MARK FOGGO WITH THE HOTKNIVES INTERVIEW
Bosky from The Hotknives & Mark Foggo answer some question about their upcoming tour and poject:
Who is the initiator of the Idea to make this inimitable tour together with one program and
how was the reaction of the involved parties?
Bosky: - The idea came from a conversation backstage at the Sunny Bastards festival in
February. We were talking about the logistics of playing in Spain (we met up there last year)
and suggested that we might do a tour there as a package. Spain isn’t on this tour, but it’s a
start! We’re all Foggo fans so are very excited about doing this tour.
Mark Foggo: - I always hoped that one day something like this might be possible. We met up
on a festival last year, chatted about the idea and now it's happening. FANtastic !!!
Tell us something about your arrangements. There are no weekly collective rehearsals i think?
Bosky: - We’ve been rehearsing separately and will make it up as we go along!
Mark Foggo: - I'm hoping to join up with the Hotknives in Brighton sometime before the tour
and get a rehearsal together. If not, it'll work out anyway, we all know each others songs.
Clem, Stu, Bosky, Mark and Paul are all excellent musicians and I've got a month to try and
learn all their lyrics.
Personally I am very curious because over the years I became a big fan of both acts. I like
Mark’s “party spirit” as much as the melancholic sound of the of The Hotknives. But let’s face
it - I can’t really imagine what I have to expect? A mixture of both styles maybe?
Bosky: - Though the Hotknives is known for melancholy sounds, people are used to the
insane grinning of Mark Carew in our live performances. This will be amplified with the
addition of Foggo’s lunacy. In addition we have Paul Berding from the Skasters joining us on
Sax. If I wasn’t playing, I’d pay money to see this show!
Mark Foggo: - I don't find the styles of the two bands that far apart. Both bands play mostly
high energy ska and both bands have a crazy “mark” standing at the front. It'll twice as mad as
usual.
When and where did you meet first time and are you constant in contact from that time on?
Bosky: For me, Foggo was a ‘legend of the van’. Carew had played us Ska Pig and I was a
fan (and still am) before we met in the early nineties. Before this time, Foggo was responsible
for being the first person to put the Hotknives on in Europe with Clem and the original guys.
We tend to catch up and have a laugh and a beer at festivals. We backed Mark in England
many years ago, so it’s not completely new territory for us. Note: - The only other person the
Hotknives have backed live (with the exception of Judge Dredd as part of the Easter Ska Jam
finales) is Steve Ellis from Steve Ellis and the Love Affair (Everlasting love etc).
Mark Foggo: - I first saw the Hotknives when we played together on a festival in the Astoria,
London back in 1989. From that moment I was a dedicated fan. Since then we have played
together on festivals many times and it's always great to see them. I was taking a holiday in
Spain last year and they were playing nearby, I called in and we had a few beers together, it
was the highlight of the holiday.
From Bosky i came to know that they are working on a new album. Mark announced a DVD
Release (“Live In Berlin”). Tell us something about the current productions.
Bosky: We’re working on a new Hotknives album (no really we are!) and I’ve already demo’d
some songs, one of which I’ve written with Stu. We’re also going to be working on a project
with the original guys. I collaborated with Mark on a new song which we’ll hopefully record,
maybe even a Mark Foggo meets the Hotknives album..Then we’d have the excuse to tour
again with the album!
Mark Foggo:-I have a pretty good DVD recording of our gig at the Punk and Disorderly
festival, Berlin, last year. I'm just waiting for someone to finish the editing on it and then it'll
be released. As Bosky says, we have just started working on a few songs together so it would
be great if we can turn this into a Foggo / Hotknives album. Maybe we'll play one on this tour.
We'll have a lot of time to plan it while we're in the bus.
Now after your Marriage some weeks ago you are half german Bosky! Sorry mate but it’s the
reality. The World has to know: Are you working on some german songs already?
Bosky: - Yes I’ve written two songs, one about sausage and the other about cabbage.
Finally a question for Mark. The Day of the Berlin Show is your birthday. Which kind of
fancy cake can we expect and what do you want for your birthday?
