New Metal Magazine December 99

If you're an older heavy metal fan, the name of Orgy's keyboardist/guitarist Amir Derakh should be familiar. After all, he was a member of 1980's Los Angeles metallers Rough Cutt. But like former Faster Pussycat frontman turned Newlydeads leader Tamie Down, Derakh has found his calling in the New Metal '90s. His band, which also includes voaclist Jay Gordon, guitarist Ryan Shuck, bassist Paige Haley and drummer Bobby Hewitt have the distinction of being the first band signed to KoRn's Elementree Records, which being distributed by another artist originated label Reprise (which was created by Frank Sinatra.) "We never know how people are going to react to our band," says Gordon. "But they always react." Adds Shuck, "Everyone has an opinion on us." The KoRn singer has said that Orgy are "something fresh and new-that's what turns me on." He believes the band will appeal "to a lot of kids, a lot of different people and since theey're fashionable pretty-dudes, all the chicks will dig them. And they're real heavy (musically), so hopefully, a lot of our friends will like them, too." Legend has it that Orgy did form as much as they just happened. They were just five guys in local Southern California bands who were friendly. Gordon says that he and Shuck "conceptualized" Orgy less than six months before they were signed. The duo began composing songs as soon as they "hooked up." It began in a garage. "We just started throwing some rough stuff together," says Gordon. "The next thing yoou know we were making plans to tour with KoRn." While most bands cut their teeth playing their local club circuits for years and shipping countless demos to recording companies, Orgy, "not wanting to get burnt out," headed into a studio and recorded. Bassist Paige Haley says the band did not "want to let the cat out of the bag too early." By choosing to record right away, the band captured the early energy that brought them together in the first place, trusting their instincts and believing if you mess with things too much, you can lose that creative spark that makes it so right initally. This resulted in the band's great debut, Candyass. produced by Josh Abraham (Coal Chamber), the album was intentionally meant to sound raw. "It's all five-in-the-morning, pissed-off, fighting-with-each-other, kill-each-other kinda stuff," laughs Gordon. "there's an innovative, futuristic feel to the music. yeah, it's pretty cool." haley refers to Orgy's sound as "Death Pop." "They are just slighly deranged, but you can definitely hear them on the radio," laughs Shuck, who co-wrote KoRn's hit "Blind" with vocalist Jonathon Davis. "Anything you can imagine is what we use to make a record," adds Derakh. "From old-school to state-of-the-art and everything in between." The band maintains that the origin of their name in not sexual in nature. it is a musical reference; a collage of sounds. Still it is hard for the members of the band to tell an old lady in a neighborhood bakery that they play in a band called Orgy and keep a straight face. "We do have a sound that's really a mixture of a great many sounds," adds Amir. "The good thing about the name is that it sticks in your head." 1