Rufio

Maybe it's something in the water, but it's obvious by now that Southern California is a petri dish for melodic punk. The guys in Rufio grew up in Rancho Cucamonga, the same place "Next Friday" was filmed. They went to high school together, along with Trevor from O-Town. Since then, Rufio have exploded with popularity. They are one of the most popular bands around, and they have only been playing together for 2 1/2 years! They came to the Paradox in Seattle on their tour with Taking Back Sunday and Brand New. The Paradox was absolutely packed, and about 200 kids still didn't get in! I snagged Clark and Mike after their awesome set, and here's how shit went down...

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island, and you could only bring three CDs and three other things; what would you bring?
Clark: Appetite For Destruction by Guns n' Roses would be one. I don't know... NWA? No, I wouldn't bring that CD. I'd bring Slick Shoes – Rusty, because I never get sick of that CD, and... I need something poppy too, to equal out the blend. Hmm... I don't know. Mike: 3 other things Clark. Clark: Other things? Mike, Mike and Mike. I'd bring Mike Jimenez with me.

What about you man?
Mike: 3 CDs? Probably Screeching Weasel – Anthem For A New Tomorrow...

That's my favorite.
Clark: Oh, my choices weren't good enough huh? Whatever. Mike: I'd say, Lifetime – Jersey's Best Dancers, and let's see... something else with good drumming. The Dave Weckl Band – Synergy. And three other things would be the Jenna Jameson porn, a VCR, and a TV.

If you could be anyone for a day, who would you be?
Clark: Mike. Mike Jimenez. Mike: Probably... let me think of someone. Clark: I'd be a stud who gets action every day. I don't know who that is, but somebody.

Hugh Hefner?
Clark: No, Hugh Hefner sucks though. Mike: You can't say Hugh Hefner sucks! Clark: He sucks. Mike: He rocks! Clark: He's old, he sucks. Mike: But he still pimps... Clark: He's old, it's just ‘cause he's old. Mike: I'd probably say like... maybe... Pamela Anderson or something? Clark: Why? So you can have sex with Tommy Lee?

Kid Rock.
Clark: Kid Rock, you want Kid Rock huh?

Alright, would you rather watch a porno movie with your parents, or starring your parents?
Clark: What do you mean?

Watch your parents fucking on TV, or have them sitting next to you, watching Jenna Jameson.
Mike: Oh my gosh! Clark: Oh, so like they're hanging out with me, watching porn with me?

Yeah.
Clark: I'd rather see them having sex. That's cool. I'm into that stuff...it's cool. Mike: If I saw my mom's boobs, I'd like... suffocate and die! Clark: I've seen your mom's boobs. They're not that bad! Mike: Don't freakin... Clark: They're not that bad!

What's the craziest thing that's ever happened on tour?
Clark: Ya know what happened the other day? Can we say this about Jon, or will he get mad? He's not gonna read this. He doesn't even know we're doing this, so, he's not gonna know! ...He got beat up by security guards in San Francisco. Mike: He got socked in the face! Clark: Like some guy threw a bottle, a glass bottle, on stage, and Jon was on stage... just standing there, watching Brand New's set. Security guards seriously threw him on the ground, and they slammed his head in the ground, and they were straight choking him and stuff. And he was like "get off me, get off me!" And then he asked them the story, and they were like "well... he pushed me first." But Scott, and our friends were there, and they saw the whole thing. Jon was innocent, just standing there. They just threw him on the ground; he has a fat lip right now. Mike: They probably didn't like his hair, ‘cause he's looks like he's trying to have an Afro or something. Clark: And his lip is all blue because it got nailed.

So it's not herpes?
Clark: It might be herpes. It's probably both. It sucked then, but actually it's really funny now.

Alright, if you could just give some closing comments, and maybe give some shout outs to good bands from Rancho Cucamonga, or bands that you have played with on tour and stuff like that.
Mike: How bout shout outs to Southern California bands like Dumbstruck. Clark: Yeah, Dumbstruck, because we're gonna be on the last 10 days of our tour, from Florida home. And... Burning Lint is a good band, we're friends with them. Mike: And these bands, Taking Back Sunday, and Brand New. They're cool. Clark: We love them a lot... if you know what I mean. Mike: And my friend's got a brand new label called Mindset Records from Virginia Beach, and they're awesome, and they're up and coming.

Oh shit, I forgot a question!
Clark: Good job Conor!

What do you guys think about MP3's, and people sharing your music over the internet?
Clark: I think it's great. I think that's the reason that we have fans outside California. Because we've never played Seattle before, but all these people know us from MP3.com. So yeah, it's a good thing. Mike: Free music is just rad. Clark: We were all for Napster. Mike: I don't get why all the bands freaked out. It's like... they want people to listen to their music don't they? Clark: So yeah, it's a good thing. Every band should do it.

BW