DJ Will of KNAC.com

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by Alex Barbieri
Staff Writer

A “scene” is only as good as the people who make it. When it comes to the worldwide hard rock and metal scene, William Howell—a.k.a. DJ Will—is one of the key figures keeping it real and relevant.

For almost 30 years, DJ Will—with his dreadlocks and metal “biker vest”—has been a recognizable fixture of the Los Angeles rock scene. In 1984, as an 18 year-old A&R Rep at Metal Blade Records, Will helped sign Anvil, Sacred Reich, Princess Pang and has worked with Armored Saint, Lizzy Borden, Slayer and many others from the label roster. Today, he continues to fly the flag on his weekly online radio show, “The Vault,” on the legendary KNAC.com.

In a rare “interview behind the interviews,” DJ Will discusses three decades of hard rock, including his memories of the Sunset Strip heyday and the infamous Guns N’ Roses show at The Ritz in New York City in 1988.

HRH: DJ Will! Thanks for talking to your fellow hard rock and metal fans here at Hardrock Haven! First question: Why do you love metal so much? Who or what got you into it and what does the music mean to you?

DJ Will: It means everything to me because I continue to see its evolution…the good and bad and ugly, so as the cream rises to the top that’s what keeps me a fan after all these years.

It started with my mom who planted the seed as she had quite a bit of rock in her vinyl collection, besides all the ‘70s funk/R&B that I was first exposed to. From that I gradually discovered Hendrix, KISS, Led Zep and Black Sabbath. Something about all those riffs, the sound and album covers all hooked me. I haven’t stopped since. “Heavy Metal Hoarder” right here!

HRH: Looking back, what are some of your favorite interviews of all time—what bands or artists stand out as particularly interesting and why?

DJ Will: Doing my show has allowed me to have on some of my favorite artists over the years. While I still focus on power, speed and thrash, I do like to break format every so often. I’ve had on so many interesting guests over the last 10 years, but the one artist that comes to mind is Jean Beauvoir because of his history from The Plasmatics to Little Steven to a becoming a successful singer/songwriter.

It was very impressionable to see a black guy with a white Mohawk on stage and TV! There weren’t too many rockers of color at the time except Fishbone, Bad Brains, Sound Barrier and DH Peligro from Dead Kennedys. He was Mr. T before Mr. T! I’m glad I was able to express to him what he meant and his impact on me.

HRH: Take us back to 1984 on the Sunset Strip. You’re 18 and an A&R Rep at Metal Blade Records. What memories stand out from your days on The Strip?

DJ Will: A lot of walking up and down the streets getting “flyered” every five feet outside of Gazzarri’s, The Roxy, Whisky, Tower Records, etc. All those full page ads in Bam, Rock City News, LA Rock Review and Screamer. The hairspray and spandex were out of control! The scene was really thriving and there was hardly any room for cover/tribute bands, unlike what dominates the L.A. clubs these days. Most bands were doing ALL original material. Just look at who went on to sign record deals from here—some deserving, some not so much.

HRH: You were at the infamous Guns N’ Roses show at The Ritz in New York City in 1988. I was there too and remember thinking; this band is about to explode. What do you remember from that show and scene?

DJ Will: I was already in New York for the New Music Seminar, and the Ritz was one of the highlight gigs during the Conference. I recall waiting in that long ass line to get in and the manager of the Goo Goo Dolls introduced himself to me, gave me their tape, which later turned into a full-fledged record deal—my other minor claim to fame but little to show for it these days.

The energy in that room was insane. Wall-to-wall New Yorkers about to see how it’s done L.A. style! Great White got a respectable response and were on the bill because they shared the same management, but that night was all about G N’ R.

It was an incredible show and seeing them out of L.A. was an eye opener, which was my first time. I also attended the acoustic deal at CBGBs, which was standing-room-only, and thanks to my late friend Ronnie Schneider who was with the crew at the time and got me in.

HRH: After five years at Metal Blade, you took an A&R position at Capitol Records. Any interesting Poison stories from back then?