Mark Foggo:- It'll have to be BIG cake (ska cake) to get 61 candles on it. My birthday
presents are nearly always alcoholic, so for a change I'd really like some socks.
Bosky: - Bet he says ‘ska cake’. How does Bob Marley like his cake? Wi’ jam in.
USA, New York - Duff Interview: Mark Foggo
15 Apr 2010
Duff Interview: Mark Foggo
Editor's note: Despite being lesser-known in the US (a real shame, actually), Mark Foggo has been B-I-G on the Euro ska scene since the late 80s--revered for his manic (and sometimes maniacal) but always brilliant ska songs; larger-than-life loony persona; and incredible hi-energy live shows. As he prepares to tour this summer and fall in support of his excellent new album MAD (his billionth recording, which will be released on April 17--Record Store Day!--and soon to be reviewed on The Duff Guide to Ska), Mark Foggo was kind enough to take a few moments to answer our inquiries...
DGTS: I’ve been aware of your music since the late 80s (specifically, your track on the “Ska for Ska’s Sake” comp released on Skank Records in 1989), when I was discovering the many incredible British, German, and French ska bands active at that time through the Skank, Pork Pie, and Unicorn labels. Which were some of your favorite bands from that era, and how does the late 80s UK/Euro ska scene compare to today?
Mark Foggo: There were many great ska bands around in the 80s and many great festivals, mainly in the UK and Germany. The ska people used to turn out in huge numbers and we had a real lot of fun meeting and partying with them all. One of my favourite bands of the 80s were The Hotknives. The band was outstanding at that time and featured the main man, Gary Marshall. Sadly, these days the scene is not so big, but fortunately there are a few dedicated ska promoters who keep things moving. We notice there are more and more young kids coming to our shows these days, not particularly ska-looking kids, but maybe more skater. They love ska and we come across them all over Europe, so I reckon the future's bright.
DGTS: Did you grow up listening to ska? What record or experience made you a fan?
MF: I grew up listening to rhythm and blues. My favourite singer was Eric Burdon of The Animals. He had the best screaming soul voice I'd ever heard, and after I'd been to see him (in about 1964 ), I made up my mind what my future was going to be. I progressed from rhythm and blues to punk, and then in about 1979 I discovered ska. There were Specials, Beat, and Bad Manners around then and I loved it all. First, I played punk and ska, and a couple of years later I stopped with the punk in my gigs.
DGTS: What inspired you to form Mark Foggo and the Skasters?
MF: I moved to Holland in 1979, just at the time I got interested in ska. I spent a bit of time playing with different bands, but didn't like the music much, so then I decided to start my own. I brought two guys I'd been playing with in London over to Holland, and the rest I stole out of other bands. We began with the name "Mark Foggo and the Secret Meeting," and later when we released Ska Pig we changed it to "Mark Foggo's Skasters."
DGTS: You're from Liverpool originally--but your label is based in Belgium (and I assume you live there, too). I think I've always thought you were from the Netherlands. Is Foggo a British name or am I just being kind of ignorant in an ugly-American kind of way?
MF: Foggo is a Scottish name, but I'm English, born in Liverpool. Many people think I'm Dutch, but that's because I lived there for many years. I now live in Antwerp in Belgium, which in fact is only 100 miles down the road from Amsterdam in Holland. I'm also only 150 miles from the UK and 100 miles from Germany, so it's a good central place to be.
DGTS: Your songs are oftentimes about everyday experience written from a slightly off-kilter point-of-view (“Bumpy Airlines” and “Cybergirl” come to mind). You've cultivated this madman of ska persona--this, along with the diversity of musical styles that are incorporated in your ska sound, makes me think of Ian Dury. Are you the Ian Dury of ska (is this something you've aspired to)?
