How Daniel Davey Became Dani Filth

June 1999. How does a seemingly normal lad from Hartford end up fronting Britain's premier black metal band, screaming blasphemies and filming a video surrounded by dwarves and amputees? Malcolm Dome heads to Hadleigh to discover what shaped the diminutive vocalist

Vincent Furnier has always known where Alice Cooper ends and reality starts. Brian Warner, on the other hand, occasionally struggles to control his Marilyn Manson persona. But that's the price you have to pay for having a strong image, and many hand themselves over to the diabolic demon of egoism if it ensures success. But in the long run, such measures can backfire dramatically, and leave performers wasting away mentally in the shadows between the stage and the supermarket. So where does Cradle Of Filth frontman Dani Filth stand? Is he in control of his life? Or has the reflection in the mirror of rock illusion become his addictive narcotic?

'Do you really think I walk around the streets here smashing things up and generally acting like a maniac?' says the Filth man, sitting in the front room of his neat house in Hadleigh, a sleepy Suffolk town.

'Onstage, I can get away with it, because that is what is expected of me and the adrenalin is pumping. But away from the band, I do not go around festooned with blood and make-up, trying to look evil. That would be ridiculous. I do know where to draw the line.

'The people in this town know who I am and what I do, but they're fine with that. I go out shopping and to the launderette just like any other person would. And if a Cradle Of Filth fan were to come up to me in the launderette and say, 'I can't believe you're in here,' all I'd say is, 'Hey, I wash my clothes just like everyone else.'

'There are very few times when my rock 'n' roll persona comes to the surface when I'm at home. It seems to happen at the post office more than anywhere else, because fans will keep writing to me as 'Dani Filth' and putting stupid messages on the front of envelopes like, 'This letter contains an explosive.' So, I have to go down to the post office and pick up the letters. The staff down there are used to it now, and they find it all very amusing. But to me, it's irritating. I wish fans would stop doing things like that.'

Make no mistake, the public Dani Filth only represents a small part of Daniel Davey (yes, that's his real name), an articulate, focussed and determined man of our time.

The oldest of four children - 'I have two sisters and a brother. There are two-year gaps between all of us' - Dani was born in Hartford, and openly admits that his upbringing was, 'A tad normal. But that's why I enjoyed it so much. My life as a kid was just so good. I moved around a bit. We - my parents, sisters and brother - also lived in Woodbridge, London and Ipswich. I feel I was lucky, in that my parents always allowed me to express myself and never forced me to do anything. That's not to say I didn't get the occasional bollocking, but only when I deserved it. Basically, my parents wanted the best for me.'

Dani not only had the advantage of enlightened parents, but he also lived in a creative environment. 'My parents were into art and literature, so I always had these things close to hand. In fact, it was my father who introduced me to the dark side of life when he allowed me to read his collection of Dennis Wheatley novels.

'It wasn't that my dad was particularly interested in horror books, but he just had them around the house, and didn't have a problem when I started getting into them. My dad had all sorts of weird things in his book and record collection. He even bought and sold reggae records at one time!'

Dani took education very seriously, and always made sure that he got his homework done.

'I was something of a swot at school. I was always determined to get my qualifications and pass exams. That's not to say I didn't get up to any pranks. On one occasion, a mate and I were smoking and we nearly burned down the gym! Fortunately, we got away with that one. And I was nearly expelled another time, because I'd put a load of sharp objects in a pencil case - they were actually hanging out of the case - and I threw it to a mate as a lark. But it hit the teacher. She was a Pakistani teacher, although that had nothing to do with it hitting her - my aim was just bad. Unfortunately, there was a compass point sticking out and that stuck in her forehead!'

It was while attending a private school that Dani heard his first blast of metal. 'I'd originally gotten into early-'80s music like Ultravox, and then somebody gave me a compilation tape featuring bands like Iron Maiden, Exodus and Stormwitch - and I loved it. There were just the two of us at that school into metal, which made us stand out a bit from the crowd. But when I left and went to secondary school, it seemed half the year liked that sort of music.'

Dani got his nose pierced when he was 15, and also tried drugs at an early age.

'It was no big deal, really. I smoked some pot and took mushrooms. Doesn't every kid? And I enjoyed them both. I know that some kids are sick or have bad reactions when they first smoke or take drugs, but that's actually very rare. I suppose you could say that this was my teenage rebellion time. It seemed so back then, anyway.'

