Let me just start out by saying that January 30, 2009 as 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time approached I was probably as nervous as I could be. I was about to interview Dan Donegan of Disturbed; one of the most influential and major guitarists possibly of all time. All I could do when my phone finally rang was swallow all nerves and just go through with this and make the best of myself and the best of this interview.

The man on the other end sounded a bit shy which made me feel a bit better. I knew that all musicians can be shy at times, and most are! So here it is, the words from an innovative and amazing person!

SoundZ: How are you doing? Did you guys just get here?

Donegan: Yeah at about 10 this morning. We're pretty tired. Haha.

SoundZ: Well, if you don't mind me asking- At what point in your life did you decide that music was your calling?

Donegan: Oh man, it was from a very young age. Early teens mostly. I went to concerts and just seeing the way the audience was and the adrenaline the bands I saw had I knew that this was what I wanted too. I put together my first neighborhood band, and when we played our first show I felt the adrenaline and the absolute rush from everything and everyone and I knew that I would be doing this for the rest of my life. It is just such a rush.

SoundZ: If not for music what would you be doing with your life right now? What kind of normal job do you think you might have?

Donegan: I never had any intentions of doing something besides this. It was my goal to reach because it's what I loved and love. I mean, of course everyone in the band had their day jobs, but we used our money to buy the equipment we needed to make ourselves sound better and be better. If we weren't at work we were practicing. I was one of those guys who would be 3 hours early to practice before anyone else was even there just practicing and playing and bettering my skills.

SoundZ: How did you go from Brawl to Disturbed name wise?

Donegan: With our original singer we were good but there was a missing piece. We were lacking originality. So, we got rid of him and just auditioned different singers in the neighborhood which was a bit of a nightmare. I mean, it was no American Idol. You always have those people who think they are the best singer in the world and they can't carry a note if their life depended on it. So, we put out an ad and we got David. His voice was original, he was original. I mean, there is no one like him. He had this sound to him that we had never heard before. We had wanted a new name and he suggested Disturbed. People think that we call ourselves Disturbed meaning we are the ones disturbed when that isn't it at all. Clean cut society views people like us, the black sheep, and get disturbed by us- hence the name.

SoundZ: Who are your major guitar influences or just influences in general?

Donegan: All classic metal. You know, the stuff your parents don't want you hearing that you sneak into the house and play when they're asleep and can't hear. There was no other sound at the time like these guys and the fan base itself was epic. They understood what the black sheep were feeling. People, like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Metallica, Iron Maiden. These guys have been around for 20-30-40 years! They STILL have people following them. They can still set out 15 thousand seat arenas. You know, we want to be able to do that, and thanks to our fans we are doing pretty well. Without the fans we really would be nothing.

SoundZ: Does the rest of the band share these influences, or are you all from a plethora of musical backgrounds?

Donegan: Collectively we share the same musical influences, you know. We listen to bands and base ourselves and our music off those bands that have good melody. I like something you can hum along to. None of these "Cookie Monster" vocals. Haha. Don't get me wrong! I have some "Cookie Monster" vocal like albums that I like to listen to from time to time but as for actually being in a band that does that... Eh, not for me.

SoundZ: Haha, I am sorry for all the laughter. I have never heard the term "Cookie Monster" vocals before.

Donegan: Well, what else can ya call it? Haha.

SoundZ: Woooo. Anyways, hehe, How did you come about meeting these guys?

Donegan: I've known Mike for years. We were neighbors and we shared the same drive. We were both in different bands and his was going no where because of people who just didn't have drive, I was going no where because of people who didn't have drive. So, I told him "Dude, we both have it. Let's try this." I mean, he was like me. The early guy to practice. I could hear him down the street banging the shit out of those drums and he was GOOD! You know, you make sacrifices. Of course, we found David and it just took off from there. We were writing constantly, making things better.

SoundZ: If you could cover any song what would it be?

Donegan: Uhhh... wow.... You know, we did "Shout" because it was challenging. We like to do challenging songs because we like to put our little Disturbed stamp onto it. In the early days we did Pantera and Black Sabbath and some Faith No More. So, I think maybe we'd do a Soundgarden cover of a Faith No More cover.

SoundZ: Sweet! Are you excited for the Vegas show tonight?

Donegan: We absolutely love Vegas. We made sure to have a few days off so we could go to the UFC fight tomorrow night and watch the Superbowl. I'm not sure where we're watching it yet but I know we are. Anyways, Vegas is fun to play. We have such a large fan base here and it is just amazing because they give us their all here.

SoundZ: What city is the most fun for you to play, besides Vegas and besides Chicago? I know Chicago must be fun for you because that's home.

Donegan: Honestly, the best surprises can be found in the small towns. We recently played in this town about 5 or 6 hours outside Seattle, Washington called Kennwick. It had been almost 15 years since a rock and roll show had been to their town so the intensity was amazing. The crowd is just so hungry for the music.

SoundZ: How does it feel to have a song off of "Indestructible" nominated for a Grammy?

Donegan: It feels great. We are very flattered. We've been around almost 13 years, 10 years as a signed band and we are so grateful to the fans and to everyone who made this possible for us. It's a feeling of acknowledgment from the music industry because you know it means we are really out there and we actually mean something to the business. If we win it it will be so rewarding and we will feel accomplished, but at the same time if we don't we still have that acknowledgment and thankfulness to everyone. I would much rather still have fans who love us and have no Grammy than be one of these musicians with it collecting dust on their mantel piece who looks at it with sadness because they have no fans and all they have is this lifeless statue reminding them of what they once had.

SoundZ: Any words of wisdom for all of the young musicians out there who look up to Disturbed for guidance?

Donegan: Be hungry and surround yourself with people that have drive. There are a lot of lazy people out there and if there is one person in your band who doesn't have the drive as the rest of you then that will bring you down in more ways than you realize.

SoundZ: What can we expect from Disturbed in the future?

Donegan: We are so fortunate that we have the fans we do because this is such a difficult business. People think it's cake and roses, but it's not at all. We would be nothing without them. We live for the stage and the adrenaline. As long as they want us performing we will still have that fire and we will give 110% no matter what because they don't deserve anything less than that.

SoundZ: Okay, finally, I know you're from Chicago so tell me- Malnati's pizza or Uno's pizza?

Donegan: Uno's I guess.

SoundZ: EW! How can you say that?

Donegan: I'm sorry! Hahaha. If I do pizza it's usually New York style, but when it's Chicago it's Uno's. I'm not a big pizza guy though. There's so many good steakhouses back home and I'm a meat and potatoes type of guy so you can usually find me in one of those rather than a pizza place.

SoundZ: Okay then, all is forgiven. Haha. Thank you so much for your time Dan, and I hope you guys play an awesome show tonight! See you then!

Donegan: Thank you so much! Talk soon.

(Interview with SoundZ Vegas correspondent- STEPHY)

"I would just like to thank Dan Donegan again for his time and words and advice. He is an amazing person, and the show was fantastic. ~Stephy"