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BKH sits down with Mark Lind and discusses the past, present and future... Mark Lind is well on his way of becoming an institution in Boston music. A "Spirit of '96" relic whose musical career started in a church basement and has outlasted more Boston bands than I care to count. On his 13th year of song writing and entertaining the Boston punks and now the Boston adults Mark has another CD planned for 2008 after his 2007 self-released Compulsive Fuck Up EP. Boston Knuckleheads has had the pleasure of sitting down with Mark to discuss music past, present and future; politics; life and happiness. We also got a chance to preview his new song "Familiar Face" off his upcoming CD "The Truth Can Be Brutal" (please visit www.mark-lind.com to hear Familiar Face as well as some of Mark's other material). Familiar Face, to me is the saddest pop song I've ever heard. My ears and heart say the song was strongly influenced by Paul Westerberg. The harmonies (sung by Far From Finished's Marc Canata) are a melodic answer to gang vocals. The song is so well written that many can or could relate to it. I can't tell if the heart breaking 'familiar face' is the protagonist's own or the girl within grasp but beyond reach. BKH: What are your thoughts and feelings on this song Mark? And before you start, congratulations this is truly some of your best work yet. Mark Lind: Thanks. I’m pretty psyched on the new record. Jeff, Jay, Mike and Marc all really helped lay down some of the best performances I’ve ever been a part of. And they really helped make this record exactly as I wanted it to be. It goes without saying that Jim played a huge role in this as well. That particular song - Familiar Face - was chosen to be released early because it was mixed early on in the process and also because it has a lot of hooks in it. I wanted to show people that this record isn’t going to be sparse and bare like the last EP. Personally I don’t think it’s the best song on the record but some people may choose to disagree. As for the message behind the song, I’ll let people interpret it as they see fit. But its really only a sad song if you proceed from the assumption that the “familiar face” and “restless feeling” is unpleasant. Sometimes we can ache over a good thing. So there’s a lot of ways to interpret that song. I can tell you that the “she” referenced in the “she keeps on coming back” line is not about a woman. Its about an emotion that keeps coming back. And through a little manipulation of words it opened up the door for more people to relate to the song. BKH: So what can you tell us about your upcoming CD "The Truth Can Be Brutal"? Is there a common theme to the album and are we in store for more sensible pop sounds like "Familiar Face" or do you explore other styles on the CD? Mark: It’s eleven songs. It sounds really good both because of the musicians that played on it and also because of the studio that it was recorded at (The Outpost). We spent a lot of time on it and I think it’s the best record I’ve ever been a part of. At least until we start working on the next one. It doesn’t really have a solid theme. It just so happened that I amassed about 50 songs to choose from. This helps make the album the best it can be from a song stand point but it also means that I was choosing songs from an extended period of time so they don’t all run together thematically. As opposed to a situation like in the past when I only had 12 songs to work with and those were the ones that were recorded. The past 18 to 20 months of my life have been sort of a rut or a funk for me so that theme comes up a lot but there have also been some good people along the road with me for that time and those people are celebrated on the record. I also feel like there is a lot of stuff on there that anyone can relate to. Heart ache, longing, loneliness, joy, sadness, fear… we can all relate to these sorts of things. BKH: Will this CD be another self-released album or have you shopped it to a label or labels? I know that you said self-releasing the CFU EP was a bit of an experiment to allow you to observe the state of the music industry today, care to elaborate on any of the information and experience you've gathered from that experiment? Mark: This one will hopefully be coming out on a label. I’ve received a few offers but I haven’t signed anything yet. No record labels have heard the record yet. I’m hoping that once they do then more offers will come in. As for the CFU ep, I released it myself because I was sure at the time that my audience was relatively small in numbers but dedicated. Sailor’s Grave/Thorp had just gone into hiatus mode and I didn’t feel like releasing the EP with another label. Plus I’ve always wanted to release records. So I did it myself. With no distribution and no advertising. It was all either word of mouth or free advertising thanks to some of the kind folks at Interpunk, Newbury Comics or Punknews.org. It has served its purpose and I’m almost out of the pressing. I don’t plan to repress it. Once its gone then it will be available through iTunes only until I eventually get around to packaging a bunch of rarities on one CD. Most of the advertising I’ve done for that EP was done through MySpace bulletins. If there is anyone that doubts the impact MySpace has had on pop culture then I can testify to the fact that it reaches people. BKH: Let's go back a little. The Ducky Boys, are they done recording and only relegated to semi-annual live shows? Any chance some configuration of their lineup may come back? And what was your favorite line up of the band? Musically, and no offense meant to anyone in the band past or present, I think the three piece of you, Doug and Jay was my favorite and I do understand that line up was a more mature collection than previous line ups. From a music standpoint and from a life changing standpoint what are the most important Ducky Boys line ups? Mark: I’ve played with a lot of people in Ducky Boys over the years. Some great friends have joined in on the fun or have helped me out. But the only line-up that really strikes me as being the true face of Ducky Boys was when it was me, Jay and Douglas. Those were the years when we got motivated, had a common mission and saw it through to its logical conclusion. We also