

“We didn’t get a music deal because the music wasn’t where it needed to be,” Eason said. “I think everything comes when you deserve it. We could have been offered a record deal by Korn, but the music wasn’t there. So when you start playing what you love, and you’re true to what you believe in, things start falling into place. That’s what happened for us.”

Currently the pieces are in place and the touring van is all gassed up for Droid, which plans on spending the next year or so on the road in support of its debut effort. Eason describes the album as “100 percent relentless metal.”

“It’s just what it is,” Eason laughed. “There might be a few bands out there that might be similar, but I think that we have our own little thing. I like to say our metal is Droid metal and everybody else’s metal is their metal. We’re trying to bring a groove back into it a little bit and at the same time have some shredding moments.”

Joining in on the metal fun is Deftone’s singer Chino Moreno, who makes a guest appearance on album track “Vengeance is Mine.” Another standout track is the hardcore-influenced “Fueled by Hate,” the band’s lead single.

Even though Eason realizes Droid’s opening slot for Korn means people will be walking into the arena when his group is on stage, he offers this challenge out to Northeast Ohio metal fans.

“They should definitely get there early if they want to see a metal band tear that stage apart,” Eason said. “And that’s the truth.”