25 February 2009

FoN's very own Dirty Harry took it upon his 14-year-old hands to ask Marco a few questions about Life, the Universe, and Everything.  Which equates to Guitars, The Wolfmen, and Music, to Marco.

Here's what The Wolfmen's protagonist has to say.

(Harry's dialogue is in italics)

I’m Harry from Singapore. I’m 14 years old, and I come from St. Albans, England. I really love your work and I have set up a blog based on Antmusic, and your band, The Wolfmen. Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed on behalf of The Family of Noise.  I cannot believe I am interviewing one of my heroes!

Hi Harry

How was Christmas and the New Year for you? What did you do?
It was uneventful.  I spent it with my parents and also some friends.

Did you have any New Year's resolutions?
Never make them as I can't ever stick to them.

As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to do exactly what I ended up doing!

What were you like at school?
Almost the worst student in the class.  I really wasn't interested in anything at school.

What was the first guitar you ever bought?
It was an awful nylon strung acoustic somebody gave me.  The first one I ever bought was a red Epiphone semi acoustic.  It was £50 in a pawn shop.

How big is your guitar collection?  Can you tell me about it?
Around 45 pieces.  Mostly from the 50's and 60's.  Lots of Gibson, Gretsch and Epiphones.

Which current guitarist(s) do you admire?
I like the guy out of MUSE.

What type of guitar would you recommend to a beginner? (Gibson, Fender, etc.)
Probably a good used Telecaster.

Looking back at your post-Ant history, what would you say was the highlight?
Too many highlights to just choose one, but I liked the period just after the band split and Adam and I were left to our own devices, and we were writing and recording the 'Friend Or Foe' album. That was a very happy period.

Sinead O’Connor posted a message on her MySpace page that you are working with her on her next studio album. Can you comment on this?
Yes it's true. We start first week of March on her new album.

Who would you most like to collaborate with in the future?
Lou Reed

What new bands do you like?
TV On The Radio, Dengue Fever.

Tell me about the last band/artist you saw live.
I never go to live shows any more.  I've seen and done enough in my life so they don't hold much interest for me.

What’s it like working with Adam?
He thinks very fast so you have to be on your toes.  You never know what he's going to do next, but he also knows when to leave you alone to get on with it.

How do you listen to music, e.g (iPod, Vinyl, CD’s)?
Everything's on my iPod now but I miss CDs.  I was never a vinyl junkie.

Are you happy with what The Wolfmen have achieved so far?  How is the recording of the second album, 'Married To The Eiffel Tower ' going?
We are about half way through, ask if I'm happy when we finish it!

Why did you choose Raezor Studios to record the album?
It belongs to a friend of ours, and as our recording work grew we needed somewhere we could take up permanent residence. We are in there almost every day and it's become our studio/office/clubhouse.

Do you ever read the Family of Noise forum?
Yes I do.  I have a look every few weeks.

Will The Wolfmen perform in Singapore?
Ha ha ha, dunno, do bands ever perform there?

What further changes do you think the music industry will see in the next 5 to 10 years?
If I knew that...I would be very rich indeed. I think it's clear that retail will disappear and download will take over totally.  But as with everything there will be a reaction against that, but nobody can really predict what's going to happen. A lot depends on technical developments in the next 5 years, but I think the next thing will be high quality downloads as MP3's and even MP4's ain't that great in the audio quality stakes.

On a personal note, during your time as a customer at Barclays Bank Premier Banking, in High Street Kensington, my mum Anna McGarvie, who worked there on the front desk, often chatted to you and remembers you well. We still have a signed Antmusic Greatest Hits (1993) that you signed and gave to her : “to Anna and John, love from Marco xxx”. Do you by any chance remember her? This would be about 14 years ago?
I don't remember your mum specifically, but I used to like going to that bank as everyone was very nice and you would get a cup of tea while you were waiting.

That's it from me, thanks for your time. It would be great to see you perform here in Singapore. I wish you all the best with everything that you do.

Marco xxxx