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I’m sitting in a darkly lit cafe, stirring a bitter cup of coffee whilst trying not to touch the cigarette and saliva stained walls, watching the hands on the clock ticking painfully slow. This looks like the setting of badly directed horror movie not Mark Coppus, the front man of Hun. Hit. Run.’s location of choice for this one-on-one interview. I've showed up an hour early to get the feel of this frontman’s favorite place to eat in Brooklyn but now I highly regret it. However, half an hour later, a smiling Coppus bounces in and orders a stale Belgian bun. Lovely. He immediately spots me at the far left corner of the room - as I’m the only person hovering above my seat - and takes longs strides to the opposite seat while running his fingers through his jet black hair. What a rock star.

Mark grew up in Brooklyn as a child until he went to on holiday one summer to California where he accidentally formed his band Hun. Hit. Run. We casually chat about the weather and food until finally ask why the’ Sunise Cafe’ (the ‘r’ had long detached itself from the banner outside) is a hot spot for this frontman and his rising band. “Well this place has always been here for me. From family problems to breakups to just getting suspended from school, I would come down here with any spare change I had to buy a Belgian bun and just write. Most songs on Hun. Hit. Run. (the bands eponymous debut album) were written right here when I was 16, maybe 17? Everything changes and I know this is one thing that never will.”

Whilst on the topic of their self-titled breakthrough album, I asked how it felt to have a debut album at #2, “It feels just like #17 but more people kiss your rear end” he cleverly recites and censors a Kurt Cobain quote as he laughs and takes a bite out of his Belgian rock. “It’s nice being the underdog. I mean who thinks yet another pop-punk band from California would make it? I sure as hell didn't.” It’s almost hard to imagine that a 17-year-old Coppus would have traveled to California on his own and find guitarist Tom McLonge and drummer Travis Jarker while at a house party in Southern California (Mark angelically laughs and adds “Yeah, my eyes automatically traveled to Travis when I stepped into the room as he was topless and filled with tattoo’s with drum sticks in his back pocket. I kinda just asked him “So, are you in a band?” He gave me this look, nodded then pointed at Tom and shrugged”.) When Mark met the now members of Hun. Hit. Run., they were already in a two-man band missing a bassist, (“They invited me to Travis’ basement where we immediately started rocking out together and we knew this was it. This band was meant to be”.) After only a few practices and a budget demo, Hun. Hit. Run (formerly Circus Runners until their first gig) where signed to independent label Cool Kid Records.

When discussing the topic of being a pop-punk bands and the criticism surrounding the sub-genre, Mark seemed reluctant to discuss this. “Well, a lot of people think pop-punk is just an over commercialized, MTV sell-out of punk rock but this is what we’re into. This is what we’re about.” Although the pop-punk genre has had its fair share of critics, it hasn't stop bands like Green Day and Blink-182 from having meaningful, timeless lyrics that can reach a wide margin of fans and now Hun. Hit. Run. may be one of them. “Wow, thank you. It’s touching that you would put my band’s name of there with the true veteran’s of pop-punk. Those guys were all I listened to growing up, practicing the riffs for What’s My Age Again? (Blink-182’s top selling single from their multi-platinum album Enema of the State) on my dad’s old Fender with 4 strings until I noticed I suck at the guitar and found my love for base.” A bassist frontman? Rather Paul McCartney of you. “Well I guess I just happened to right the songs and add my vocals so I guess I’m the frontman” he replies with a chuckle, “I like being able to play an instrument that allows me to jump around on stage and just be real punk rock whereas Tom has to focus a little to play and doesn't have as much fun as me.”