IE: I guess we can start off with how World War 4 is even together. In theory it looks like an impossible task to put together considering you and Bill are from NJ and Doug and Justin and CC live in Massachusetts. Who came up with the idea and who brought this puzzle together?

Mark: WW4 was my idea. I had been nagging those guys to start a band for ages and then one day out of the blue I get an email with some rough tracks. I asked Bill shortly after cause I knew he would be into it.

IE: You guys put out this 8 song demo last year and it flat out shreds and got a considerable buzz even though it wasn’t widely circulated. How was the arrangement with creating the songs set up and how long did it take to put the 8 songs from that demo together?

Mark: CC and Justin wrote all the songs. They sent them via email to me and Bill and we learned them. Bill and I drove up to Boston, hit the Pain Cave and banged ‘em out. As a band we have only practiced once together and that was for our first show. We had never practiced together leading up to the recording of the demo. Those guys are pros.

IE: What is the Pain Cave?

Mark: The Pain Cave is a closet where a lot of bands have recorded. It's in Boston…it's rat infested and covered in penis art but CC does manage to get a good sound out of there.

IE: Was there a history or anything with you and CC, Justin and Doug playing shows together or anything like that? It seems a little odd to look for band members for a new band with people a few states away.

Mark: There was no history, I have just been friends with those guys for a while and they write the kind of music I like. I wasn't worried about the impracticality of it cause I knew we would never be really active. Just a few shows a year.

IE: The other members who are in The Rival Mob are also in like100 other bands each. Without doing any research would you be able to name all the other bands they are in?

Mark: I could name a bunch but they are in a punk band with a girl singer and I have no idea what they are called. As corny as this sounds I think its awesome being in a band with these dudes because we get package shows where their other bands will also play and they are some of my favorites. Especially No Tolerance and Mind Eraser.

IE: I saw you put the demo out on cassette. Do you still have a cassette player at home?

Mark: I do not own a cassette player. Now it seems there are a lot of bands putting out cassettes.

IE: I am guessing being the singer that you wrote all of the lyrics for the demo. Being a few years older than your Floorpunch days did you see yourself still touching on the same subject matter for the songs?

Mark: I'm a one trick pony. I wrote all the FP demo songs in one day and I did the same with these. I'm not trying to solve any world issues. I just like Breakdown and Judge and I draw my influences from them.

IE: How many of those demos did you guys put out?

Mark: I would say around 1000.

IE: How many shows has WW4 played together so far and where?

Mark: We have played three shows so far. Our first was at the Barbary in Philly the second was at 285 Kent in Brooklyn and our third was at Red 7 at Chaos In Tejas.

IE: Speaking of the Chaos In Tejas Festival the photos from the show looked like an insane asylum was breaking loose. Were you bugged out at all by the crowd response considering you never played in Texas before and just having the demo out?

Mark: We have been super fortunate as far as our reactions have been. Each show has been awesome and kids have gone off. I was real stoked when I saw the line for the Texas show because it went around the block for hours. We were lucky enough to have played with some powerhouses though. Rival Mob and Power Trip.

IE: Heard the food down there is amazing. Did it live up to the hype?

Mark: The BBQ was on point. We rented a car and drove out to Lockhart Texas to a spot that was so good. It was called Kreuz’ Market. I had some real good Mexican as well and hit this donut spot called Gordoughs… it was awesome.

IE: Much like The Rival Mob this band has no Facebook, Twitter or website. If you go online and look for this band it is very hard to find much besides download pages for the demo. Why do you guys choose to go this route?

Mark: CC is a man of mystery… that's my only explanation.

IE: It gives WW4 this shroud of mystery in a way. It’s like nobody really knows much about you guys unless they come out to see you play and that doesn’t happen very often. Do you like being under the radar that way?

Mark: Yeah I'm totally fine with keeping a low profile and just busting out a few awesome gigs a year. I would like to maybe get a weekend together. But I like the route we are taking. 

IE: After that until WW4 were you involved with anything else musically or was it right from that to WW4?

Mark: After A.R. It was right to WW4.

IE: Back in In Effect issue #11 (1997) you guys said you played the band Ensign in a football game and beat them 7-0 counting by ones. I just re-read that recently and got a good laugh trying to picture that scene. Can you fill us in more on why you played them and how bad of a beat down it was?

Mark: We were always dubbed as the jocks and they thought they could beat us. It wasn't even funny. We played on a legit football field and I don't think they crossed the 50 yard line. There were almost a few fights and it got pretty heated.

IE: Was it tackle or touch? I heard you played ball in college. Can you tell us more about your football days?

Mark: The Ensign game was tackle so it got pretty interesting. I played for a year at Duquesne University but blew my knee out during a game freshman year. I was an average player but a good athlete. The game I was injured in I was playing offensive tackle. Stories…nothing really… I was just a non-stop shit talker. Walked backwards to the huddle after every play just jawing at the other team.

IE: I know you like the Yankees in baseball because old Floorpunch photos and the current WW4 ones don’t lie. You always seem to be decked out in something Yankees which proves you are a smart man. What other teams do you like in other sports?

Mark: I am a die hard Notre Dame and Philadelphia Eagles fan. I also love the Yankees but football is my favorite sport. I don't fuck with hockey.

IE: In 2014 would you rather be at the Super Bowl at Met Life Stadium or playing the Super Bowl of Hardcore with WW4?

Mark: I would only want to be at the stadium if the Eagles were playing.

IE: “Fast Times at the Jersey Shore” was one of Floorpunch’s albums and when Hurricane Sandy hit our area last year I thought about a lot of my Jersey friends as well as my NY area ones. Everyone in our area was affected in some way or another but did you make out ok for the most part?

Mark: I was fine and my mother who still lives a block from the bay and a couple of blocks from the ocean made it out fine which was really lucky. The middle school I went to was destroyed. It was really a sad situation.

IE: It seems every hardcore band has at least a reunion show or short tour or something these days. Could you see a Floorpunch reunion at some point?

Mark: We have been playing shows on and off since 2009 but I think for now we are gonna call it quits. We haven't played in a year and This Is Hardcore was ridiculous and an awesome way to go out. That's not saying if a friend was in trouble I wouldn't try and use FP to try and help them out.

IE: Anything else we may have missed?

Mark: Thanks for the interview. I was always a fan of In Effect and I'm honored to have  been able to be interviewed twice for it. Shout outs to my girls Tessa and Grace and my wife Tara.  Got baby #3 coming in December.  Wanna say what's up to all my Jersey friends and the Shore Style Boys.

Listen to the WORLD WAR 4 Demo below:

https://soundcloud.com/bust-it/sets/world-war-4-demo