The music is dark and doomy, as influenced by the sludge-caked riffs of Pantera as it is the industrial crunch of White Zombie, with a dose of whiskey-drenched vocals. "The first couple of years of being incarcerated in federal prison were probably the most dismal point of my life," Coones told Noisecreep.
But he made lemonade out of some pretty sour lemons. "I was sentenced to eight years in prison for conspiracy to distribute ephedrine, of which I actually spent over five and a half years inside. I had a lot of time to kill and I read every book I came across the first couple of years. After I was transferred to Oregon, I got inspired to pick up the guitar again and start playing music."
Thanks to a band program in the prison, Coones -- who started playing guitar at the age of nine -- was playing rock and blues with some of his fellow inmates. He said, "I was writing my own blues and rock songs and bringing them to the band." But it didn't last. A prison riot ensued, and he was transferred to a Texas prison to serve out the rest of his sentence, where he joined a new blues band.
"I started drop tuning my guitar into drop D and coming up these sick riffs that sounded so cool I couldn't get into the blues anymore," Coones said. "All my new material was drop tuned and heavy. I would sit in the prison yard and jam for hours on new riffs and write lyrics. It wasn't long before I started a new band and played all my songs along with some covers, some of the lyrics were a reflection of life inside. Songs like 'No Redemption' and 'Locked Down' speak of prison life. The song 'The Day is Comin'' is a protest against government, as well as the song 'Livin' in Oppression.'"
Some good things came out of Coones' incarceration and it was his musical creativity and productivity. He said, "This prison sentence was the most negative thing ever to happen to me, but if I didn't go to prison, I wouldn't have ever been inspired to play. The worse possible negative to happen to me in this life became the catalyst for my rebirth as a musician."
Coones admits that he drifted from his guitar when he was in his teens, trading his instrument for dirt bikes. He got his first Harley-Davidson at 19 and he became fully immersed in the cycle lifestyle, a culture which he remains very enmeshed in today. He became a Hells Angel in 1995, and he was arrested on drug conspiracy charges in 1999.
Besides writing music, he was supported by his wife, KO, and had an army of friends and boosters while behind bars. "Soon after my release I started looking for bandmates to bring my music to the streets," Coones said. "That was five and a half years ago. We have been honing our craft in rehearsal studios and playing gigs since."
Campos, whom Coones describes as "machine-gun fast," joined Attika 7 after completing his final tour with Static-X. While he also tours with Prong and Asesino, he likes to stay busy and get out of the house with other projects! "I wasn't really sure what I was going to do next," Campos told Noisecreep. "A few weeks later, I met the band's manager at a show. He emailed me the material and I thought it was cool. The following week, I met the guys and we got along great. Soon after, we started jamming."
Tony Campos has since been replaced by Evan Seinfeld (Biohazard).
There are not keyboards or programming in Attika 7 and there is only one guitarist, which is the main difference between this new project and his old one. Campos said, "Having only one guitar player that takes solos presents a new situation for me. I have to fill in parts where a rhythm guitar would normally be, so I'll kick in some distortion and play some chords on certain parts." He calls Attika 7 "straight up metal. It's not industrial metal, death metal or some other kind of fill in the blank metal. It's straightforward, no nonsense, 'put your head down and go' metal."
Serial Killer
Attika 7 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I’m gonna destroy
I can’t control myself
Not since I was a boy
Adrenaline’s building up
I’m gonna cause you pain
I ain’t got no mercy
Somebody’s goin’ down in a fit of Rage
Demons controlling me
My demons the things I’ve seen
Demons now you’re bleeding
Somebody’s goin’ down in a blood stain
The voices telling me
Somebody’s gonna die
My demons woken up
The fires burnin’ high
The killer deep inside me
Has broken out
I ain’t got no mercy
Somebody’s goin down in a fit of RAGE
By dawn tomorrow somebody’s gonna die
I can’t help myself
Don’t even ask me why
Demons are stirring up
Somebody’s goin down
I ain’t got no mercy
Somebody’s goin down in a fit of RAGE
The things I’ve seen
ATTIKA
SERIAL KILLER
The lyrics in Attika 7's song "Serial Killer" delve into the mind of a killer consumed by his demons and driven by an uncontrollable urge to destroy. The singer admits to having had this urge since he was a boy and feeling a building up of adrenaline before causing pain to his victim. He displays no mercy despite the voices in his head telling him that somebody is going to die. The killer deep inside has broken out and there is the certainty that somebody is going down in a fit of rage.
