Echoes of the Past: A Biography.

You see him on magazines often now days, you hear his voice on those CDs you cherish. His name has become a name of comfort to many, a name of admiration, a name of scorn, a name of the greatest form of worship. Why? The words this young man wrote and writes. The intensity with which he projects his voice, sometimes growling and fierce, others time soft, gentle, and sensuous. This is Davey Havok, lead singer and lyricist of the band AFI.

David Havok was born November 20th 1975 to an Italian Catholic family in Rochester, New York. When Davey was extremely young his birth father passed away, leaving him in the care of his Mother and grandparents whom he recalls living with for a time. Some memories Davey recalls is his grandfather giving him a spoon to sing into, "sing old 20s ," songs his relatives would implore, and Davey would. Davey's first album was AC/DC Black in Black. Little Davey so desperately wanted because an older child named Corey across the street had it. All this seemed to be little hints to Davey's love for music and fate from a young age. Soon Davey's Mother was led to California, a place that seemed the center and metropolis of everything that Davey would hold as the light and passion of his heart not too much later in life.

At five years old his Mother moved herself and her son to Sacramento, California. Along the way, or perhaps, he maybe the reason Mrs. Havok (xD, no last name giving) moved to California in the first place, Davey's mother remarried, and Davey met the man he would call his father for the rest of his life. Another new addition was added to Davey's life as well, a little brother. Davey also picked up new hobbies, such as skateboarding at eight years old involving him with what we call punk rock, because during Davey's childhood, punk rock and skateboarding went hand-in-hand.

As Davey grew his love for music did as well, and by the time he hit his teens, music was the center of his life. By this time, Davey's parents had upped and moved to Ukaih, California, a small Northern California town two hours North of San Francisco bay where he would meet the friends that would share his gravitation towards the world of music of the "freaks".

As a young child Davey had always been different to his recollection, having first tried on his Mother's makeup at merely five years old, but what truly set him apart was that he cared, he definitely was not like the other kids. Instead of loving sports, he loved music, instead of performing a mindless game of tossing a ball into a basket and avoiding plays of the other team, he performed in musicals such as Oliver Twist in grade 4.

Too gentle, too intense a boy. Davey's love for punk rock, hardcore, all alternative glorious rock sounds that game about around at the two digits of age were considered not appropriate to listen to only added to the ridicule he faced going through the oh so wonderful years of teenage drama in Ukaih. When Davey was growing up listening to what he did, looking like he did, he and whoever else was "like" him, got their arses kicked by A) the jocks, B) the metal heads (even if he listened to it himself) or, considering Ukaih was a small little town out in the middle of Northern California's more rural area, C) the rednecks.

Nope, being a "punk rocker" wasn't cool in the eighties, kids.

Before high school, Davey attended private Catholic school, but when the four final years of this trip we call childhood rolled around, specifically the teen years when we're discovering who we are, and what we want to be, they stuck him a public school. By this time, Davey was listening to everything from Black Flag to the Misfits, to the Smiths to so many more. Music was what his world revolved around, just like most kid's world's revolve around music today, or whatnot.

Others looked at him strangely, snarled at him for wearing Doc martins, having a devil lock, beat him up for looking "gay" and "faggot", called him obscene names, but that did not matter as long as he stayed true to him, as long he had his music and his friends. As well as his morals, at fifteen Davey claimed the straight edge movement began by Minor Threat's singer Ian MacKaye, whom as young Davey was, sick of seeing the destructiveness of scene take so many lives with abuse of alcohol, drugs, and whoring around. Straight edge, no alcohol, no drugs, no smoking, no fucking, if you want to get down to it.

In Davey's sophomore year of high school, December 1991 just turning sixteen he and some friends would enter into the world of their most beloved musicians. Out of a love of music, out of boredom of always skateboarding, fighting with red necks, they decided to make music or at least try to make music of their own. Little did Davey or the friend who stayed loyal to the band all the way up to this point know, where this wisp of a band, a tribute to their world, would go.

The four young boys sat around a lunch table in Ukiah high school, Davey one of them, Adam Carson another, in the company of Vick Chalker and Mark Stopholese. Each boy chose their position in the band according to personality, rather than actual ability to play. Davey naturally ended up with singing, seeing as he was in the drama club, had formally been in choir and many musicals. The band we all know and love now days more than any other was conceived.

AFI got kicked off, Davey, Adam, Vic, and Mark ploying off their first small releases on anyone and everyone. Until graduation, AFI struggled as most young bands do, until breaking up when three of the boys graduated. Davey went to college at Berkeley (He must have had the a Gpa of like, 3.8 or higher. O_O)

The guys went their separate ways until December of 1993, where the few fans AFI had gathered in their first years convinced them to play a reunion show at the Phoenix Theater, over 200 kids came. The response they received was the event that sealed Davey's life path. He wanted to sing in a band, not work some dull job that would bring him to an unhappy end. The band forged forward, Davey and the rest of the band seemingly willing to do this until they died. Not long after the reunion that would lead Davey and Adam into their life long work, Vic, the founding bassist up and relinquished his place in the band, and another friend by the name of Geoff Kresge came in and replaced him as bassplayer, playing on AFI's first two full length albums, Answer that and Stay Fashionable (1995) and Very Proud of Ya (1996).

Afterwards in 1997, Geoff left the band, and a temporary bassist was hired to play on AFI's up and coming third album Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes. Hunter Burgan, who played in the Frisk, was hired as the recording and touring bassist until a permanent one was found, however AFI decided he was the permanent bassist and asked him to become a full time member.

Again in the following year, there was another line up switch, the one that would give us the current AFI lineup. Due to undisclosed reasons, other than Mark showing no interest in the band or music any longer, according to Davey, Mark was asked to leave. A long time friend, and a constantly thanked person in AFI's thank you notes in their album booklets was asked to jump aboard. Jade Puget agreed to play for AFI. Jade Puget's guitar was first heard on a full length AFI album on 1999's Black Sails in the Sunset, the turning point of the band music and career towards its singer's fascination with the darker side of life. Most fans today credit AFI's final turning point into becoming what it is today with Jade's arrival.

AFI was thrusted into many tours in late 1998 and 1999, stopping only to make yet another record, the record people say brought AFI on the road to choosing a major label, 2000's The Art of Drowning. As for Davey, he became something of an underground super star as AFI exploded in the underground. More touring ensued until it came time for AFI to hit the studios again. Dexter Holland however, was the one who advised them that Nitro (AFI's former label) no longer could offer the band's need, their success was expanding, more and more people were hearing them, they were on the road to be renowned. AFI took their old friend's advice and began a search for a major label that they believed would supply them with what they needed, but at the same time not fuck with their creative freedom.

They found what they sought with Dreamworks, and signed on. In 2002 they hit the studio and by March of 2003 their sixth full-length album, Sing the Sorrow took media by surprise and dragged many new adoring fans into the music's grasp. No longer a punk rock band, no longer a hardcore band, AFI had branched out far from their roots to get in touch with the other types of rock the boys, as individuals loved. AFI was now simply rock and roll. And no longer underground, but not exactly what one might call mainstream either.

We all know what happens, Davey continues to throw himself fully into his music, performing and writing with the intensity and emotion of a man possessed.

Davey went on to be a singer and a lyricist who accomplished more than just albums and vocal feats live, but touched people deeply with his other skill and love, writing lyrics for songs. His words have pulled many back from the brink of death, the brink of insanity. Why? You decide for yourself next time you listen to one of your AFI albums. The rest as they say is history.

-Written by Decaying God.
(All info gathered from various interviews, Davey Havok was not stalked or harassed in the writing of this bio. ^.^;)