SHREDnews

Darlene: How’s tour going so far?

Kristian: This is day one, but so far so good.  No problems yet.

D: Why were some of the shows rescheduled?

K: Today in particular, Boston, is here and tomorrow we’re doing Philly and then the 23^rd of March is when we’re doing the New York date.

D: I heard New York got snowed out?

K: Yeah, it got a little crazy in Long Island.  We were used to when we first started to drive regardless but we’ve heard so many stories about friends getting hurt and killed.  It’s something not worth taking the risk.

D: What’s your favorite part of touring?

K: Seeing places I wouldn’t see if I wasn’t in a band.

D: What’s your favorite city to play in?

K: I love San Francisco.  I love Boston.  Boston always shows us love.  Orlando, Florida; Dallas, TX; Seattle; Portland

D: Are you excited about playing with The Wonder Years next week?

K: Yeah, we’re very excited actually.  We played with them I’ll say three months ago.  It was a church show in New Jersey and they were awesome.  That’s when we left that show saying we want to tour with these guys.

D: What kind of response have you gotten from your new album so far?

K: So far, so good.  It leaked two weeks early and all the feedback that we got back from that was amazing from fans, friends, people that don’t know us.  We got some great reviews from magazines, zines, stuff like that.  We’re definitely more than pleased with what people are saying about it.

D: How do you feel when your album leaks before its release date?

K: I want to rip my own head off because you put so much time into promoting it and building hype for it and making people know that it’s coming out.  You set everything up so that when the record comes out, the tour starts, this happens, that happens.  When it doesn’t happen that way, it’s obviously frustrating for all parties involved.

D: It’s somewhat inevitable.

K: In this day and age, I would say though that if not for one instance, this record wouldn’t have been made and come out in time, but shit happens.

D: What were you aiming for while making this album?

K: Writing the best album we could at the time we’re doing it.  I mean, we always try to better ourselves personally as musicians and together as a band.  We wanted to write a record that came off live better than Dead did.  I think we did that and I think that was really it.  We always want to expand on what we did.

D: What makes this album better than or different than your other albums?

K: In my personal opinion, it’s got more heart.  It’s got more feeling to it.  It’s lyrically better.  The song structure’s better.  Anything you can talk about a record, I feel like it was progression.

D: Do you have a favorite song on the new album, or one that you’re most proud of?

K: I would say “Exit Halo,” the third track, and “Odalisque” are two of my favorite songs on the record.

D: Where does the inspiration come from for the lyrics?

K: Life.  We’re a very life-driven band.  All of our records throughout our lives, you can see the things that were troubling us.  When you’re young, it’s politics and then it’s love and stuff like that and just the harsh realities of being a person without a job traveling the country playing music at 27 years old.

D: What do you love about Boston’s music scene and playing in this city compared to other cities?  What makes it different?

K: Heart.  This city’s got a lot of hardcore heart, man.  All of our peers that we came up with are from here.  All of our fans here are friends, people that have done shows for us.  Everyone here gives everything they have to do for the hardcore scene and they appreciate it.  Definitely one of the best places to play in.

D: Who are some of your influences band-wise?

K: As a band, that’s too far of a gambit to run, but personally I’d say Sunny Day Real Estate, Hot Water Music, Silent Majority, Death Cab for Cutie, you know, stuff like that.

D: How did you get into hardcore?

K: My cousin played guitar in the first grouping of Glassjaw before they were a national act, before they were on a major label.  They were staying at his house for the weekend and he always took me skateboarding and I went to the show with him.  It was just crazy.  It was definitely chaotic and violent but at the same time, it was completely welcoming and completely new and something I’ve never seen before and 15 years later, I’m still there.

D: What does the genre and the lifestyle mean to you?

K: I think it’s something you carry with you when you leave the venue doors.  It’s something you eat, breathe and sleep.  Music has always been on my mind, hardcore music in particular.  It’s something that gets you through your shitty times.  It’s there playing when you’re having your best moments in your life.  I think you carry around a genre.  You are what you engulf yourself into.

D: How would you describe your music to someone who has never listened to you before?

K: Think Gorilla Biscuits and Lifetime go out on a date and walking through Manhattan and Jawbreaker and Nirvana jump them and stole their money and the whole thing was videotaped by an off-duty police officer on his phone and that’s how you describe us.