Interview: Get to Know Last Second Dropout
- Tara Lakatos
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Interview with vocalist Mark MacDonald of Last Second Dropout.
What first got you into music?
My parents got me into guitar lessons when I lived in New Jersey as a kid, but I didn’t connect with the material my teacher was giving me, although he gave me a great foundation of hard skills.
It wasn’t until I moved back to Canada and started with a new teacher who asked me for the first time, “What do you want to learn?” I had never been asked that and didn’t even know howe to answer. So, he taught me Dammit but Blink and suddenly all the pieces aligned, and I couldn’t stop playing guitar. Got into songwriting quickly after that and it’s been an important part of my life ever since.
How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard it before?
Imagine if Billy Corgan did an Eminem impression over a Green Day song.
Was there a defining moment when you realized music was your calling?
Throughout high school I wanted to pursue music as a career, but I got disillusioned with the dream as I worked my way through an English Lit degree at University of Ottawa. During this time, I would regularly hit poetry open mics with my friends.
I had been going through a lot and wrote my first song in a long time and one week brought my guitar with me to the open mic. My friends, who largely did not know I knew how to play or write music, were all super supportive with some of them saying, “Thats a real song, I would BUY that song”. That was the first time I thought that I could really turn the passion into a career.
That song ended up becoming our track September.
Where do you find inspiration for your lyrics or melodies?
I really like to read which I think helps with phrasing and vocabulary for my lyrics. I’ll keep an ongoing note in my phone of song seeds that I build up as things come to me and reference when I sit down at my desk and it’s time to make something. The lyrics, chords, melody, and form all usually come together during the same writing session.
How do you balance personal expression and creating something your audience will love?
My hope is that if I create something interesting that I love and am passionate about it will find an audience with similar tastes.
What has been the most rewarding moment of your career so far?
Whenever I get messages from fans, specifically teenagers, who are discovering the music in a time where they really need it. It can be hard being neurodivergent growing up and it warms my heart every time I hear how much the songs meant to someone.
Are there any specific milestones you’re working toward in your career?
I want to win the Juno Award (the Canadian equivalent of The Grammy Awards) for Best New Artist.
How do you prepare for a show or tour?
For a week or two before tour starts, I will start to get more germaphobic. I wash my hands a lot and stop going out to big gatherings to avoid getting sick and losing my voice right before the shows start. Around this time, I’ll start running the set twice a day in my apartment front to back.
The night of I always make sure to drink some throat coat tea and do some vocal exercises backstage and stretch out my hands.
What’s the most unusual or memorable thing that’s happened to you on stage?
We were playing our first show in NYC with a band Fuzzy Slippers when I broke my string during the middle of our song ‘Apathy’. The band realized what was happening, grabbed their guitar, jumped on stage to make switch the guitars while I am still rapping and then I was able to come back in for the downbeat of the 2nd chorus. Community at its finest!
Can you tell us about your latest project or release?
"Aspartame" is the latest single off of the One Day Early EP that is releasing in the fall. It’s a song about the difference between the truth and what powerful people and corporations tell you is the truth.
Are there any collaborations in the works you’re excited about?
We were back at The Farm in British Columbia with producer GGGarth Richardson (Rage Against The Machine/Ozzy/Red Hot Chili Peppers/Kiss) this past February working on another project, so after the One Day Early EP launches in the fall, we will be able to continue releasing new music at the beginning of 2027
What message or emotion do you hope people take away from your music?
I hope people leave feeling seen yet hopeful about a better tomorrow. I’ve been told our music can give a feeling of, “fuck this — I deserve better” which is a feeling when we all need to embrace sometimes when we aren't being treated with love and respect.
Who are you listening to right now?
I can’t stop listening to the Bilmuri record Kinda Hard as well as a bunch of records for nothing, nowhere, most notably Cult Classic.
How do you see your music evolving in the next few years?
I would like to see us move out of the studio and get to play live a lot more. The whole band are studio rats and phenomenal players so when we start to get in front of more people to play, I think we are going to build something really special.
How do you handle the balance between commercial success and artistic integrity?
The message over everything. If you compromise the message, you compromise the art and if you compromise the art then it won’t become a commercial success because it won’t be interesting. Especially in the punk/emo space authenticity is important, honesty is what people respond to. Without that an artist has nothing.
What’s next for you? Any upcoming projects, tours, or surprises?
We have our first Canadian tour run getting planned for the fall along with the launch of the One Day Early EP.
Anything You'd Like Your Fans to Know.
Don't Do Drugs. Do LSD