made the two best records in the band’s catalog. And I will only play with the two of them in the future under that name. There have been times over the years when Ducky Boys got pulled out of the moth balls for the semi-annual show. Those times weren’t happy ones for me. I’ll only continue to do it here and there if there is some forward momentum to it. It might take a while longer to annoy me because I have The Unloved and the solo/acoustic thing as an outlet but there will come a time when it will be time to make a new record or put it to rest until the time is right. I would say its likely - not definite - that there will be more music in the future. But I’m not rushing. BKH: So I have to ask any chance of getting Doug and Jay to get together, re-arrange and re-record No Gettin' Out? Mark: We had toyed with idea at one point. But if I’m gonna take a bunch of money and spend a lot of time in a studio and practice space with Jay and Douglas then it will be for the purposes of new music, not touching up the old stuff. BKH: You've had the opportunity to work with your brother Rob in Sinners and Saints and Jeff Morris with The Unloved, both whom you've referenced as having significant impacts on your music. Who do you/did you enjoy working with more, and which one has had a more profound influence on your songwriting to date? Mark: They’re different people so I approach them differently and I don’t really compare them or pick favorites. They work in very different ways. Jeff is a one take kind of guy. Rob is more of a recording artist than a live rock n’ roll guy. Don’t get me wrong, he can plug in and play like a motherfucker too but he’s more like the Beatles during their Sgt Pepper days where Jeff is more like how they were when they were rocking Shea Stadium. Put it this way, Rob took about 9 months to make Ramallah’s “Kill A Celebrity” while Jeff made “Tattooed Hearts and Broken Promises” in less than 12 hours. They’re very different types of players and songwriters. As for who I’d prefer to work with, I guess I’d choose Jeff because he is more on the same playing field as I am. Jeff has many features to his personality; he is a father, a husband, a businessman, a musician, a songwriter etc. Rob is always Rob. Ha. Plus I don’t have the patience to work in the way Rob does. He is a perfectionist and he moves very slowly. I prefer to see results. BKH: And since I mentioned Rob...any chance of a Sinners and Saints CD or show on the horizon? If there is I may have to diet so I can fit back into my S&S shirt...although I have heard you've begun selling your own merchandise on your web page, is that right? Mark: Definitely nothing on the horizon as far as a show goes. Rob has to tend to his personal life. A CD is not out of the question but I think Rob has other plans for his first batch of songs back. I’m not saying never but it would take a lot of planning and I know that would fall on my shoulders to plan and right now I’m pursuing this record with The Unloved. We are selling shirts. There are shirts by Sinners & Saints, Ducky Boys and The Unloved all on sale at www.myspace.com/marklind . And they’re selling well. BKH: Last year around this time you purchased the First Act Westerberg Edition guitar, how do you like it? And because it's becoming a tradition for me, what was your first guitar and what is your favorite guitar? Mark: That First Act guitar is a piece of shit. It won’t stay in tune. They told me they set it up to be played ½ step down but I think they lied to me. Because of that I haven’t played it often. One of these days I may get around to setting it up again. Maybe I will now that you reminded me I have it. As for music gear, I haven’t got a clue about that sort of stuff. You’d have to ask Jeff or Mike that sort of question. I just play whatever I have. BKH: So how do you approach songwriting? Do you find the melody first or the words, or a little of both and find a hook and build from it? Mark: Back in the old days of Ducky Boys… when we sucked…. I used to make up music and then fit words in there. The kids certainly didn’t seem to mind but, looking back on it, it was very unnatural. These days it sort of all comes together at once - usually. Most times I just pick up the guitar and the whole thing comes out in one Peter North style blast. If its any good then I grab the tape recorder that I keep next to my guitar and roll tape. Sometimes I’ll go right to the 8-track recorder and sometimes I’ll let it sit for a while. I keep a list taped to my wall with all of the songs I’m working on that haven’t been demoed and I cross them off as I finish them up. Usually the words I come up with in the first couple of passes get nixed but there will be a line or two that really stands out and I’ll follow that path for the remainder of the song. Simple as can be… not too much thought. One thing I will never do is ask “what will people think about it?” when I’m working on a song. If you do that then you are only going through the motions and pumping out crap for the sake of pumping out crap. Once the songs are all done from a creative perspective then I might go back and hammer them out. Structure them appropriately and then ask “do I like this?”, “would I listen to this?” or “will people listen to this?” but that’s at the phase of the song when the heart and soul of it is already completed so that it can‘t be compromised. BKH: On your debut solo CD, Death or Jail, the song For Frank eulogizes your, at that time, recently deceased grandfather. Was that a difficult song for you to write? What song for you has been the most difficult for you to write over the past 13 years and do you like how it came out or do you want another shot at it? Mark: There are no songs that have been particularly hard to come up with. I don’t mind laying all the cards on the table. The only times I’ve flinched is when I’ve been unsure how someone else might like me writing about them. But in the end if you’re a girl that is gonna get involved with a guy in a rock band with a platform then you’re gonna have to deal with that. Or even worse, if you’re a dude that tries to fuck over the guy in the band with a platform then you gotta expect to get flamed. There is one song on the new record called “So She Says” which was originally called “(Girl’s name withheld) Says” and