Parakeet are like some underground super-group, boasting members from Yuck and The History of Apple Pie. So with a superb single already on the shelves (the 7″ Tomorrow) – and plenty more to come – we thought we would catch up with a band building a buzz (and rightly so). Thankfully Mariko Doi found the time between Parakeet and Yuck to answer our questions.

Bowlegs: You’re both already in buzzing bands – why make life harder with a new project? How did parakeet come about, what do the other members of Yuck and The History of Apple Pie think of this project?

Mariko: We play music because we enjoy being creative and the interaction between other musicians etc… not because we want to be successful or famous. Parakeet is completely different from our other bands at least for us anyway.

James and I started playing together with fuzzy bass riffs accompanied with a snappy drums and we were like a baby Trans Am in early days, then recently we have met this strat man called Jon. Jon and James played in Loverman in a parallel world.

Our guys are supportive to Parakeet. We are not only band members but also good friends and music lovers too. It’s really amazing to see them enjoying our gigs and music.

Bowlegs: Your debut single, Tomorrow, was self-released back in April – self-releasing! more hard work! Can imagine it’s quite a buzz releasing your own records though?

Mariko: It is a buzz. I was overwhelmed that this is gonna be out finally when we were mastering it. It’s pretty exciting.

Bowlegs: I understand there’s an album in the works? Is it finished? Are their shared influences we might hear in the music?

Mariko: It’s been recorded and I’d say it’s nearly finished. Ideally we want Steve Albini to record our albums since he recorded most of our heroes and heroines.

Bowlegs: Is it just the two of you in the band? Who writes the songs, and who plays the guitars here – aren’t you a bassist and a drummer?

Mariko: I write songs and record a rough demo, then we work in a studio together. I sort of played guitars badly in some songs and Kohhei from Bo Ningen played psychedelic guitars on our single Tomorrow. As I mentioned earlier, Jon is our latest addition to Parakeet and we have a hand full of new songs working together. It got to another level with him and we are very thrilled.

Bowlegs: Just been watching the video for Paper, Scissors, Stone – it’s the perfect visual accompaniment for the tune. Who made it? Compared to the A Side this track feels a little more trippy? Which direction is the album gonna take us?

Mariko: The video turned out fantastic for PSS. This is made by Maria Cecilia, another young talent who just finished university when she was making it. She is making our next video as well. I guess you could say PSS is trippy, I’d love to write more of those. We also made the trilogy of covers we have recorded recently. It sums up what we are quite well I think.

Bowlegs: Getting a buzz around a band must mean constant social networking, releasing new videos, getting remixed, giving away free shit as much as possible? Do you like the way music promotion has gone, the whole DIY ethic? It certainly opens doors, but do they shut as quickly as they open if you’re not careful?

Mariko: It’s a digital war!!

Bowlegs: If this record is a massive hit, out-selling Coldplay and Kanye West put together, might you consider knocking the other projects on the head?

Mariko: This means pandemonium would reign the world, it should not happen ever.

Bowlegs: Tell us a couple of albums that you’ve been listening to 2012?

Mariko: Gumball – Special Kiss, Wavves – King of the Beach, Can – The Lost Tapes, X – Los Angeles, Tame Impala – Lonerism (will do).

Bowlegs: Finally, before you go, have you got any other bands we need to know about?

Mariko: Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Bo Ningen, Group A, Young*Husband, BNJMN.