Hot Celebrities Interview

BUCKCHERRY'S JOSH TODD
BY SKUNK ANASIE'S SKIN

SKIN: Hello, Josh, ready to talk?
JOSH TODD: First I've got to tell you, I'm such a huge fan of your band.

S: Oh, cool! I've just been seeing you on MTV, and I was like, "Oh, that looks way cool." So thank you, and likewise. From everything I hear, it sounds like you guys are pretty wild: You like your drugs, you like your sex, you like your rock 'n' roll.
JT: [laughs]

S: You have a tattoo across your ripped abs that blasts the word "Chaos." Why?
JT: I grew up on punk rock, and chaos was really just what went on between my ears constantly. I don't know, I was a very angry young man. Some little girl came up to me in the mall one time, and she goes, "Do you know if you have tattoos you're not going to heaven?" I said, "Who told you that?" She said, "Well, it says it in the Bible." I said, "Well, that's if you believe the Bible." And she just went "Unhhh!" and ran off. It was like in the Bible Belt in the South. I just could not believe that some little kid was programmed like that. It scares me.

S: There are some analogies between Skunk Anansie and Buckcherry - we beth have a bit of a hard-rock thing. Your live shows are full of energy. How important is pleasing the audience to you?

JT: I'm all about performance, which there hasn't been a lot of in the '90s. I mean, my favorite performer is Michael Jackson. I think singers should sing more, and not play an instrument while they fucking perform. That's why I was attracted to you, and I really love Marilyn Manson. The theatrics that he puts into his shows are amazing. Seeing a show and losing your mind and just forgetting about your life for however long the band is on stage - that's why I got attracted to this when I was a kid.

S: What do you think of the whole pop thing - like the Backstreet Boys and all that stuff. Are you into any of that?
JT: I'm really a big fan of anything that generates sexual energy. If there's a bunch of screaming teenage girls going nuts over bands, I think it's great. As far as the Backstreet Boys' talent, I think they're horrible. But whatever.

S: Did rock 'n' roll save your soul?
JT: Fuck no! I think acid saved my soul.

S: When was your first trip?
JT: I was probably seventeen. It was about eight hours. Then we went into the woods, and I looked at this snail for like an hour. I was like, "Man, snails are so fucking cool, man."