- [Alex] This record coming out
during a pandemic
and during such taxing times
and such trying times for everybody,
the fact that there's been such a positive response
and our fans letting us know that, you know, the new music
has helped them through some of these struggles,
and been an escape, and been a way for them
to, you know, feel some semblance of normalcy
when life is so abnormal right now.
I think that's the biggest takeaway for us,
is just how, you know, it's come at the right time for a lot of people.
And that's the best feedback you can possibly get.
- [Jack] We lucked out last year 'cause we wrote a happy record,
not knowing there was gonna be a pandemic.
You know, if we wrote a really sad, depressing record,
and we're like, "Hey, guys.
"I know it's been a crappy year, but cry a little more."
- [Rian] "There you go." (laughing)
- [Alex] There's a place for that too, man.
- [Zack] Yeah, there's such a place for that.
- [Alex] I've been listening to all the sad music lately.
- [Jack] For sure.
- [Alex] And it's like, "Yeah, this is good."
- [Jack] Needs to be a good balance.
So, we're on the happier side.
- [Zack] Everyone needs a good cry.
- [Alex] Exactly. - [Zack] A good cry once in a while.
- [Dometi] Last month marked 15 years since All Time Low
dropped your guys' first album.
How has your connection with your fans evolved
over the years, and how has your music
evolved, as well, over the past 15 years?
- Our fans can drink now.
(laughing) - [Alex] True, true.
- [Jack] The bars at our shows are a lot busier.
(laughing)
- [Alex] So much happens in 15 years, you know?
I think we've obviously changed so much as people.
When we started doing this thing,
we were just out of high school
and we barely had our driver's licenses and stuff.
So, we were really growing up on tour and on the road,
and that in and of itself
is a crazy challenge to go through at that age.
You know, 15 years into it, we're much different people.
We've learned so much from being in this industry,
and just continuing to make music,
and evolve as a band together.
I feel like now, we're tighter than we've ever been,
personally, for us, which is really cool.
You know, when we got together last year to make this new album,
we rented a house, and got together in the desert,
and lived together for like, two months.
To be able to do that 15 years into a band's career
and not wanna tear each other's heads off every day like,
it was really inspiring.
I feel, you know, like we're all so much more connected because of it.
And then, with our fans, it's like, stronger than it's ever been.
I feel really grateful that over time, you know,
people have really rallied behind us, and this band,
and given us a really wide lane to work in,
so that we don't get bored doing what we're doing.
They've given us the freedom to be really creative
and to try different things as a band, different sounds
between records, and that's been really cool, too.
- Not many bands get to release eight records
and have fans follow you along that whole journey.
- [Zack] That's so true.
- [Jack] And be there through the ups and down.
So, it's kind of been a journey.
- [Dometi] What is the key to evolving your sound
while staying true to what it is that made
those 15-year fans love you in the first place, right?
Like, you guys, when I listen to 'Wake Up, Sunshine,'
I hear new energy, but I also hear nodes of things
that make us love All Time Low from all of these years.
You know, how do you guys strike that balance?
- [Alex] That's the biggest challenge.
- [Rian] That's a great question.
- [Alex] Having been doing it for as long as we have,
I think that's the toughest road.
And it's like, on one hand,
we have to stay true to ourselves creatively
and do things that keep us feeling inspired,
like so that we're not just banging our heads against the wall
at the end of the day when we go into the studio.
But, at the same time, yeah, I mean, there's an expectation
and there are fans that have been with us,
like Jack said, from 15 years ago, that kind of understand
and feel like they own a piece of this band.
So, we wanna always make them happy and proud as well,
whenever we put out something new.
So, it's kind of just finding that lane right in the middle
of doing something that feels like it's been inspired
by the energy that All Time Low has always carried,
but adding in the things we've learned along the way
to continue to re-engage and find new creative outlets.
- [Rian] Yeah, it's also important
to not chase a certain sound too much.
We've made the mistake on a song or two in previous records
where we were like, "Well, this is really popular right now
"in radio, or on TV, or anything.
undefined
And then it just kinda comes out feeling uninspired.
Whereas, especially with 'Wake Up, Sunshine,'
you had the four of us in a house together,
and we were all just constantly being like,
"Oh, yeah, that's the right sound," over and over again.
And so, no matter what genre it comes out as
or what the energy is, if we're all behind it
and we're all like, just pushing it forward,
then it's gonna feel like All Time Low.
- [Alex] For sure. - [Jack] Checks and balances,
baby. Checks and balances. (laughing)
- [Dometi] And that's a good point
because, I mean, you were nominated in the Rock category in 2016.
This year, it's a nomination for Best Alternative.
What does genre even mean these days
when you go in and produce a record?
Are you even thinking about what genre this might fit into,
or do you just create and see what happens?
- Honestly, at this point,
I think we've just stopped thinking about that.
As long as the music's making us feel inspired
and making us happy, and we're gonna be proud
to go out on stage and play it every night,
that's kind of the only thing that matters to us at this point.
Whether it fits in this genre or that genre
is kind of up for interpretation, and it's really up to the fans
to decide where it belongs for them.
- They argue about it more than anything.
(laughing)
We're like, "We never said anything."
- What has the reception been like
for 'Wake Up, Sunshine' so far?
- When we put out the record, you know, we had a discussion of,
"Do we push it?
undefined
And we decided, like Alex said, like
"No, people want some normalcy or what right now.
undefined
And that was kind our driving force.
Then, as we put it out and saw their reaction,
it kind of gave so much positivity to us.
You know, we're going through it in our own ways, as everyone is.
But, to see this reaction from the fan base
and from media publications, like you guys,
and stuff like this, it's kind of like,
undefined
And it is really helpful.
- Absolutely, and the video was so necessary, man.
Walk us through the vision behind the video
for the lead single, "Some Kind of Disaster."
Such a powerful visual, bro.
- [Alex] Thank you, thank you so much.
Yeah, I mean, that video,
it's all about taking a hard look inside yourself, and, you know,
sort of all the aspects of yourself
that maybe you're not as proud of, or don't wanna share
on a day-to-day basis with the outside world.
It's like, essentially putting that into a literal take on
if you could sit down with every aspect of yourself
that you weren't as happy with, and kind of talk
to those aspects of yourself, and find the goodness in that.
You know, what would that be like?
This video was a representation of that
and, for me, personally, it was like, I've had to do that.
I've had to take a look at myself,
and who I am, and reconcile with the parts of me
that I'm not as proud of, or that I struggle with
or that gives me anxiety, or that I fear,
or any of those things.
And I think it's good, every now and then,
to sort of take a long, hard look inward,
and sort of come to terms with all those different things.
I think it makes you stronger, and it lets you
come out the other side a more realized and whole person.
- [Dometi] How would you classify your music today?
Like, if you had to say, "This is the All Time Low sound
"in 2020," how would you describe that?
- [Alex] Man.
- What a question.
- Rock 'n roll, baby.
I don't know. - [Dometi] Rock 'n roll, man.
I wanna get Zack in on this one, man.
He's been pensive this whole time.
What you thinking?
- [Alex] Yeah, Zack, what do you think?
What would you call it, Zack?
- I'm such a-- look at me.
I'm straight rock 'n roll, man.
That's just how I roll. - [Jack] Let's go, let's go.
- [Zack] Straightforward, let's go.
That's kind of my mentality.
- [Rian] So, we're not going with country western anymore? I thought--
(laughing)
- Guy moves to Nashville,
we lost him.
We lost him to country music.
- [Alex] Yeah, maybe the next album.
(laughing)