Mark of 1000 Evils Q&A

Your name:

Dan (Donald).

Where are you from?

Stockport, South Manchester.

Name of band:

Mark of 1000 Evils.

Who else is in your band?

We've got Andy on bass and Ben on drums.

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

It's rock music. We don't really has aspirations to be like any particular band or sub-genre. It's whatever comes out. We're all into rocky stuff so most of the time it'll go through that filter.

We're a three-piece to keep the sound tight, keep things simple but we don't always have to be that way. 

Who are your main influences musically?

For myself, I grew up in my Dad's record shop so when I was little I was into more of the stuff going on at the time than my friends were like The Police, The Cure, The Smiths... seemingly bands that started with 'The'. When was in my mid-teens a work friend of my Mum's got me into the stuff coming out of Seattle in the early 90s just in time to see it all blow up so I was into a lot of bands from that explosion, not just the big bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden: Mudhoney, Tad, Screaming Trees as well as others from around that time like Sonic Youth.

What do you hope to achieve in music?

Personally, I just want to be able to make music - to vent whatever wants to come out. I only really think one step ahead with what the band should do but playing some kind of festival, improving the quality of what we put out each time is about all I want. Having an audience would be an achievement.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

I think were at that point now. For me, having confidence over doing vocals was a big one. I think as a band we're more confident so going in to record was a great experience and we're up for trying videos...maybe work on an album. That makes a big difference.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Not sure there's been one yet. The time we didn't have a drummer for a while is something I want to remember - that feeling that maybe the band won't happen so make the most of it when things are right is important.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

At the moment, the last of the three singles we're putting out, 'Hopes & Codes' does that. I think it's big, it's loud and quiet, it's intimate and epic. I'm really happy with the way it turned out.

Where can we listen to it?

Hopes & Codes won't be out for a couple of months but Immune, our current single is all over digital stores. Listen at SoundCloud (https://soundcloud.com/markof1000evils/immune) or check out the DIY music video we made for it on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO9t8JCO8o8).

Where can we find out more about your music?

Facebook: http://facebook.com/markof1000evils
iTunes: https://itun.es/gb/jcND6
Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/track/3p3w6SH4gkwqKajzyteBhR
YouTube: https://youtu.be/XO9t8JCO8o8
BandCamp: http://markof1000.bandcamp.com

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/markof1000evils

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask?

Just that we're getting started. We've got 100s of demos to play with which cover a range of sounds. Who knows what'll come next? We're hoping to work on an album later in the year so give us a follow and see what happens!

Small Green Invasion Q&A

Your names:

Harry Wilkinson (drummer/part-time guitarist), Callum Beesley (bassist) and Liam Laurence (guitarist/part-time drummer/lead vocalist).

Where are you from?

Home grown from Manchester, Stockport, UK.

Name of band:

Small Green Invasion – Strange name right? We’ve gone through many, horrible ridiculous names like Melting Chords, Liquid Sunshine, 5 Girls Like It, The Moonies, we could continue all night…WHAT WERE WE THINKING?!

Small Green Invasion stuck after a while, we thought it to be rather interesting and unique. Standing out from the crowd... We hope!

How would you describe yourselves?

Slap bass on top off powerful drums, rounded off with punky guitar riffs and in your face vocals. A previous promoter has described us as “Well good for their age”, as at 15 we are regularly playing gigs each month and have released a music video and a five-track EP called Look At Me.

Who are your main influences musically?

Each member of the band is musically influenced by various genres and artists, like our bassist for example is very influenced by jazz and Victor Wooten’s slap bass, as well as reggae! Whereas Liam is more influenced by American rock, like the Chilis, Nirvana etc. Then there’s Harry who’s into funk, punk and everything in-between. So quite a lot of influences in there!

What do you hope to achieve in music?

The stereotypical answer would be to put how we’re “Not bothered about making it big, we would just like to play music for a living” which of course would be amazing, but truth is we would like to make it huge, the next Beatles! Why not?

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

It would have to be releasing our new EP. Everyone who’s bought one loves it! It sounds like a bit of a cliché, but it feels good to have a product of our own music which we can hold and be proud of. It doesn’t sound bad either, even if we do say ourselves!

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Any of the previous band names listed above, we never want to remember them. Ever.

If you had to choose just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Musically, Funny Guy represents us as a band. Aggressive, funky drumming,  fast trippy bass lines, dirty guitar lines and powerful vocals. The song Empty Hearts also describes us lyrically, using metaphors to disguise the true meaning of the song, leaving it to the fans interpretation.

Where can we listen to it?

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIsT69tipts (Music Video – Plastic Faces)

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/smallgreeninvasion (Funny Guy, Look At Me EP)

We hope to be on iTunes soon!

Where can we find out more about your music?

Check us out on:

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Smallgreeninvasion

Twitter - @smallGinvasion

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/smallgreeninvasion

Strangeways Q&A

Your names:
Simon Collier (rhythm guitar/vocals), Alex Jenner (drums) and Rick Howe (lead guitar).

Where are you from?
We're all from Stockport, England. Well Jenner's from Reading originally but he's an adopted Northerner.

Name of band:
Strangeways.

How would you describe yourselves?
Ourselves as people? We'd like to think we're pretty laid back, we wanna have fun with music and just enjoy it. As for our sound, probably something like psychedelic rock'n'roll.

Who are your main influences musically?
Rick: Paul Kossoff, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmore.
Jenner: Adam Ficek and Gary Powell made me want to start drumming.
Simon: Pete Doherty made me want to start writing songs, but as for sound wise, there's way too many to list.

What do you hope to achieve in music?
We just want to have fun, play gigs, record songs that people enjoy. If it leads to a career that'll be a massive bonus to it all.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?
We've not been around too long but probably the reaction to our few songs on soundcloud, oh and our time at No.1 on Square Pigs's Chart.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?
So far there's nothing, we've only been together just over a month, let's hope we never have an answer to this question.

If you could choose just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?
That's a tough one, all our songs represent different aspects of our music so it hard to choose one. Maybe Scumbag, or Beautifully Wired. Or Cold Blooded Murder haha.

Where can we listen to it?
Right here, www.soundcloud.com/strangewaysmusic



Where can we find out more about your music?
Our twitter is @StrangewaysManc
Facebook www.facebook.com/StrangewaysUK
YouTube StrangewaysMusicManc

Anything else you’d like to say about your band that I forgot to ask?
We'll be gigging around May/June so keep checking our twitter/Facebook to find 
out when! Also, thanks very much for the interview!