Mark Cross Interview Continuation from Sick Drummer Magazine Issue 7
By: Noel Smart & Craig Sternberg
SDM: Why did you leave the band At Vance after the album "Chained"?
Mark: Something I don't really like to remember! I, as with everybody else, simply left because of that idiot who runs AV. Unfortunately, there are people in the business no one needs, and shouldn't be there. We did a tour, which had been a total disaster. Imagine two bands, crew (all seventeen) on one bus, and one being a complete jerk and not wanted!
After this nightmare, all members left and that was the end of it. I doubt that someone will ever give this guy a slot for shows or 
tour again. Besides that, he still owes me money! It's a small world, and I'm sure we'll cross paths once more… well, I believe that will be very interesting.
I'm not the kind of guy who carries hard feelings for anybody, but seriously, with this guy, I make an exception! I can't wait to see this chooch again!
SDM: What can you tell us about your melodic power metal band "The Supremacy"?
Mark: It was Bill Hudson's (Cellador, Circle to Circle) idea. He had some songs and wanted to put a band together. It was just a few months after my recovery, early 2004, and he flew me to Brazil to work with him on the songs. We made a few demos but never made it to full production. I guess we were all too busy with other bands at the time. But we had some good material, and who knows, maybe we'll finish it one day.
SDM: What's the secret to getting your double bass sound? Especially the Firewind material.
Mark: I remember many years ago, people always pledged for super tight double bassing. That is definitely not easy for everyone, there's a difference between hard-hitting and speed playing. First of all, I don't use triggers and therefore practiced hard. I gave some serious thought to how I could get that steady, hard-hitting sound. I tried kick pads and other plastic materials, and started using custom-made metal plates, which I glue on the skins under the kick pads and torture those with wooden beaters.
It took some time and hard practice to get used to them, but the result is outstanding! It might not work for everyone, but it surely does for me. You get the low end from the bass drum, and a high pitch kick from the plates. Normally, you would turn up the high ends on an EQ to get more kick, with me you probably have to reduce it! It's perfect for metal.
Six things: Tama Starclassic BB bass drums, low-tuned Evans EQ2 skins, a feather leathered pillow in the drums, the metal patches on the skin, two wooden beaters, and a solid drummer: me. [laughing]
SDM: Tell us about God Army and the DVD that was released.
Mark: Well, actually, we never released a DVD, not even an album. John ABC Smith, the former bass player of At Vance, and I started this band right after the AV tour. We recorded the album, played a few shows, and filmed one of the shows, but never got signed. Another unfinished production in the closet, why?
SDM: Tell us about Spitfire, Anonymous, Bad Habit, and Take 3.
Mark: Wow, that was even longer ago! Take 3 was a cover rock trio. No, not like Rush, but simply a bar band that rocked you all night long and played '70s-'80s rock covers.
Bad Habit was a great AOR band in the early nineties, with whom I probably drank more booze and did other things than playing music [laughing]. We recorded a demo of seven songs, and our singer moved to Sweden, and that was it. Later, I took the remaining boys to the Gillan project.
Spitfire had been a 1985 hard rock band in Greece that released three albums, and played several shows in twenty-four years.
SDM: What was it like playing for two years with Anna Vissi and Nick Carr?
Mark: A very unique experience! I was young and a rising trouble maker on the scene, and Anna had already been a top star in Greece. Although her music back then was more pop with few rock elements, but the attitude just matched mine, and it seemed to be the right thing to do at the time.
SDM: Tell us about the movie soundtrack entitled "Time of Growing", which you played a role in developing.
Mark: "Time of Growing" was a soundtrack composed by a Greek composer, D. Papadimitriou. I featured on the album on one or two songs. It was my first time in a studio and professional recording ever. It was the experience of a lifetime. I still have this record on vinyl, but never saw it again anywhere, so don't bother looking.
SDM: Tell us more about Saracen's latest album, "Vox in Excelso"? How did you come to play with them?
Mark: During the "Allegiance" recordings, the owner of JM Studios, Martin Kronlund, asked me if I wanted to play the drums on the recording, since he was producing it. I liked what I heard, and did it in a very short time. I liked Saracen and their original English-sounding rock.
SDM: Talk to us about your time with Ian Gillian and how that has helped your career.
Mark: 1992. Ian was invited to a project with former Scraptown singer M. Rakintzis, who called me to see if we could put a band together for the recordings and shows. Many people thought that I was in Gillan, but no, Ian was a guest and so was I. We had a bunch of huge football stadium concerts and featured on M. Rakintzis's album. It was a unique experience and pleasure to have worked with Ian. It surely helped my reputation back then to have his name in my roster. He is such a great guy, big respect! Always a pleasure.
SDM: What other projects do you have coming up? How do they differ from Firewind?
Mark: Me and my FW bandmate Bob Katsionis just announced a side project called Outloud, which is an AOR-sounding band. Very powerful with catchy rock tunes. It's a great album, and will be released in Europe on August 28, and the US on September 15 by Frontiers records. You can visit us at <http://myspace.com/outloudtheband>.
SDM: Tell us about drum clinics you are doing across Europe?
Mark: Every year I do a few, and intend to expand those soon. I finished one on May 10th in Northern Greece, in the small town of Drama at the Markos Faitas Drum School, and will perform a two day seminar at the SAE School of audio engineering in Athens, Greece, on June 4th and 5th. This will be an exclusive drum recording course, taking you back to a Firewind session, just the way it's been done during the recordings. Tips, tricks, and re-production.
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