DJ Will: I saw it as a step up. Short-lived, of course. The Enigma Records to Capitol transition was an interesting one. A lot of focus was on the top sellers coming from there: Poison, Stryper, Smithereens and a few others. During my time at “the tower,” I don’t recall too many visits by the band unless to do press/radio. I was on a different floor/department anyway, so my interaction was minimal except for input on weekly staff meetings about the artist roster.
I do know after the release of Flesh & Blood—which was very successful—the turmoil that took place the following year from CC’s firing and then the release of Native Tongue was chaotic. I was also at that well-documented 1990 MTV Awards night at Universal (Ampitheatre in Los Angeles) that went balls-up where fists were flying backstage. Before anyone knew it, Richie Kotzen came into the picture and there were some tense moments by the label “suits” of ”Uh oh, what’s going to happen now to our band?” Luckily things carried on, but it just wasn’t the same for a lot of reasons.

HRH: You’ve commented in several documentaries, including “Anvil: The Story of Anvil” and “Get Thrashed: The Story of Thrash Metal.” How did those come about?

DJ Will: Lips contacted me one day out of the blue in 2007 telling me he was coming to L.A. and that there was a documentary (?!) being done on Anvil, so I said “Sure, would love to have you on and get caught up.” Next I see, the damn thing has exploded worldwide, the band finds a whole new audience based on the film and other good fortunes to follow. Who knew?

For the record, my 43 seconds in the film was part of a 90-minute in-studio interview that I conducted that day and to the casual viewer you won’t get our deeper connection unless you “hear” the DVD commentary where Lips lays it out that I’m not just some DJ giving them “mercy” airplay.

“Get Thrashed” Director Rick Ernst also contacted me to take part and was nice enough to let me talk about metal bands throughout the years unscripted. So in both instances, we’re forever linked.

HRH: What non-music related films or shows have you been in? Anything worth renting or YouTubing?

DJ Will: Well, my world is all about music! I was filmed for “Iron Maiden: Flight 666,” but didn’t make the cut but was thanked in the credits. I narrated “Blood & Dirt,” a DVD documentary about the Bay Area band Vio-lence, and most recently was Music Supervisor on a film called “Balls to the Wall” directed by Penelope Spheeris. That was a fun gig.

HRH: Do you still DJ at clubs in and around L.A.? What bands are you currently into? What is the current rock scene like? Any bands we should know about?

DJ Will: Truthfully, whoever will have me as I try to stick to my guns with rock and metal. Any club DJ in my opinion can slap together mash-ups; techno, dance, hip-hop, etc. channel into Serrato and have at it. I did get to spin at the Rainbow Bar & Grill for the first time last year which was great gig, but being built in the ‘60s means that the booth upstairs was not made for anyone 6 feet and up! (Laughter)

On the current rock scene, besides a glut of cover and tribute bands, there are some solid groups to keep an eye on: The Binges, Holy Grail, Son Locuaz, National Dust, Hillbilly Herald, Honey Quick, Cockpit and Behold The Monolith.

Please note if you’re in a cover/tribute band reading this, more power to ya, but Steel Panther is the ONLY one the bunch making a very comfortable living each and every week for the last 11 years. Just insane what they make a night and outside of a Vegas act! I don’t know anyone locally here that does as well as they do playing covers and only recently originals.

HRH: Thinking about your past interviews, what artists have been the:

Nicest: Doro Pesch, Danko Jones

Coolest: Accept, Mike Levine (Triumph), Jason Mc Master

Most Talented: Dee Snider, Jean Beauvoir (as discussed before)

Wildest: Michael Monroe, Impaler

Biggest Diva: Truthfully, no one. Everyone is my guest for a reason.

HRH: On a more serious note, do you have any thoughts on the passing of Ronnie James Dio? Any memories you can share for the many Dio fans?

DJ Will: A big influence and a huge, huge loss. My last moment/encounter was him giving me a thumbs up at the Revolver “Golden God Awards” backstage after winning an award as he walked by with Wendy. That, as we know, was to be his last public appearance.

Attending the services a month later was a bit surreal with its concert like atmosphere. Saying good-bye to a music legend surrounded by fans like myself who shared the same thoughts. The tribute performances were fantastic, as were the personal stories at the podium. I have since ended my show each week with one of the final tracks he recorded “Heavy Metal Will Never Die.” Which to me says it all.

HRH: Will, thank you again for your time. Is there anything else you would like to say to your fans and the Hardrock Haven audience?

DJ Will: Thank you to your readers, and to you Alex, for reaching out and allowing me to break it down and let flow what memories I still maintain.

DJ Will online:

Official Website: http://www.metaldjwill.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Vault-KNAC-Radio/118042141585417

You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/metaldjwill

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/djwillKNAC

Podcast page: http://metaldjwill.podomatic.com/

KNAC.com: http://www.knac.com/