Big thanks goes out to Marko for taking the time to answer our questions, and to Lisa for setting it up.
Lisa: why is it coming out on fearless records?
Marko: Our label Ultimatum bought Fearless, but I’m pretty sure our record is coming out on Ultimatum through the same label that worked on our last album, Artemis. I don’t worry too much about all the label politics. As long as our records get into stores and we can stay on tour we’re happy.
Lisa: how did you end up opening for simple plan?
Marko: They are fans of our band and asked us to do the tour; we thought it would be a good way to get in front of some younger kids that may not have checked out our band yet; and show them what a rock band sounds like and smells like! We also were stoked to hear that MXPX and Motion City Soundtrack, who we have a lot of respect for, were going to be on the tour.
Lisa: what are your plans for after the simple plan tour?
Marko: Tim and I are flying to Japan to do some interviews and some acoustic shows, then we get home for a week or so to get our shit together for the release of Palm Trees… in April. Next we hope to do a full US headlining tour and get back to Japan and Europe all before summer kicks off; then it’s really party time all summer with the Warped Tour family!
Lisa: what got you inspired in making music?
Marko: When I was a kid it was bands on TV and in record stores that put rockstar dreams in my head. However it wasn’t until I was like 13 or so that I started going to local punk shows all the time that I realized it was something anyone could do if they put their mind and heart into it. Lots of bands from my town (NOFX, RKL, Lagwagon, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Snot, Mad Caddies, Ataris, etc) started out in the streets of Santa Barbara and worked their way to international success; they made the dream seem like something you could actually achieve.
Lisa: What cds are in your cd player now?
Marko: I listen to all kinds of stuff. Right now I’ve been really into the new Death Cab for Cutie album, and their singer’s side project Postal Service. I love the Flaming Lips. We’ve been freaking over how amazing that Led Zeppelin DVD is. I bought a cool Mikey Dread bootleg CD of reggae stuff (he is a rasta who worked with the Clash in the 70s). I’m kind of a history buff, I like re-discovering old music. As far as new rock music: Maxeen, Motion City Soundtrack, Jackson, the Matches, the Bronx and Communique are some promising new bands that come to mind.
Lisa: if you could open for any band who would it be and why?
Marko: The Rolling Stones because they are the last of the original crop of great bands that are still standing (and in my opinion the best!) That would be the highest honor of being a band, to have played with the Stones, even though they haven’t made a good record since 1982 (then again, who has? Just kidding.)
Lisa: if you could meet any person dead or alive who would it be and why
M: I’d like to meet one of my ancestors from like 500 years ago and see what we have in common; like I wonder if they too hated cucumbers and Mountain Dew like me. I wonder if they’d laugh at the jokes on Three’s Company or Seinfeld? Maybe they’d have some cool music to turn me on to, I’d make a good mix CD for them but I guess I’d have to give them a CD player and a lot of batteries in order for them to play it in their era! I wouldn’t mind hitting the sack with Marilyn Monroe, pre-decapitation Jayne Mansfield or 80’s era Madonna either!
Lisa: what was it like having bands open for you?
Marko: It’s cool to help other bands get in front of an audience. So many bands took a chance on us and helped us out when we were just getting started, so we feel like it’s our duty to do the same now that people come to our shows. The only downside to headlining is that you get off stage with all of this adrenaline and energy…. and then everyone goes home!
Lisa: where do you predict sugarcult to be in the next 10 years?
Marko: We only want to last as long as the quality of our music and shows last, because those are the things we exist for in the first place. As long as it’s still fun and feels right we’ll do this. Too many bands overstay their welcome and run out of ideas and keep going. Hopefully we can be like the Chili Peppers and No Doubt and keep reinventing ourselves and keeping our band fresh and exciting; otherwise fuck it!
Lisa: what upcoming band would you say is the "next big thing" and why?
Marko: I think the Used has only scratched the surface of where they can go as a band; they’ve been lumped in with all the pop-hardcore/screamo/what-have-you bands, but I think they are going to out last their contemporaries in the way Pearl Jam did with the grunge scene. As far as the ‘next big thing’, I don’t know anymore there are so many bands that are out there working hard and so many ways for people to discover music, that ‘big things’ don’t really matter any more! Size doesn’t matter, it’s how you work it!
Lisa: what was the greatest show you'd ever played; where and why?
Marko: In recent memory; the Reading Festival ’03 in England was a blast playing alongside a bunch of our friends’ bands on the same stage as legends like Primal Scream and Metallica; Summersonic Festival in Japan where we played with Radiohead, the Doors, Blondie, the Strokes, Mars Volta, etc. It’s always special to play in another country. I still remember how much fun it was when we played on the lawn outside a temple in Brooklyn in the rain, on some local band’s gear that was good old punk rock fun…til the cops showed up!
Lisa: If it weren't for sugarcult, where do you think you (personally) would be right now?
Marko: I’d probably be in another band working my ass off. Music is the only thing I love enough to keep doing year after year and working so hard for.
Lisa: do you have any special messages for your fans?
Marko: Taking history is as important as making history. What I mean by that is; remember to learn from bands in the past, but don’t live in their shadows or let their music discourage you from doing it too. The music in your scene is important and is the soundtrack to your life and the future so if you want to rock…just go for it! See you at the shows.
Peace (but not in a hippie sort of way!),
Marko 72 (Sugarcult)
For More Information:
• Official Site: www.sugarcult.com