REgULATIOnS

Marcus from Regulations..... he seems to be a guy which really likes the old punk and that´s fun. . It can be heard in the music I think and here he answers a lot of questions about the group in march 2007.


History, where , when and why?
-Marcus: We started to play together as late as the fall 2002, but the thoughts was to form the band which became The Regulations they came during the summer . It was me, Jens and Otto who formed the band and jammed together some weeks before we asked Robert, which recently have moved to Umeå if he wanted to start to play with us.
Then we became The Regulations. We started to play together because we loves to play hardcore/punk and that´s why we still is together and play. We do our thing and we do it full.

Members now and then…please tell us a little about every member?
-M: We have always been the same members and will always be that I think.
Marcus – guitar, Otto – vocals, Jens – drums och Robert – bass.

Do you have any other bands on the side?
-M: We all plays in band as The Vicious, The Vectors, Tristess and Instängd.


You sounds a lot of old punk, howcome?
-M: We have taken away everything unnecessary in the music and the things which is left is the main thing in punk and hardcore.If it sounds old or not I don´t care about. I think that we plays usual HC/punk but the other bands often MODERN hc/punk.

It feels like it´s a new wave in northern Sweden….with old punkstyle…what happens up there and what do you get in your mother milk?  

-M: We lives in a city where ther´s darkness and cold half the year so there isn´t so much else to do expect rehearse music.  Then we´re really isolated up here and it feels like if it´s best to write as good songs as possible before you go to the nearest city for aday and play. I can agree about that it is a new wave of punk and hardcore in Umeå now but it´s a really small gang which plays in all bands. Some years ago so started the club Ny våg to have gigs in Umeå and that they became a record company also was because they wanted to release our LP.

Is there any good band sin your homecity right now?
-M: Except the bands we plays in ourselves so is there some good bands like The Rats, Knugen Faller, Insurgent Kid, Dick Cheney and The Bombettes just to mention some.

In Sweden?
-M: Yeah, there is some bands outside Umeå which is good as Henry Fiats Open Sore, Nitad, Witchcraft, Totalitär, Kamikatze and Skit Kids.

You have released some records now….have it been any attention do you think?
In Sweden? Outside Sweden?
-M: I don´t really know what you mean with attention but it have given us the oppurtunity to tour a lot. The latest years we have toured in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Europe, USA, Canada and Australia. Our debut LP have been nominated to the best hardrock in Manifest 2006.  

Where do you stand when we talk about Mp3? Download or not?
-M: I don´t care so much about if people download our music or not. We don´t earn any big money on our music anyway..

Does it help the smaller bands or not?
-M: I don´t know…

Isn´t it more important things to put our money on than chasing people who download music?  
-M: Yes, better politicians and the health care for example.

How do you think it is in Sweden? Political?
-M: Right now it isn´t so good after the right wing came to the power. Regulations plays Rock against Reinfeldt.

Music and politics, does it goes hand in hand?
-M: Not necessary. Regulations is not a direct political band but many of our political views comes in our lyrics and the chases we have done as a band, for example to stay on an independent label and not to be doing all the interviews and other dumb things

Best political band?
-M: Shitlickers.

When you do music, which is most important, is it to have good lyrics, good melodies or to have a refrain that people remembers?
-M: The music is most important to us. We work a lot to get the music precisely as we want, it´s often a process which is hard. The most important is that we´re satisfied with the songs and then if people likes them or not we cannot do anything about.  


Not any swedish lyrics for Regulations?
-M: Maybe!
.

Please rank the 5 best records, 5 best concerts and five most important things in life?
-5 skivor (right now):
Massmedia – Sista ackordet LP
Totalitär – Vänd dig inte om EP
The Doors – L.A. woman LP
D.I. – Ancient artifacts LP
Garbochock – Ritual LP

Konserter:
No Hope For The Kids – Copenhagen -03
Pissed Jeans – Toronto -06
Gorilla Angreb – Copenhagen -03
Hjerte Stop – Copenhagen -06
AC/DC – Stockholm -91

Things:
-I don´t care so much about other things than my instruments and my records.

The first, the last and most expensive record ever bought?
-M: The first record I bought I don´t remember but I remember that I got a Deep Purple EP and one Ebba Grön 7 from my dad when I was about 6 or 7 year. The latest record I bought was  Bruset – Non-stop Stockholm 7”, No Security – Hycklarfolket 7” and Svart Snö – Ren säker billig 7”.
The most expensive is maybe Dicks – Kill from the heart or some old Bathory LP, but I´m not sure.
I don´t buy so expensive records.  

Most embarrasing record in your collection?
M: I don´t know, noone I think.

The most odd review you have got on your records? How was it?
-M: The most peculiar was a guy which plays in Gemini Five who thought we sounded like early Pearl Jam. Otherwise people have described us like we play”fast thrashy hardcore” och and that´s really fun.

Do you care about reviews? Or is it only a way to show their power when a reviewer write down a record?

-M: I don´t care so much, it´s not so important. But in the same way people don´t care about looking after our records if it´s written that it sucks or that it´s like early Pearl Jam, I would do that myself. The most I met and which writes on punk message boards and similar is lonely men in their 30´s which never have hold in an instrument themselves in their whole life. The only thing which interests them is hard-to-get records on obscure Japanese punk/HC-records. I don´t know if it is something to care about.  

Where is best to play, in Sweden and outside Sweden?
-M: It cane be good everywhere, it depends how the audience is. Often it´s good in big cities and that´s don´t matter which side of the Atlantic Sea we have played in.  Some of our best gigs have been in Umeå, Köpenhamn, Stockholm, Boston, New York City, Toronto, Vancouver, Portland and LA.

What is your strength live?
-M: That we always gives everything, and that´s don´t matter where we play. It´s really really fun to play live with Regulations, that is what we´re good at.


Futureplans for the band?
-M: We´re recording some demos for future records. We have some songs recorded already but we haven´t decide yet what we shall do with the material. But in a short while we will release something new. We will not play so much live during this spring, we have all lifes besides of this band. But this summer we will tour a little anyway. And we´re going back to USA in the end of the summer probably. Gigs in England, Poland maybe

For yourself?
-M: Play more guitar, listens to obscure south swedish postpunk and write lyrics. 

Wisdomword?
-M: Skate, peace and anarchy!

Something to add?
-Thanks to Dennis & Ny Våg, Felix von Havoc, Kaj & Wasted Sounds and everyone who have helped us through the years. Remember: Breakhtrough doesn´t make you richer!
!