Today, Dani remains on particularly good terms with his mother, and is especially pleased that his family are supportive of his chosen path.

'My parents divorced about five years ago. It was no big deal. They both seemed happier that way, and so it was the natural thing for them to do. There were no traumas. I see my mum all the time, and she gets everything the band releases and has been totally behind me in what I'm trying to do. My older sister is doing a dance course at the moment, and one of the things she's doing is a thesis on freaks. She's interviewed people like Jim Rose [from the Jim Rose Circus] and Doctor Haze from the Circus Of Horrors. And when we shot the video recently for our new single 'From The Cradle To Enslave', because we had a load of dwarves and amputees on set, she came down and interviewed some of them. But her favourite bands are The Jellys, SNFU and Lagwagon - not us!

'As for the rest of my family, one of my uncles is an area manager for Barclays Bank and another runs a B&Q store. I get on fine with them, but they have selective amnesia. They seem to ignore what I do, because it's not something they're comfortable dealing with. I also have about 50 cousins, including some who are very religious. But again, I don't have any rows with them over Cradle Of Filth, because they also seem to be afflicted by this selective amnesia.'

Dani was inspired by Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson and Venom's Cronos to think seriously about becoming a vocalist. However, his first band were more punk than anything else.

'We were called The Lemon Grove Kids, after a film by Russ Meyer. Of course, we didn't get very far, although we weren't bad. The thing is, although I was into metal, living in the Ipswich area I would also hang around with loads of crusties and punk kids. This was a really thriving area for that type of music. We had Extreme Noise Terror down here, as well as Deviated Instinct. And don't forget that John Peel also lives around here

'Every year, there would be a crusty-type festival down here and I would go along with my mates and drink loads of cider. So I was also getting into that sort of music. I also loved the brightly coloured T-shirts of bands like The Misfits. In fact, I still wear them occasionally!'

Leaving school with two A levels - English and Art - Dani intended to pursue a course in journalism. But fate decreed another road lay ahead.

'I had my dream of being in a band, but I was also anchored to the real world. That's why I got those two A levels, because that's what I needed to get on the course. So, when I started up Cradle Of Filth I never lost sight of the fact that the chances of making it were slim. I am practical like that.

'But while studying, I was getting ?20 a week pocket money from my parents, and whatever I was making from a Saturday job. I blew the lot on booze and having a good time, as most teenagers do. And then I saw mates of mine who'd left school, and they were getting far more money on the dole. So I justhis profile has increased - he must surely now rank as the most recognisable face in black metal circles - so he has found himself in the dock on a number of issues, including the thorny subject of racism...

'I am not a racist, no way,' he insists. 'Sometimes things I've said have been taken out of context by certain parts of the media. Recently, I was quoted as saying that I thought there should be birth control, but the way it was presented made it look like I was talking about birth control only for black people, and that therefore I had extreme right wing sympathies. So let me put the record straight on this: yes, I do believe that the world is getting so overpopulated that we need to exercise birth control. But I mean everyone: whites, blacks, Asians, Muslims, Christians... all of us! Of course, I had to open my big mouth and suddenly I'm painted as being this right wing nutter, which I am not! I do have strong views on certain sensitive subjects, though. For instance, I think paedophiles should be put to death... well, maybe I am being extreme there. Perhaps what I mean to say is that they need help. But with a child of my own, I would not be happy if one moved in next door to me!

'Part of the reason why some people seem to think I'm racist is because I live in a small Suffolk town with a population of just 7000, rather than in a big city. But just because there are not many ethnic minorities around here - we do have two Turks who run the local kebab shop - doesn't mean I find it difficult to deal with multi-cultural society. I do have a television, which keeps me in touch with the outside world, and I spend a lot of time in London as well. London's only an hour on the train from here, so I'm not cut off.

'I think sometimes how we behave can seem a bit odd to people outside. For instance, on the set of the video for 'From The Cradle...', we did have dwarves and amputees wandering all over the place. A lot of people might think that we're exploiting their disabilities, but they have a great quality of life. They're in videos and movies with top stars and have a lot of fun. In fact, during a break in filming, we had the odd situation where one of the dwarves was taking the piss out of a biker amputee. It might seem sick to some, but it seemed so natural in the context of the environment, and everyone had a good laugh. That's what I mean about context: sometimes the most reasonable of comments or attitudes can be made to seem disgusting when taken out of the situation in which it was made.'

