Lead singer Matt Thiessen and guitarist Matt Hoopes chat on a wide array of topics, including the band’s fresh new album Air for Free, redefining Relient K at this point in their career, and what the future holds.
Recently I was able to schedule a Zoom call with emo/punk band, Summerbruise, to discuss their slick new single that recently released, called “Never Bothered” and their touring plans. Summerbuise is vocalist/guitarist Mike Newman (he/him), drummer Stanli Fryman (she/her), bassist John Parkison (them/he), and guitarists Mitch Gulish (he/him) and Cora Kunda (she/her). If you’re enjoying this interview, please consider supporting this band here, or check out a show.
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Recently I was able to schedule a Zoom call with Will Pugh, the lead vocalist of Cartel, to discuss his range of emotions ahead of Chroma’s 20th anniversary, and the band’s re-recorded version of that album that recently sold out its first pressing on vinyl. Cartel will be on the road supporting the re-recorded version of Chroma with support from Hunny, Landon Conrath and Macseal. Cartel has since announced a Field Day Records pressing of their 2011 EP, In Stereo, that went on sale today. I asked Will about the vinyl pressings, his Vans Warped Tour 2025 experience, and much more. Tickets for the Chroma 20th Anniversary Tour are on sale here.
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An HBO original documentary, Music Box: Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately?, will debut on December 18th.
Read More “Counting Crows Documentary Coming to HBO Max”
Jimmy Eat World have announced the Something(s) Loud EP. Pre-orders are now up.
Read More “Jimmy Eat World Announce New EP”
Recently, I teamed up with my fellow contributors to discuss the latest album from Billie Eilish, called Happier Than Ever. Much like other comparative articles like the one on the recent Modest Mouse record, I provided a template of questions for each of the writers to respond to. Here is our conversation on Happier Than Ever, which we have affectionately titled: The Metamorphosis of Billie Eilish: From Bedroom Pop to Global Phenomenon.
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A couple of weeks ago, I was able to catch up with a new artist named Ariel Bellvalaire. In this interview, I asked Ariel about her amazing guitar playing abilities, what keeps her motivated as a musician and a songwriter, as well as the Mad Max-inspired music video for her single, “Elastic.” Ariel’s new single will be released this Friday, June 25th, with the EP to follow shortly thereafter.
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Bayside have steadily become one of the preeminent forces in alternative music by simply being themselves throughout their entire career. The band has a unique sense of self which displays itself every time they release new music. The band’s seventh full-length record, Vacancy, just dropped last week, and to celebrate, they hit the road with some incredible bands supporting them: The Menzingers and Sorority Noise. I’ll have more on that tour a little later this week, but for now, enjoy my conversation with Anthony Raneri and Nick Ghanbarian about managing fan expectations, what they feel their responsibility is as a band with a platform, and how you continue to write the most honest music of your career seven albums deep.
Avril Lavigne is extending her greatest hits tour into 2025. Simple Plan are opening this leg as well.
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Ben Gibbard has announced a benefit show in Seattle on December 19th.
Read More “Ben Gibbard Announces Benefit Show”
Lead singer Jordan Pundik discusses New Found Glory’s transition to becoming a four-piece, the cathartic nature of latest album Resurrection, and what still excites him about making music after 17 years.
Bassist Chris Sorenson looks at the past, present and future of Saosin, including the long road behind the band’s comeback album Along the Shadow and welcoming original singer Anthony Green back into the fold.
Spotify’s brief attempt at being a hardware company wasn’t all that successful: the company stopped producing its Car Thing dashboard accessory less than a year after it went on sale to the public. And now, two years later, the device is about to be rendered completely inoperable. Customers who bought the Car Thing are receiving emails warning that it will stop working altogether as of December 9th.
Unfortunately for those owners, Spotify isn’t offering any kind of subscription credit or automatic refund for the device — nor is the company open-sourcing it. Rather, it’s just canning the project and telling people to (responsibly) dispose of Car Thing.
Sometimes, the things you love leave you. Sometimes, those things come back.
Musically, 2023 for me was a year defined by the things I got back. Six of the 30 albums listed below were made by artists or bands I thought would never release music again. All six were artists who played key roles in extremely formative moments of my life; then they all went dormant for extended periods of time. Three of the six had been out of action for a decade or longer; one’s been gone for 23 years. Getting all six back – plus a few other long-awaited returns not represented on this list – felt like a little gift from the music gods, and made 2023 feel so special. There’s a Dawes song I love that goes, “May all your favorite bands stay together.” 2023’s blessing, for me, was more like “May all your favorite bands get back together.”
2023 was also the year that I wandered back out into the live music world, after being extremely hesitant about doing so in 2021 and 2022. While that post-pandemic return to normal didn’t come without its costs – I definitely contracted COVID-19 at a Taylor Swift concert – it felt so wonderful and so life affirming to be a part of a deafeningly-loud audience again. Getting that sensation back in 2023 – and having a couple of my very favorite concert experiences ever along the way – was a gift of its own.
So, here’s to getting things back, whether that’s the bands you love or the kinds of communal live music experiences you weren’t sure you’d ever have again. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the past five years, it’s to never, ever take anything for granted, and I tried to instill that spirit into the making of this list. To quote yet another Dawes lyric, “Most people don’t talk enough about how lucky they are.” Most people also don’t talk enough about why they love the music they love, so here’s 30 albums from 2023 that I love – and more importantly, the “why.”
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Even though it’s been 15 years since Armor For Sleep released a new full-length, Ben Jorgensen never buried the idea of another record from the New Jersey emo-adjacent legends. After a handful of successful 15 16-year anniversary shows for their second record What To Do When You Are Dead, Armor For Sleep reunited with Equal Vision Records to release the band’s fourth album The Rain Museum, a 12-track collection that pushes the signature AFS sound to new boundaries. I recently sat down with Jorgensen to discuss the origin of the record, working with Equal Vision again, the emo revival, and the lasting legacy of What To Do When You Are Dead.