Higher Learning with Max Ward...

What bands have you played in?
Lets see.....Backslide, Plutocracy, Sirota, Spazz, ETO, Capitalist Casualties, Bombs of Death, Scholastic Deth, What Happens Next, plus a few other projects here and there. Oh, and the Meat Shits. Ugh.






How long have you been playing drums?
Well, I played on other people's stuff since 6th grade, but got my own cheap drumset in 8th grade (around 1986). Never took lessons, and have never really progressed. I am eternally stuck in the same patterns and beats.

What is your favorite drum kit you have ever owned?
They are all fine....I started with a crappy rented Ludwig, moved onto a Yamaha turbo-tour (which is what I still play on), and have various touring/beatersets, like a basic Tama, and a basic Yamaha to thrash. In the PLUTO days I used to dream of getting a Sonor or some shit, but then I figure that kinda stuff is not meant for what I do. I'm not tech-death metal, a little 4 piece tama suits me fine. Plus, I don't feel so nervous when singers launch off the kick-drum.



How do you like to set up your drums and why?
Minimal kits are best. Four piece I think is the best, although 2 rack toms are fine as well. I think one or two crashes at the most. When I first started I would have all these crashes and shit everywhere, it made no difference. Although I'm a fan of the big ride and crashes, when playing fast they tend not to accent the hits as much since they reverberate for longer.

How old were you when you first recorded?
Um, first recording....good question. PLUTO recorded twice with Freeway (immortal fate) working a little 4-track. Before that, BACKSLIDE recorded on a little boombox in our practice space. But the real recording came in 90 with Bart at House of Faith with PLUTO's first demo, "Progress?". I can't really remember the experience. I just remember being nervous, and trying to get used to having head phones on and shit.

How did Plutocracy come about?
It was through a bunch of people that skated that I met Jesse the singer, and at that time it was Kindred on guitar and Mike on bass. We were just some really raw and fast basic punk. We practiced for a while and played our first show at the Pony Express pizza, it was insane for how many high school kids came out to see us...after they got a glimpse of this band they had only heard about, they realized how bad we were and never showed up again. It was pretty funny.



What was your favorite Plutocracy show?
The old Pony shows were fun, our show at One Step Beyond with MINDROT, PHOBIA, IMMORTAL FATE, EXHUMED, COLOSTOMY was pretty rad as well. We also did these shows at a pizza place in Los Gatos with SLEEP and 976, those were awesome. Back then, just playing a show was an accomplishment, no one wanted to book fast hardcore/grind at all. When we finally got a show at Gilman it was after like 4 years of the band being around and few records being released.

What is your favorite grind show?
Hmmm, seeing CARCASS on the symphonies of sickness tour was pretty awesome. INSECT WARFARE are bad-ass, I just saw them like 3 times live and they destroy. They lay to waste most of the fake-ass MTV2 tech grind you hear so much these days...



What is the most bands you have played in at once?
I think 5, but most of the time one band would get back from tour and one would get active again. Yet there were times when all bands were going all at once....that was pretty crazy.

How did Spazz come about?
Dan and I talked about doing a fast hardcore band...so we just started jamming in his garage around ' 92 or so. I talked about it in an interview I did and Chris read that....he thought it sounded cool so he wrote and asked if we should all get together and do something....the rest is (bad) history...

What was the first 625 release?
NO LESS/ETO split EP. Love that record to death, NO LESS were fucking so great.......



Is it hard to keep up on a label being so busy?
Yeah, although it's easier to do a label than a band. I pretty much dedicate my time to school 7 days a week, 10 hours a day, but I manage to get in time here and there.

How was it going from singing about evolution and despair in E.T.O. to taking part in the tongue-in-cheek subjects in Spazz or What Happens Next?
Hmmm, it wasn't particularly difficult, except that I sucked at singing....My voice didnt really fit with ETO, and singing for SCHOLASTIC DETH was embarrassing, although a lot of fun.....I just feel really uncomfortable performing these days....



What are some of your non-rocking interests?
School, school, school. I love reading and teaching classes, etc. I used to skate a lot, but I'm out of the loop out here in NYC, dont really know too many people
nor where parks/spots are....

Do you have any dream projects?
Just doing some new project with non-scenester people who like to play fast music and aren't flakes......I don't know if I will do another band again though.... just dont have any time to do it these days.






What is your favorite record that you have played on?
I like the SCHOLASTIC stuff, I like the last SPAZZ LP, and the WHN Stand Fast LP...those are probably my favorites......





What new bands are getting you stoked these days?
FALLEN WORLD, EDORA, STRAIGHT JACKET, SECRET 7, INSECT WARFARE, HATRED SURGE, KNUCKLESCRAPER, XBRAINIAX, WIDESPREADBLOODSHED, WARZONE WOMYN, BRAINHANDLE, CALL THE COPS, NO DICE, DEADFALL, SUBURBAN DEATH CAMP, SECOND OPINION, ROSENBOMBS, FINAL DRAFT, AXRXMX, there's a shitload more........






What is the most sentimental summertime salad days song for you?
Side B of SCUM.

Who is your favorite drummer?
Olav from LARM and SEEIN RED.

Who is the craziest band you have hung out with?
Hmmm, I have no idea......

Worst skateboard Graphic ever?
Anything Vision ever did.

What do you think about helmets?
Necessary evil

Best advice for making the song writing process enjoyable?
Listen to good music and get stoked. Leave the tech at
home.



Photo of last Spazz show taken from www.nuclearbbqparty.com