Interview:Zepp Savini Interview by Adam De Ville

Zepp Savini Interview by Adam De Ville
Interview with Zepp Savini
Date	unknownTemplate:Unconfirmed
Source	Collide, pt. 1, pt. 2
Interviewer	Marilyn Manson Photography: Torbjørn Rødland Stylist: Mel Ottenberg

What would it be like to tour with one of the biggest and most controversial rock acts ever during the highest points of their career? I spoke to Zepp Savini, a name you're probably not familiar with. That is, unless, you've seen the backstage footage from Marilyn Manson's Dead to the World or God is in the TV tours - in which Manson can be heard screeching "Where's Zepp at!?". As Zepp tells us, this is a phrase he heard daily during the seven years he spent as Manson's personal assistant.

Where are you from and how did you get into music?

I was born in 1964 in Reading, Pennsylvania. It's the place Monopoly got Reading Railroad from. At around age 10 I became interested in digging through my mother's record collection and soon found myself listening to Janis Joplin and The Chambers Brothers. By the time I was approaching my teens, I discovered The Beatles, and when I turned 13 I discovered KISS and it was all over.

I would paint my face up and wear the high heel shoes that a neighborhood girl gave me, and I'd walk down to the corner candy store dressed like Ace or Gene or Peter. I don't recall doing Paul's star, I think it was too plain for my taste. Anyway, my bedroom was plastered in KISS posters for many years. That was the '70's.

Where did the nickname Zepp come from?

Well, as the end of the '70's approached, I expanded into AC/DC, Blue Oyster Cult, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. When I was about 18, I began to hang out at a local mall where some kids would gather at a nearby pavilion to smoke pot. These were the days when boom boxes were common. I had an 8-track and a cassette version, and I would frequent this weed smoking den, always with music in hand - and it just so happened that at that particular time,

I owned more Led Zeppelin tapes than anything else. When I wasn't around, or hadn't shown up yet, the other kids would say "where's that Zepp dude?". That's how it started. My first tattoo was Jimmy Page's ZOSO rune and contrary to what it says in Marilyn Manson's autobiography, it's NOT regrettable. In fact, I currently have about 40 tattoos and I refuse to cover the ZOSO. It's extremely symbolic. Of course I still love all those bands, but when 80's metal hit, I dove in head first. Then came Death Metal, then came Grind. Always the heavy stuff, it was my first choice. That said, my music collection is very, very diverse. There isn't much that I do not listen to when the time is right. You gotta be broad or else you lock yourself into a single style and that doesn't allow for expansion or exploration.

How did you first meet Manson and start working with the band?

In 1994 I was going through a deep Nine Inch Nails addiction when I read that Trent started his own label and signed a new band. Because of my intense respect for his genius, I figured any band that he would sign had to be superior - so I bought Portrait of an American Family and that CD stayed in my player for a year straight! Sometimes I would listen to it all day, over and over. Then I saw Marilyn Manson open for Nine Inch Nails and began to follow them around the northeast United States trying to catch as many shows as possible.

Those early shows were so intense. The level of violence and creepiness, coupled with the Satanic elements, really drew me in and the guys in the band sort of freaked me out. There was an element of the unknown that I feared and it created a curiosity that I found myself compelled to examine. On a very cold December night in Philadelphia, I decided to wait in the parking lot after a Nine Inch Nails/Marilyn Manson show at The Spectrum to see if I could make contact with any band members as they left the venue in hopes of getting a snapshot. Determined as I was, I waited until finally at 3:30am, Marilyn Manson himself and Twiggy Ramirez came walking out to get in an old white van they travelled in. This was our first meeting. I got the snapshot I wanted along with a complimentary Dope Hat baseball cap. I was ecstatic. So I enlarged the photo from that night into an 8x10, and showed up at another show seeking a paint pen autograph on it. I got it, plus I got another picture, which I again enlarged and repeated the whole process over, each time grabbing another picture to get autographed next time around.

It was always really strange because obviously it's mostly always girls who got backstage, but for some reason the manager at the time, Frankie, was cool to me, and every time I was backstage and in the presence of the band members, I didn't really say or do much, so none of them minded or became annoyed by my presence.

I'd kind of just chill out, sip on beers and act like it was no big deal although inside I was probably losing my mind. When the Nine Inch Nails / Marilyn Manson tour was over there was a break where Marilyn Manson was preparing to embark on the Smells Like Children Tour of 1995. During that period I used a cheap black and white video camera to record myself in my living room lip syncing to Get Your Gunn. I was dressed a bit like Manson and it really was nothing special except for the fact that for some unknown reason, I appeared semi-invisible in the video and you could actually see right through my body to objects that were behind me! It was like magic or something. At the end of the song I held up a card with my telephone number on it, then I mailed the tape into the Official Marilyn Manson Fan Club in Florida.

