How did the band get this name?
It was born out of a bastardization of the Dawn of Ashes song "fetish decay", and the dichotomy of the word "drone": in this case it can mean both a controlled working mechanism, or a deep monotonous buzzing. Both of which tickled my fancy when it came to something that would roll off the tongue and still suit my sound.


If you had to paint an image with your music, what would that image/picture look like?
Very industrial (as in the physicality - machinery and industrial equipment), and dark with a cynical, sardonic humor element...like clowns dolled up in corpse paint, wearing corsets made of sheet metal and bolts, being pumped out on a conveyor belt. They would be crying tears that make everything rust and sound horrible too, naturally.


How long has this band/project been going on for?
I'd been planning and plotting for a few months before actually getting my shit together and producing something of value, although I don't really count that time as a part of my current project since it a) didn't even have a name yet, b) was a pretty different sound, and c) I'm just anal retentive like that. So I really consider the project to have been born when I finished the first song that I was truly happy with, which was actually just about 3 weeks ago.


What inspires you/the band to keep going with music or to keep living at all?
As far as going on with the music, I think the fact that I've actually made some songs that I'm HAPPY with are reason enough. I'd always wanted to make music, but I'm disastrous when it comes to playing instruments no matter how hard I try. But this medium has given me a chance to actually create music without fumbling with guitar strings or blowing a wind instrument too hard. There's also the fact that there's so much great music out there that inspires me - now that I've been able to harness my creativity successfully, I can't bring myself to NOT make more music.


Where did you grow up and how well did you like it?
I grew up in north Jersey, where I still currently reside. It's only a few minutes away from NYC, which is a gigantic plus, since I'm an artist and I love going to museums and galleries, not to mention all of the other great perks that come with NY. It's always been my home, and I've always loved it despite always complaining about it being noisy and smelly and ugly. I secretly love it even though living on a major highway gets pretty annoying when trying to make music, I can't hear a damn thing!


What type of influences/music are you/the band into right now?
As far as bands: Xotox (mainly 2001-2002 stuff to be picky), Terrorfakt, Tactical Sekt, [:SITD:], and NIN instrumental stuff (I found out that was actually subconscious too!) mostly. Other things that influence my music are machines, the sounds of metal against metal, that gritty clunk clunk and that high pitched straining sound that a fork lift makes and drives everyone run the hell away as fast as they can.


Years ago did you ever imagine doing what you're doing right now with music?
Not really, back then I'd always envisioned that if I were to ever make the leap into music (that is, ever got any coordination and instrument skills), I'd wind up playing metal stuff. I think I envisioned something really grim, epic and righteous, maybe I'd play the guitar. or the Norwegian fiddle. Or the bagpipes. Or the trumpet. And sing like Simone Simons too. Probably all at once.


Do you believe there's more to our universe then what's seen?
Oh yeah, and it creeps me out a bit. The universe is so massive, and we're so small, yet so self centered.


What other favorite things do you like to do that doesn't relate to music at all?
Fine art is my main passion - painting and drawing, sculpting, lithography, etc etc, it's what I've always loved to do. I'm also getting my teaching certification in art, then my masters, since I want to be an art professor one day. I also love to belly dance (tribal fusion style). When I first saw Rachel Brice dance, I thought, "Oh God. That's so beautiful. She moves like a snake...I want to be able to move like that." And the beautiful thing about that style of belly dance is that it can incorporate almost any style of dance that you want while still being belly dance. It also makes it easy to dance to almost anything as long as there's a beat. I've danced to everything from Retch, to VNV Nation, to Tvangeste, to Amr Diab and somehow it all feels cohesive. I make my own costumes, and my boyfriend bought me a set of zills (finger cymbals) at Rakkasah East (a belly dance festival in October), well needless to say he regretted it instantly since I wouldn't shut up with those things for a long time haha.


What type of programs/DAW's(digital music workstations) do you or the band use and what type of soft-synths/hardware synths are used to create with?
Acid Pro 6, Ableton Live 7, FL Studio XXL 8, Audacity, Voice FX, and I'm playing around with Cakewalk now. I use seperate parts of every program to do different things. My favorite soft synth to work with right now however has to be Toxic Biohazard. It's so much fun to play with, and some of the sounds really make my eyes light up like a kid's on Christmas.


Where do you see yourself/the band in 5 years?
Well I'd love love love to do collaborations with other musicians, get spun at clubs, maybe release a couple of limited release CDs, I'd also like to try to play live once I get really good and confident. I'd probably wear a mask though and pull a Kompressor since I'm SO. DAMN. BASHFUL. I'd also like to either polish my vocals into something I'd like for this project, or find a full time male vocalist to do some gritty vox. I don't know about getting a record deal though, maybe I just can't see that far into the future, but maybe I'll become more serious about that once my skills and hardware/software improve. We'll just have to see.


One piece of music equipment that you can't live without?
Probably FL, I use it as my main controller for my soft synths and VST, so it makes having everything in one place when I want to distort or record something very handy.


One piece of music equipment that you can live without?
Voice FX is pretty nonimportant admittedly, and I can get a lot of the same effects from the VST effects I've already obtained, but I keep it because I'm a pack rat. I'm not even going to lie or sugar coat things. I am the biggest pack rat ever, even when it comes to programs. It's horrible. I have 4.44 gigs of space left on my hard drive and it's shameful.


What would you say is your favorite song that you have made?
"Mother", it was the second song I ever made and to this day I keep try to top it. I get such good feedback on it too, which makes me happy since I felt so discouraged about it at first. It sounded completely different, and I was so disgusted that I wiped out 80% and started off with the beat I had going on towards the end of the original song. But once I did that, it just sort of became my baby.


What's the worse song you think you've made?
Hmmm, probably "A Mortal Doth Approach", or "Dominate". The former not so much formally BAD, as much as it didn't match my current sound at all. The only word I can think of to describe it was "funky". Yeah, I wound up hating it after awhile. "Dominate" just feels bland to me, and rushed. It was, though. I rushed it, I have to admit. And it comes through in the song. It taught me to take my time and not worry about trying to beat a time record I'd set for myself.


What's your opinion on websites like Vampirefreaks/Myspace and other networking sites that help push music to the front?
Well if it wasn't for these sites, I probably wouldn't have heard a lot of awesome bands and music projects otherwise. There are so many amazing musicians out there making fantastic music that haven't been picked up by a record company, and haven't had adequate exposure. It's a shame but I'm glad for sites like these, it's a way to really expose your work to the world and who knows, it may be a way to find a new favorite band.


If you had one place to live, where would it be and why?
I'm pretty satisfied with the NYC area, but other than that, St. Petersburg would be nice. It's so beautiful there, and I love the Russian language. I started learning it about 5 years ago on my own.


How's the music scene right now where you're currently located?
Brutal. And I mean that in a good way. I live in such a prime spot for exposure to the music that I love. The metal scene, the industrial scene, it runs freaking rampant here. You'll never be at a loss for new and exciting bands and projects, venues, basement shows, or even clubs.


Any inspiring words for fans of yours/the band?
Dream big or don't dream at all, and never give into discouragement.


Thanks again to Brock for enjoying my music and giving me some exposure!