I changed it to a nonspecific ‘she’ to spare her having to deal with it. On the other hand it is far and away the best song on the record - and possibly the best song I’ve ever come up with - so she would have been immortalized with street punk fans forever. Ha. As for songs that I’d re-do, hindsight is 20/20 as we all know. There are some songs on “Dark Days” that I’d like to have another shot at knowing what I know now but they are what they are and it was a popular record in its day. Sometimes I make this comment and people think I’m putting the record down. They gotta understand that I’m only saying I could do better. I’m really putting myself down when I put down one of my records. I’m not trying to take the joy out of it for them. There are no plans to touch any of those songs again but I’d like another shot at the song called “A Better Life”. If I could do it all over again then I would have dropped that one from the record and tackled it with Dirty Water in 2002. Maybe one day The Unloved can try that one out. BKH: I'm not going to lie, we are both anxious guys and not the most socially ept. Do you think this trait has hurt or helped your songwriting? Also has it helped or hurt your musical career? Mark: It definitely makes me who I am. And my music is a result of who I am so I guess it has helped it. One of the comments that I hate most is when someone says to me “Hey! At least you got some good songs out of it” when discussing a particularly painful experience. That comment might hold water if I was getting paid the type of money Tom Petty is making but I’m not. While I think my social and emotional shortcomings have helped me make some memorable moments on tape, I’d trade it all in for a chance to be happy and calm. BKH: Boston music is still big nationally thanks to bands like the DKM, Street Dogs and the Explosion. Two separate questions - what Boston band(s) do you think SHOULD be a national success and which ones do you think WILL be a success. For example both Far From Finished and Death and Taxes are two of the best bands in Boston today - both should be huge - FFF is more likely to be successful because they have the ability to tour more aggressively than a band like D&T. Mark: You just named my two favorite bands in town. I absolutely love both Death & Taxes and Far From Finished. Their songwriters, Jeff Morris and Marc Cannata, definitely speak for me in ways that I can’t express myself. And in a just world that sort of talent would be rewarded handsomely. Both of those bands should be famous and all over the charts. But as for what WILL be popular I don’t know. One of my claims to fame is the fact that I called Ken Casey the day after he gave me his demo in 1996 and said “if this is really your band then you will be on Epitaph Records within a year”. And they were. But since then it has been impossible to predict. Every Tom, Dick and Harry from Boston that sees Dropkick Murphys seems to think they are gonna put together a band and go for the big time but there are a lot of factors in there that most bands miss. Most importantly, its about a lot more than fashion and sound. There needs to be substance, honesty and timing. People aren’t stupid and they eventually see through dishonesty even if it takes a while. I’ve seen so many bands head out on the road in search of fame and fortune only to come home broke, broken and with their tail between their legs. In fact, I was in one of those bands - though we went for it about 2 years before every schmuck started chasing it. But there have been more failures than successes. If I were to guess on a next big thing then it would be a metal band like Diecast since that stuff has a hell of a lot more mass appeal than dudes in scally caps. But it would be nice of Death & Taxes or Far From Finished could do something to reach as many people as possible. Both of those bands deserve everything they could hope to have. They’re both very honest bands and write from the heart. BKH: I've been told that politics and music don't mix on other interviews, but I have to ask, you don't hide that you support(ed) Joe Biden, now that he is out who is your guy (or gal) and what one issue represented by that candidate is most important to you? Mark: Politics is just a part of life. People that try to skirt that topic are usually just afraid of offending someone. I was supporting Biden though I knew he couldn’t win. He’s done so much good in his career as a Senator that he really deserved to be taken more seriously. We’ve had to deal with these hacks like Bush and Giulliani but we can’t give a guy a chance that has already chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee or the Senate Foreign Relations Committee? With him out of the running then I’m backing Obama. He’s probably the only candidate that can pull off the angle of wiping out the old Washington insiders since he is such new blood. I really hope he surrounds himself with the right people. He’d make a great face man but he’s gonna need someone like Biden in his cabinet to be successful. BKH: I understand you have a show coming up at TT's on January 10th, who are you playing with? Mark: That show was kind of a last minute addition. We’re gonna be playing with the Kickbacks, Jason Bennett & The Resistance and Varsity Drag. BKH: Care to plug any other shows or add anything else before wrapping this up? Mark: I guess the other one to mention will be the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre show with The Men and The Deadly Sins at the Middle East in February. They’re both doing two nights. We’re gonna be playing the Friday night show. The first night. BKH: In 2007 you said that you were going to do some shows outside of New England in support of your solo album(s). To my knowledge it didn't happen - are you willing to name a city outside of New England and play a show there in 2008? Mark: Yeah. That is the sort of thing that happens when you’re managing yourself. I got caught up in making this new record and going to school so it didn’t really happen. But I am definitely heading out on weekends in the Spring of 2008. I’m already working on shows in Richmond, Atlanta, Baltimore, DC, NYC and New Orleans. They will be solo/acoustic but I enjoy doing that and I think that vibe will translate to anyone that may choose to attend.