A few weeks later I woke up one morning and went to check my messages on the answering machine, and one of the messages was someone claiming to be Marilyn Manson. The caller went on to say that it was late and I was probably sleeping, but he hoped that when I woke up, that I would find my bed filled with little black boys trying to molest me or something to that effect. In all honesty I actually thought it was Manson himself and because of my phone number on the video - it wasn't hard to put 2 and 2 together. But he left no return number and I spent the next few weeks basically sitting by the phone day and night waiting for him to possibly call back. He did. I was there to answer it, and the rest is history.

When the tour started I went to a bunch of shows, each time getting access to the band before and after the shows. One of those times Manson wanted to know if I'd use his personal Hi8 Camcorder and film the show, because he was interested in reviewing the footage from an audience perspective. That one night turned into many nights, which turned into me traveling on their tour bus up and down the east coast. The whole thing was truly indescribable. But after about a month of poor hygiene and a terrible road food I came down with the flu and at a show about 75 miles from where I lived, I abandoned ship and let them finish the tour without me.

I never really knew what to make of the experience, but I did know that If they ever called me again, I'd do it all over in a heartbeat. Needless to say, they did call again, and the same thing happened - soon I was put on the payroll. It was an absolutely exhilarating feeling when I received my first paycheck with "Marilyn Manson Incorporated" stamped on it! That's the long story. The short version is, I was just a dedicated fan who was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, with a little known band that was about to explode on the scene.

Did you have an official title during your time with Marilyn Manson and what would a typical work day consist of for you?

I suppose my first title was videographer. When the Dead to the World Tour began in 1996 I was listed in the official itinerary book as Manson's Assistant and Wardrobe. At one point, I think maybe during Mechanical Animals, I was listed as Satan's Little Helper. I wore so many hats through the years that just plain Zepp was my true title. I mean, I was always the Dressing Room Coordinator, but was never listed as such. I was Manson's assistant, band assistant, dressing rooms, wardrobe, live-show-clothing-quick-changer and gag support, luggage porter, laundry boy, hot girl gatherer and so on. When I lived with Manson and Twiggy in Hollywood I was also the errand boy and dog sitter. Many, many times over the years I was referred to as The Hardest Working Man in Rock-n-Roll by people in the business who had seen and done a hell of a lot more than me, so I figured they were probably telling the truth.

I was very naive about the whole business so I just worked my ass off non-stop 24/7. It became extremely stressful as time went on. Manson always expected perfection and I was hell bent on delivering it. Some of the toughest experiences were the quick changes between songs during the live shows. The song ends, the lights go out, and you have about 90 seconds to get Manson out of one outfit and into another by the dim illumination of flashlights. The normal routine was for him to come off stage screaming and flailing about some sound or lighting issue, arms swinging around and legs kicking - and the whole time you're trying to undress and redress him for the next song. Try strapping stilts on someone who's super pissed off. Or buttoning up a shirt on someone who's throwing punches into the air. It ain't easy. That was my life for 7 years.

Off-stage Manson is usually calm and reserved, but during the shows he becomes possessed and turns into a violent raging lunatic. Anything goes and everyone was fair game. There were many times I feared for my life or at least serious injury from flying mic stands and whatnot. You had to really pay attention every single second. He pissed a lot of people off and there were times I'd give late night pep talks to the crew in order to keep morale up. I'd tell them not to take anything personal, that we were selling tickets in good numbers and if Manson had to become the Tasmanian Devil on stage in order present those songs in the fashion they were meant to be presented, then so be it. The way he acted on stage was indeed the best way to perform those songs. If someone got caught in the crossfire, it was par for the course.

Did you do any drugs in Marilyn Manson's infamous "White Room" at his home in Laurel Canyon?

No. All my drug days were long gone by that point. I smoked a lot of excellent Californian skunk bud while I lived there but that's it. Long before I met Manson I had some serious issues with old school meth. Not like the shit that's out there today, but addictive nonetheless. Of course, I did a lot of cocaine too when the speed wasn't around - so by the time I arrived at the Manson camp, I had learned some hard lessons in life and was determined not to repeat those mistakes. I remember one night in 1995, I did a line of coke with Manson after being clean for a few years and it made me feel horrible. I knew right then and there that I had to stay strong. And I did. It's a big misconception with many people that I must have done some hard partying with the boys, but in reality I was basically sober except for some smoking. I had to be. There was way too much to do on a daily basis. A habit would have fucked that all up.