MF: There are a variety of musical styles in my songs and that is simply because I've experienced them at some time or other in my life. I was at school in Liverpool during the Beatlemania period (not having been a Beatle fan myself, of course). At much the same time, the Rollin' Stones were out and about, then, like I mentioned, The Animals, The Clash, The Jam, and many many more. All these bands must have had an influence on me in one way or another. And then Tamla Motown, and then the punk thing...and so on. I liked Ian Dury and his songs very much, but I wouldn't regard myself as being Dury-like. I have an active imagination and a cruel sense of humour, that's where the lyrics come from.
DGTS: What is the most unusual experience (good or bad) that you've had performing on stage?
MF: My favourite trick is to disappear from the stage and that's happened quite painfully a number of times. One night in Dublin, Ireland, I didn't notice a gap between the stage and the PA speakers, I fell down between them and nobody had any idea where I'd gone. I've done a lot of damage to my legs from similar falls (alcohol has a part to play), but I guess it's just an occupational hazard.
DGTS: I see from your schedule that you are playing many music festivals in Europe this summer. Which country generally gives you the best reception/reaction? Have you ever done/wanted to do shows in the US?
MF: Germany probably holds the most ska festivals and that's the country we play the most, but there are fantastic festivals all over Europe. Really, I like playing everywhere and I'd love the opportunity to play in the US. We've never found a promoter in the US to put something together for us, so if you're out there ...[Ed.-yes, please get in touch and bring Mark Foggo over!]
DGTS: Which Mark Foggo album is your favorite and why?
MF: My favourite album is always the last one, because the songs are the newest, but if I had to pick one I guess it would be Haircut. I made this album in a different way, working closely together with my good friend and, at that time, keyboard player Dominique Dubois. The songs were all fairly experimental at the time, but I really enjoyed making it.
DGTS: You've begun promoting your excellent new album MAD--so far, how has it been received by the fans?
MF: I'm writing this before the CD MAD is released, so we haven't had too much feedback on the CD as yet. The record company thinks it's great, so that's good and from the people who have heard it, mainly friends, the reaction, as you'd expect, is 100% positive. They wouldn't dare say otherwise.
DGTS: Radical developments in technology over the past decade have drastically altered how recorded music is marketed, distributed, and sold. Is your/your label's strategy to sell this record based on more traditional models or something new? Is the best way to promote a record still to get up on stage and play your songs before an audience?
MF: This CD is released by V2 Records and their strategy is to cover every aspect of it. It's released in the traditional CD format and distributed to shops, it's also made available to download on all the well-known sites, and hopefully we'll make it in vinyl at a later date. There is a single from the CD released and that's distributed to radio digitally, no actual single is pressed as yet. I definitely believe in doing the gigs and presenting the CD to people that way, that's what I live for.
DGTS: How do you feel about music file-sharing?
MF: No comment, it's up to you...
DGTS: Do you have time to follow/are you a fan of other current ska bands?
MF: I'm not a fan of any particular bands. I like many ska bands and play together with many of them, it's always great to hear what other ska people are doing.
DGTS: What is your impression of US ska bands? Do you ever have the opportunity to play with any of them when they tour in Europe?
MF: We did some gigs with Eastern Standard Time not long ago, really enjoyed that band and very nice ska guys. I did a guest spot with Buck and The Toasters the other night, that was fun. Great bunch of ska people, tight sound, always busy spreading the word of ska. I'm busy doing a couple of songs for a new CD with my friend Rob Hoskins and his Nashville ska band AKA Rudie at the moment. There'll be a single ("Shooters") released soon and it's an interesting combination of ska styles. Look out for that one.
DGTS: If you had to choose one album to introduce ska to someone who had no exposure to the music, which one would it be?
MF: I think I'd give them the best of Desmond Dekker, a superb example of great ska rhythms and top vocals. Catchy stuff, gets in your head and never comes out again. Shame he's gone.
DGTS: What's next for Mark Foggo?
MF: This summer, we'll be busy with gigs and festivals all around Europe, then we want to release a live DVD, then play in Japan again, and follow that up with a couple of tours in the US. That'll do for us this year!
Thanks for doing the interview, Mark!
Posted by Steve from Moon at 12:01 AM
http://duffguidetoska.blogspot.com/2010/04/duff-interview-mark-foggo.html
Steve from Moon Records
