The moment Amigo the Devil realized his life was entering the next phase came when his 1979 Ford E-150 truck burst into flames and burned to the ground last December in a Nashville parking lot.
“It was only two and a half weeks after I bought it,” says the singer-songwriter, aka Danny Kiranos. Rolling rock. “I go in, start it, it catches fire — the whole thing blows up.”
Cyranos shakes his head and laughs in hindsight. At the time, the destruction of the vehicle was traumatic and surreal. It has now become a metaphor for the artist who plays Amigo the Devil, a realization that the only thing he can control in life is how you react to a situation.
“It was the first time I felt so helpless because I really had no idea what to do,” says Kiranos. “It was this huge coming to terms with a lot of problems in my life that were related to things that I should be able to fix or control.”
Puffing on a cigar with a glass of bourbon in hand, Kyranos leans back in his chair in his studio behind his house. The property is just north of Nashville, where the beer-soaked streets and skyscrapers of Music City give way to rolling farmland.
Later that night, many of Kiran's friends make their way down the long road to the bright ranch that peeks out from behind the tree line. The plan is to grill, drink some cold suds and catch up, a hobby for Kirano when he's not touring non-stop.
Until then, he talks at length about Amigo the Devil's latest album, Yours Until the war is over, a mix of rock, metal and blues music that has been called “killer” for its remarkable theme of death, destruction and despair. Think Tom Waits meets Nick Cave, with a healthy dose of Rob Zombie vibe.
“The more I try to understand who's listening to these songs,” Kyranos says, “the more I realize that the number one element of a listener who enjoys it is that they have the ability to let go of something to immerse themselves in that song. , as opposed to hearing it in passing.”
Take the track 'Once Upon a Time at Texaco Pt. 1,” about a gas station robbery gone wrong in which the attendant reaches for his gun before being shot. “I've learned a little magic over the years/My bullet hocus went through the back of his head/And made the side of his jaw disappear,” Kiranos rattles off on the song, with slam poet-like energy and vigor. His live performances as Amigo the Devil are as intense and menacing as his moniker.
“It ends up being a funny dynamic where the lyrics and the stories play a big part in how the songs really affect someone,” he says, “unlike a lot of other bands I love. [where] you have no idea what they're saying.”
This hunter, Kiranos tapped guitarist David Talley to co-write some of the material for Yours Until the war is over. This is a big change from previous efforts where Kyranos was an island unto himself when it came to songwriting.
“I don't co-write with people. And we didn't know how to write to each other,” he says. “But there are a lot of honest, vulnerable conversations [between us]. We're like brothers and we've built that kind of trust.”
This obsession for quality art and a stylish performance is a signature for Amigo the Devil. Hailing from Miami, the 36-year-old son of a Spanish mother and Greek father wants to shock and entertain — but he does both at a high level.
In his formative years, Kiranos immersed himself in Miami's underground scene of metal and punk music, street and gang culture, and BMX bikes. Cyranos admits that some of his friends made bad choices.
“Are all my friends growing up? They are either dead or in jail. And I knew I didn't want to do that,” she says.
Kyranos was more of a strange, old-fashioned kid, trying to find himself, sometimes in the most extreme ways. “Jumping off bridges, jumping into rivers, waiting for trains. All to scare people, just to see if I can do it,” he says. “Shock value.”
He also developed a lifelong appetite for horror films, which developed into an enthusiastic interest in death. It has a collection of serial killer memorabilia, police photos of dead bodies, and a variety of other items most people wouldn't let through their door.
“I think horror [films] it became a passion because I was fascinated by the dark side and it was a way to access it,” says Kiranos. “That's not because of who I was, but because I saw it rise from other people.”
In the seventh grade, Kyranos was expelled from school, and when he entered the next grade of high school, he was teased for his shaggy, metallic appearance. But a chance encounter with a peer wearing a White Zombie shirt set him on his musical path. The two bonded over their love of White Zombie and his new friend asked him to jam with his band. Kyranos said yes, even though he didn't know how to play the guitar.
“I showed up to practice with my guitar that my cousin had given me,” he says. “We were children. But I really wanted to be in a band, so I learned how to play the next week, doing simple three-string stuff.”
Eventually, Kyranos began writing songs and his material became dark and sinister. About a decade ago, Amigo the Devil's stage name came to life. based on the name of a cartoon character he found in a notebook drawn by a close friend when he was a child.
“There's a version of myself that comes out when I'm under that banner [Amigo the Devil]”, says Kyranos. “I don't think the me up there is any different from the me outside of it — it's just a side I don't like to bring out into the real world.”
Kiranos credits the cinematic element in his music to a profound experience of sitting in a Chevy Suburban, high in trance, blasting out Godspeed You! Black Emperor. “I listened to this record just losing my mind. I had never experienced anything like this until that moment,” he says.
From there, he began touring the United States as a solo act, playing any dive bar or small stage that would have him. For the better part of eight years, he was taunted every night and “the game was hell.” During one particular concert in the west, Kiranos had finally had enough.
With the drunken patrons heckling him, Kyranos jumped on the bartop and began to sing with every ounce of his being. The patrons were stunned and roared for more. Kyranos was out for blood and finally embraced his role as a performer.
“It's the difference between a hobby and a career, between dedication and obsession. These are things I struggle with all the time,” says Kyranos.
With his backing band, Amigo the Devil is now a headline act attracting fans of Americana, rock and metal. And while death remains a major theme in his songwriting, his main goal is to tell a story as best he can. This was his goal during construction Yours Until the war is over.
“We tried to write these things so that the story was a real story with a purpose,” he says, “instead of just saying, 'What if they die?'
Despite the death and devilish imagery in his art, Kiranos says he is not religious or superstitious. He just finds dark subjects fascinating and even comforting. He knows others like him do too.
“I've written songs about suicide notes, but I don't feel suicidal when I write this song. I reminisce about moments I had in the past,” he says. “My personal journey comes from, 'Thank God, I don't feel like this anymore.'
from our partners at https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/amigo-the-devil-yours-until-the-war-is-over-1234974584/