THE USED INTERVIEW WITH DAN WHITESIDES BY LENA LAMORAY

LL:  Are you happy to be on tour again?

Dan:  Yes, I was bored as hell to say the least, sitting at home with nothing to do.
 
LL:  I can imagine it’s a different lifestyle?
 
Dan:  Oh yeah, I mean it’s just playing a show everyday is like the best thing in the world.  Playing a show is the best thing that I have ever done, ever.

LL:  How is Bert recovering after his surgery?
Dan:  He’s doing ok but I think it’s going to take a little while.  I think his voice was really messed up and  then he may have needed a little more time to recover but I mean hopefully he will be fine.  He went to the doctor the other day and there was something growing on his throat again but it doesn’t look bad at all so it’s ok.  We have had a lot of time off so maybe mid way through the tour he will start feeling a little more comfortable.
 
LL:  You guys are going to be playing Internatiol taste of Chaos

Dan:  Yes and  it’s going to be solid touring around the world to South America and Mexico.  I’m sure he will be fine, I hope!

LL:  Are you excited about being on Conan O’Brien?

Dan:  Oh yeah, Conan O’Brien is my all time favorite talk show host.  It’s weird because about two or three weeks before we found out we were going on Conan O’Brien I was talking to Quinn about going on Conan O’Brien.  I was like we got to go on Conan.  I wanted to talk to him about maybe putting me in one of his skits or something, even if I’m just in the background but we’ll see. 

LL:  Have the fans been accepting of you?

Dan:  Definetly, I mean I think so.  I’ve seen bring back Branden shirts but as people get to know me they like me.  So, no one has thrown anything at me, yet so I guess that’s really good.
 
LL:  At least your are the drummer and you are in the back so it’s harder to get you.
Dan:  Yeah, that’s right, I’ll dodge it.

LL:  Which band members can run a mile without puking?

Dan:  I don’t think any of us could, well, I know I can because I used to run 2 miles a day.  I bet Quinn and Jeph might be able to do it. I don’t know if Bert could do it maybe not right now but I don’t think he could do it.    

LL:  Did you have to go through an initiation to join The Used?

Dan:  Oh, every day!  I’m the new guy so I get picked on the most.  It’s more with the crew, they definetly fuck with me more than anybody because I’m the new guy.  It’s funny because no matter how long I’m in the band I will always be the new guy but that’s fine.  I’m cool with it, I like to mess around a lot.  Everyone plays jokes on everyone but Bert puts me on the spot on stage a lot.  He says my name and then tells me to take off my shoes or something.

LL:  So, no paddle spanking or whatever stuff those guys do?

Dan:  Ha, ha, no real initiation stuff like that.    

LL:  What movie is never allowed to be played on the tour bus again?

Dan:  Oh, there was a movie that we watched that sucked really bad.  I don’t know maybe I have no idea.  We’ve watched a lot of movies and I can’t remember.  We’ve watched a movie once that was so bad that we threw it out the window.
 
LL:  Have you watched one movie a lot on the bus?

Dan:  We watched one movie the other day that we have been watching a lot called, Julien Donkey-Boy.  It’s a really good movie.  It’s like a documentary but it’s not.  You should check it out when you get a chance.  It’s pretty cool and I bet not many people have heard of it.  Bert has the craziest taste in movies and they are all really good movies.  He has turned me on to a bunch of  movies.  They are all usually pretty creepy or something like that.  Bert is a movie buff, though.
 
LL:  Bert definetly looks like a guy that would be in a horror movie.
 
Dan:  Yeah, for sure.  He likes lots of Japanese movies and video games.   

LL:  What was it like filming the video for The Bird and the Worm and was this your first experience making such an extreme video?

Dan:  Yeah, that was my first time making a music video and it was really uncomfortable and I didn’t like it at all.  I don’t like cameras.  I mean, I will take pictures with fans and stuff like that but a camera in your face, like 5 inches away from your face.  I just didn’t like it.  Yeah, it was great don’t get me wrong.  It was awesome being there and seeing how it’s done and being a part of it and everything like that.  I just don’t like cameras.  I had a great time though, it was fun.  Bert worked like 15 hours everyday for the 3 day shoot.  I think I worked a total of maybe 2 to 3 hours a day.

LL:  It’s a pretty nice video, the underwater footage was really cool.

Dan:  Yeah, Bert was underwater and it was just freezing in this place so when you see the water scene he was just freezing the whole time and it was 4 hours long.  It was the last day of the shoot that we did that.

LL:  Do you get nervous every time you sit on a couch now because of the video?

Dan:   Yeah, I don’t want to get sucked into a couch like that.  Someone pointed out that in the video, I didn’t go back and look but he gets sucked into the couch two times and it’s different.  He’s either wearing something that he wasn’t or something like that.  There is a flaw in the video and I want to go and check it out. 

LL:  Have you received any strange gifts from fans, yet?

Dan:  Yeah, well not necessarily strange gifts but right now I’m wearing a bracelet that this little girl gave me.  She made it and it’s got my name on it and it’s really cool.  Yesterday at the show we played around about 15 to 20 bras were thrown on the stage and that’s pretty cool
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LL:  Did you guys wear them after the show?
 
Dan:  Yeah, we actually made a quilt out of them
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LL:  There you go!

Dan:  You know there is always some gifts and it’s always weird when people give you food or candy.  I’m always like I don’t know if I should eat this.  I’m not sure if anybody would but you never know.  I get a lot of cool things, though.  I save everything that anyone has ever given me.  I have a bag at home from Taste of Chaos full of shirts, notes and whatever a lot of pictures of me that they drew.
 
LL:  So, you guys do meet and greets after every show?

Dan:  Yeah, we come out and it’s not necessarily that we are going to do a meet and greet but we will go out before and after the show.  We hang out and sign autographs and if people want pictures.

LL:  Oh, that is so nice!

Dan:  Yeah, it’s cool.  Not many bands do that.  I like to do it and I think it’s fun.    

LL:  Does anyone in the band have any unique talents?
Dan:  Bert is super flexible.  On the bus he can stand in one section and kick the shelf without jumping and I think that’s pretty crazy.  I would just hurt myself.  Quinn is a genious in my mind.  He’s just an all around talented dude.  Quinn has a natural electronic gift.  He can pick up any computer program and stuff like that he can pick up easy.  Jeph, lets see, Jeph can beat probably any video game in a day.  He’s a video game whiz
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LL:  Did he play the Taste of Chaos with Bert on it?

Dan:  Oh, I don’t know if he played that, I think he’s only seen that but maybe he has played it.  I’m just talented at everything!
 
LL:  So you can do splits and stuff, right?

Dan:  I used to skateboard a lot and I like to play basketball.
 
LL:  I bet you have a lot   

LL:  What does The Used have in store for us in 2008?

  
Dan:  Oh, huge things.  Right after Christmas we are starting a huge North American tour and it’s going to be like four or five months long and from what I am getting out of it it’s going to be everywhere and every place.  Probably like Taste of Chaos but a lot longer and with a lot more cities.  So, that will be cool.  I don’t know but there is talk of us opening up for a bigger band.  I don’t know who necessarily but I’m excited.  I’m excited to go to South America and  Mexico.  I’m excited for International Taste of Chaos.  I’ve never really been out of the country until The Used so I’m excited about all that.  Hell Yeah!