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Band un-Disturbed by persistent success
By PAT DOUGLAS • For the Tribune • July 18, 2008

It has become common to see Disturbed hanging out at No. 1 on the Billboard album charts.

Only six other rock bands — Van Halen, U2, Dave Matthews Band, Staind, Metallica and System of A Down — have released three consecutive No. 1 albums.

Last month's release of "Indestructible" pushed the band's total album sales to more than 10 million and continued to cement the group as one of the powers of modern rock and roll.

"It's always great to accomplish stuff like that. That's a great stat to have been able to achieve," said Disturbed drummer Mike Wengren in an interview with the Tribune from Tacoma, Wash. "Ultimately, it comes down to us trying to write the music that we love and the music that we feel is great. We don't put it out unless it really moves us and I think it connects with other people, too."

Being such an accessible band physically and musically is the reason why Disturbed has been able to garner such impressive sales over the years, according to Wengren.

"(The fans) know that we're not going to cheat 'em," he said. "We put every ounce of our being into every note and every beat (and) try to give 'em their money's worth.

"We try to be very personable with them as well," he continued. "When we're on the road, we're always doing meet-and-greets and signings. We're always hanging out behind the buses and trying to meet everybody we can and (we) let 'em know we appreciate them."

Coming from an era of rock and roll in the late '90s, early '00s where so many up-and-coming bands sounded so similar, Disturbed brought a uniqueness that included Wengren's tribal drumbeats and vocalist David Draiman's hypnotic and erratic singing style.

What resulted were anthemic-type songs like "Down With The Sickness," "Liberate," "Stupify" and the new title track, "Indestructible." It's a formula that has pushed the music to outlets that run the gamut from commercials to movie soundtracks.

"That was definitely something that helped us and another reason why our fan base was able to connect so well ... because of the anthem-type songs," Wengren said. "I don't think at first it necessarily was something that we were going for."

Because of the popularity of past songs, the band decided to put all their efforts into making the most inspirational songs possible on "Indestructible."

"It's sort of, in a way, a tribute to all the people who have used our songs in the past as anthems, especially your soldiers," said Wengren. "We have so many of them that come up to us and say 'Hey, we just got back from overseas and when we're in our Humvee and we're on a mission and we have the songs blaring in the background, it helps pump us up so we can go in and do our job.'

"(Even) your everyday person who goes to the gym and wants to pump some iron. If they can connect to it, then it was our goal to give it straight to 'em."

The group's debut album, "The Sickness," was released to little fanfare until the single, "Down With The Sickness," began spreading like wildfire. The track begins with one of Wengren's signature drumbeats which has since turned into an opening as recognizable as Van Halen's "Hot For Teacher."

"It's kind of funny because we were sitting around at practice one time and I just started moving around with the beat and Danny (Donegan) turned around and looked at me and was like 'What was that? Do that again.' I did it and it stuck and it's become one of our biggest songs and anthems to date," explained Wengren.

The band just began playing co-headlining gigs with Slipknot on this summer's Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival. Because Ozzfest is on a hiatus, Mayhem is the year's most aggressive metal festival.

"There's definitely a similar vibe to it, but we're gonna try and help Mayhem make its own name here," said Wengren who has played numerous Ozzfests with Disturbed. "This is the best tour going this summer. We have obviously some awesome bands and we're all looking to throw down.

"It's like a summer camp," he continued. "I got into the venue yesterday and set up my new kit and every five seconds you're turning around 'cause someone's shouting your name and giving you a big hug. It's like a big reunion."

Montana Disturbed fans aren't likely to see the band under the Big Sky in 2008, but it could happen next year, according to Wengren.

"We've gotta head up there," he said about playing Montana. "Hopefully we can get a chance to try and get up there within a year or so. We're going to try and take out our 'Music As A Weapon' package in the United States sometime next year ... and try to get to as many U.S. cities as possible. I'll put the word out there (for Montana) for sure."