MAD MARGE :DEAD & GONE

                          MAD MARGE

Just as brand new album "Dead & Gone" is out Mad Marge doing debut gig in Finland. Thankx to UGLY BUGLI society . So there had two reasons to do story of MAD MARGE. And she was so kind that gave so great answers a full of positive energy and taste of humour.

  

                            Desert Kid :

 -I’m a desert kid, raised in the dirt by a couple of hippies! I loved school, singing in the mirror, and fantasizing about being a singer as a kid.

          

                            Backgrounds:

                                

-My parents loved music, so that became a part of me. I was raised on the blues, and I’ll never forget the first time my dad played Yellow Submarine by the Beatles on his acoustic guitar. That was when it became real to me that people made music, that it wasn’t just some abstract concept on a vinyl record. I adored Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James when I was pretty young, maybe 7. When I was 11 I started going to local shows and that’s when fell in love with ska, punk rock, and eventually psychobilly as a teenager.

                Days before The Stonecutters:

-I sang in a lounge/jump blues band with my older brother, called Big Town Players when I was 13. We did that for a few years and then I met Matt, my husband and MM guitar player, at 15 and we started a band called the Scullywags, Matt played drums. It was a Rock and Roll band I guess you could say. 

                            The Stonecutters:

- The Big Town Players guitar player and drummer played in a band called the Intruders, after our band had dissolved. Matt and I stayed friends with them and we liked what they were doing. We started Stonecutters with the drummer (Dan, our OG) and bass player, Edgar. We had a lot of fun together, writing was easy, and we loved playing any shows we could. The original line up was the 4 of us. A few years later, Brian joined our band as second guitar. Eventually Dan and Edgar left the band because they had young kids. That was when the line up changed.

                        Those Rocky Roads:

- I was young when we started so everything was scary, but so much fun at the same time. We’ve had some wild moments on tour. Our first time on the road we really only half knew what we were doing, the other half we just showed up to some places and played for pizza 😂

                         First two albums:

Under name of The Stonecutters you did two albums..please tell more bout those..how you got deals, your working on studio etc...how you choosed songs for em and did your own songs?

 -No fair, that’s like 5 questions! The first album we recorded for Baseline records who reached out to us about recording. We actually recorded that album twice! The first was in a beautiful studio in Orange County (can’t remember the name) but we weren’t getting a good vibe and that lack of energy was making its way into the recording. So we asked for money up front to purchase equipment and do it ourselves with some help at our drummers house and we were much happier. We did the same thing for the 2nd album. Actually… all of our albums.

The songs were just a snapshot of where we were in playing.  On Liberated, we had a handful of songs we wrote with our original bass player and drummer, and the rest we wrote with the new line up. Liberated was released on …People Like You records.

                        Sweet memories:

-We got to play pretty early on with some great bands like Demented Are Go and Frantic Flinstones, but some of my favorite memories were the small shows we put on in the desert in the early days. Like the Peking Gourmet, a Chinese restaurant in Victorville 🤣

                        End of The Stonecutters:

-Dan and Edgar left the band and things just weren’t the same. The writing process felt different, and the connections weren’t the same. It started to feel like work. Matt and I were married by then, and we decided it was time to move on and we chose to start a family.

                            The Troublemakers:

-What you did before The Troublemakers came and took the stage?

We lived what felt like a whole lifetime! We had 2 kids and spent our time and energy raising them and starting different careers. I finished school, earned a Masters degree. Matt did all of the one million other things that he is so naturally good at outside of music.

-The Troublemakers..when that happened and why name changed ? Who was on that line-up? Any difference on sound & style that you had before?

-COVID was a huge motivator. Edgar was playing with another band, The Rip ‘Em Ups, and we went to see them at an outdoor show in 2020 I think. We just thought to ourselves, why aren’t we making music? So we got Edgar on board and our neighbor, Brent (current drummer), and we just started writing. We wanted to change the name so we wouldn’t be bound to playing our old songs. We wanted  people to know a piece of what we used to do was back, but not in the same way.

                             Mad Mad World:

-It’s a Mad, Mad World was our stepping stone. We were finding something again after along time away. Writing was different, the sound was a little different, but it felt really good to put together. We felt like we had the freedom to change and try new things. This new album, Dead and Gone, we found our identity. These songs didn’t come easy like they used to 20 years ago, but I think they are better in their own way.

-How much you did gigs with The Troublemakers? 

Only a few before we just dropped Troublemakers altogether. We wanted a shorter name, something less expensive to print on a T-shirt, hahaha!

                               F-BOMBS:

Then happened again something and came little ruffer band F-BOMBS..what its story? 

-That was 2010, I believe. Totally different band, different members, different sound. That was fun, we played a few shows but I had my son in 2012 so it didn’t last long.

                        FAMILY TIME:

Then they just lost somewhere..what happened.

-We definitely didn’t lose. We walked away. Family was our focus, and it was time very well spent. We knew we would probably move forward at that point (2007) spending a lot of time on the road. I think we were in a position to experience some pretty big success. But at the end of the day, we knew with the different line up that it wasn’t how we saw our future.

                            COMEBACK:

-We came back in 2021/22 as the Troublemakers. Still the same line up, still playing those songs. Mad Marge was just easier and the most recognizable part of our past, but also with less expectation of playing/hearing Stonecutters stuff.

-First came Mad Mad World album...your feelings bout it and its songs??

-It was a great first step. Got to write complete song lyrics again. For years I would just jot pieces of songs down but never finish them. I had to find a process and actually finish them. Matt was playing the riff for Electric Love in our garage and it immediately inspired a melody. I spent more time on Riding High which is one of my favorites on the album, I finished that one while running on the treadmill because I wanted to make sure I could actually sing it while performing. It’s a pretty tough one vocally.

                           DEAD & GONE:

Now its time to brand new album "Death & Gone". Please tell more bout it and pick up any 3 songs from it and open em feelings and ideas to us.

-We recorded this album at home, took our sweet time making it perfect. I truly love this record. 

1. Ms. Bouvier- got to write about the Simpsons again. Tell me which episode this one was inspired by I’ll give you $5
2. Other Mother- I love reading and based on my daughter’s recommendation, I read the novel “Coraline” by Neil Gaiman. I was fully entranced by his words, the way he wrote connected with me on another level. So yeah, I love that song.
3. Swallow Me Up- wrote that song about the desert. Can’t get the dust out of my blood as hard as I try.

                       EUROPE & FINLAND:

 You coming to Europe on April..how many times you have been here before..and ofcourse what is brilliant you coming to Finland at last..what you think bout that? Do you know any Finnish rock or rocknroll band or something other bout Finland?

-We’ve toured Europe twice, but have never been to Finland! We are so excited, and I know very little about your beautiful country. I’m sad we won’t be there long, but super excited to experience it. 

-Word is free now..what else you would like tell us about Mad Marge..any special story..etc?

-I’m tired. You are a thorough journalist 😂 I guess I’d just like to say I’m happy to be making music again, meeting fans, and experiencing this world of music from a much different perspective. Thank you to anyone who’s ever given a shit about our music, who we are, and to you for caring at all about what we have to say. Life is a stupid, beautiful, crazy experience, thank you to our fans for making it all so much more vibrant. This has been a fucking blast returning to music because of you.

                            RAMONES:

Some other band's song that could describe MAD MARGE band best way..🤭?

-Creatin Hop- Ramones

-Famous last words?

I am Mad Marge. We are Mad Marge.

See you soon, Finland!!