Dani also faces constant accusations that he is a control freak who can be difficult to work with. But he admits that this is part of his nature.

'Yes, I suppose I am in a way, especially when it comes to dealing with people around the band, rather than members of Cradle Of Filth. But that's because I expect people to do their jobs properly, and to their logical conclusion. I do not suffer fools gladly. When it comes to the band, I look after all the merchandising business and the lyrical side of the band, but when it comes to the music, we all have an equal say. You try telling the people in this band what to do! We are all so strong-willed it wouldn't work.

'You know, for some reason, people think we constantly change line-up, but that's not true. Three of the band walked out a few years ago, but that aside all we've done is recruit Lecter on keyboards. That is, until Nick Barker left us recently. But, and I have to be careful here, while we're disappointed to lose Nick as a friend, his departure has taken a lot of the... er, tension out of Cradle Of Filth. Dave Hirschheimer, our new drummer, is so good and there's a new togetherness in the band. I just find it odd that Nick's joined Dimmu Borgir. He used to think all Norwegians were wankers. But perhaps he's changed his mind.'

For Dani, Cradle Of Filth is very much the focus of his professional attention. But he does now have a family to support, not only long-term girlfriend Toni ('We met eight years ago, when we were at sixth-form college,' reveals Dani), but also baby daughter Luna.

'I am very fortunate that Cradle Of Filth have done well enough financially for me to be comfortable. I'm not saying that I'm rich, but at least I have no financial worries. And I know that I can give Luna everything in life she needs. My mum recently said that I should get Luna christened because that way I can get her into a Church Of England school, which will be of great benefit to her. But I don't want to do that. I'll make sure she gets a proper education.'

So how does Dani the family man deal with life on the road, and its myriad temptations to stray?

'Simple. We are too focussed to get involved in all the peripheral shit that happens on the road. It may sound weird, but we spend so much time making sure things with the show are sorted out that we have no time for anything else.'

Amazingly, the concept of marriage isn't far from Dani's thoughts, either...

'Toni and I have talked about it. I'd like a big wedding with hundreds of people, but maybe that would be too weird. I know there will be people reading this who would be surprised that I can think so conventionally about things. But while Cradle Of Filth preach about an alternative lifestyle, what we're saying is that if you believe in yourself anything is possible. Just do what you want to do. There's nothing sinister in that.

'I feel very fortunate that I found something I'm good at so early in life. There might be someone reading this who has the potential to become a champion hang-glider, but has never had the chance to do it. So what we're saying is never be afraid to try something different.

'One of my best mates is a traveller. He never has any money, but he's happy that way. Who am I, or anyone else for that matter, to tell him he's wrong. He has a niche in life, which more than a lot of people find.'

But where do Cradle Of Filth go from here? Is there a Filth masterplan to conquer the universe and all related dimensions?

'We have achieved so many of our original goals with this band already. But we do want to get as big as we can. No, there's no game plan. I have no secret ideas up my sleeve. But I do believe that we've only scratched the surface. Look, you take somebody like Stephen King. He went from being a peripheral author to selling millions of books. And everyone wants to know what James Herbert's next novel is going to be like. He even gets mainstream attention on television. In a way, we are the musical equivalent. Put us on Top Of The Pops alongside the Spice Girls and we'd win over a lot of people. Because when rock and metal bands appear on shows like that, they really stand out. I remember when Motorhead first played on Top Of The Pops. I became a fan instantly, because they were so exciting.

'I'm not saying that we could ever sell as many CDs as somebody like Stephen King or James Herbert sells books, but loads of people are into the dark side of life, and we can definitely grow bigger. I suppose at the moment we are the biggest-selling black metal band around. I wouldn't say we are the best, just the biggest. But the odd thing is that I don't even consider us to be a black metal band any more.

'Just what is counted as 'black metal' these days? People think Burzum are black metal, but [Burzum mainman] Varg Vikernes makes fucking Bontempi music now. Perhaps he's had his head bashed too many times against the shower wall in jail, while being rogered!'

Away from contemplating the many potential uses for Norwegian custodial shower facilities, Dani has been formulating plans of his own, beyond the Cradle Of Filth universe.

'I'd like to write a book, although that's a long way off happening. I think that I'm clever enough to do something like that, but at the moment all my creative energies are concentrated on the band. One day, though...'