The reference to demons in the song could be taken metaphorically and link to the traumatic events of the singer's past that have scarred him and turned him into a monster, as he violently takes out his anger and hatred on others. These events may have turned into a perpetual cycle of destruction, with no end in sight. The song, therefore, highlights the dangers of unaddressed mental health issues and the catastrophic impact they may have on individuals and society as a whole.
Line by Line Meaning
I feel the comin urge
I am experiencing a strong, almost uncontrollable desire
I’m gonna destroy
I plan on causing severe damage or harm
I can’t control myself
I am unable to restrain my actions or thoughts
Not since I was a boy
This lack of control has been present since my childhood
Adrenaline’s building up
My body is preparing me for a fight or flight response
I’m gonna cause you pain
My intention is to inflict physical or emotional harm upon someone
I ain’t got no mercy
I have no concern or pity for others
Somebody’s goin’ down in a fit of Rage
Someone will suffer the consequences of my anger and aggression
Demons controlling me
I feel as though an outside force is influencing my actions
My demons the things I’ve seen
The trauma I have experienced in the past is still affecting me
Demons now you’re bleeding
I am projecting my own pain and suffering onto others
Somebody’s goin’ down in a blood stain
There will be violence and injury as a result of my actions
The voices telling me
I am hearing an inner voice or hallucinations that are leading me towards violence
Somebody’s gonna die
My actions will have fatal consequences for someone
My demons woken up
I am experiencing a resurgence of the trauma and pain from my past
The fires burnin’ high
My anger and aggression are intensifying
The killer deep inside me
There is a violent, murderous part of me that is emerging
Has broken out
I am no longer able to keep this violent part of myself under control
By dawn tomorrow somebody’s gonna die
There is a sense of urgency and inevitability to my violent actions
I can’t help myself
I am no longer able to resist my violent impulses
Don’t even ask me why
My motives or reasons for violence are irrational and beyond explanation
Demons are stirring up
I am experiencing a resurgence of my inner traumas and demons
Somebody’s goin down
Someone will be harmed or killed as a result of my actions
I ain’t got no mercy
I am completely devoid of compassion or empathy for others
Somebody’s goin down in a fit of RAGE
My violent and aggressive impulses will lead to someone's downfall
The things I’ve seen
The traumatic events from my past are haunting me and influencing my behavior
ATTIKA
This is the name of the band, possibly added as a personal signature or branding
SERIAL KILLER
The title of the song and a reference to the violent and murderous themes within its lyrics
Contributed by Evan B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@daniellerakowski6482
My husband seen yall at mayhem a while back. And ever since he’s been nothing but attika he says Evan and Rusty were his inspiration to pick the mic and guitar back up and shred and have fun doing it💯much love guys. Your music has helped him thru some of the darkest times of his life he’ll forever be thankful
@grimheathen5795
We need another album.
@shivananddoogees6016
Bad in 2017 I posted some of the lyrics to this song and my parents had the pastor come and have a one on one conversation with me..
@dalemaguire397
excellent rusty! ml&r 81 Canada! ! absolutely love the music guys
@ozzyfullers
You guys are awesome!
@alejolav7505
They don't pretend to be Biohazard 2.0. Good sound, good feeling, great song!
@danielmisner1524
How when the band was formed before Evan. All the songs but two were already written. And Evan is the second singer
@grandmabetty2411
What about listening them on Spotify? Why can't I find them there?
@Mrjtk777
awesome video cheers from greece!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Lordoftheflyfilms
I read or watched an interview where Rus said his back ground was blues. Id be interested to hear his acoustic stuff, and see if the band could go deeper into traditional death metal or into other genres like prog rock / psychedelic. Glad to see the creative stuff coming, i can relate to sitting in the hole wondering how the hell i will reach my rock star goals. Would be sick to see other guys like The Melvins, Mike Patton, Tom Waits get together with this group for a concept album.