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| ::Interviews:: |
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| review & interview content, as well as web site graphics & design, copywrite 2003-2004 Euphonia Online. use of materials granted only with reasonable purposes. |
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| interviewed by robby sumner |
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| Interview with Alex, Jack, and Rian June 25th, 2004 |
Alex Gaskarth - Vocals, Guitar Jack Barakat - Guitar Zack Merrick - Bass Rian Dawson - Drums |
| E: All Time Low is a fan-making machine of a band that is rapidly on the rise. What can you tell me about the chemistry between its members? Alex: Well... personally, I hate each and every member of the band. I envision myself branching off into a Prince-esque solo career, in which I compose all of the music myself. No... I love these guys. They're all like my brothers. Rian: It's actually pretty weird. People see the four of us together and get really weirded out by the way we act... it has always struck me as odd, the way that we all share the same kind of humor and what not. We all love each other. Jack: Alex is like a brother to me. Rian, I have only known for a little over a year, but [he] has become really close to me. Everyone thinks we don't like Zach, but truly, we love the kid like a brother, and he knows that. Alex: Yeah, Zach has been made the odd one out by those who don't really know us. I guess it's because we go to different schools, and he joined the band later that we have that separation. But the truth is, we do... we really love that kid. Jack: Together we are probably the goofiest people... we are all very different from each other. Actually, we are all really much alike... but [we] do see a lot of things differently. E: What sort of friendships do you have with other bands that you know? Jack: Honestly, we made incredible relationships with bands we know. Underscore, Adelphi, Fire in the Hole, 451, Burning Rosewood, Thin Dark Line, Bury Me Standing, All Rights Reserved... and many more. They are all great people. Rian: That's been one of the coolest things about being in a band--the people you meet. First is a band we all love--Fire in the Hole. They go to the same school as us, so we knew them before the whole band thing. They're all great guys. Jack: And they're all really fun to be around. They treat us like their brothers, and we are all like a big happy family. They're always there for us. Alex: We've made some really good friends through the band--the guys in Adelphi and Never the Machine Forever... Underscore... as well as the guys in Fire in the Hole, despite out almost sibling-like rivalry. It truly is like a family. Jack: Yeah, Never the Machine Forever is another band who have been like brothers to us. Everyone's so damn friendly. Rian: One thing that amazes me is the fact that all these bands treat us so well. I thought that because we're all so young, they may treat us like kids. But they've been really good to us... like sisters? E: Describe the sort of live show that you'd call your favorite to play. Rian: One with the bands mentioned above. With our friends in the audience singing along. We've been lucky enough to have this come true quite a few times... Jack: We have had a lot of shows where the crowd comes up and sings with us, and it's the best feeling in the world. We have had forty people on stage singing with us before, and when it gets to the point where you can hear the crowd over your own music... it's the best feeling. Alex: Almost every month for a while now, we've been playing this really little church hall called "St. John's." It's become, like, a little gathering of everyone we know... the place is always packed, and all the bands are friends... so many people sing along, and show us much love. It's truly indescribable. Jack: Also, another ideal show is playing with bands we love. Big ones, like when we played with the Early November, Anberlin, Midtown, and bands like that. Alex: In a way, our dreams are coming true. Jack: Yeah, I agree. E: What sort of ambitions does the band have that it's still working toward? What has it already accomplished? Jack: Well, my ambition is to tour... I've always wanted to tour, and it's a feeling that I have not been close to coming by yet. But I'm sure it will be one of the best times of my life. I think our band is focusing on writing our best now, so that when it comes to us leaving high school, we can start seriously trying to get signed. 'cause right now, that's what our dream is... like most local bands--getting our music out to as many people as possible. Rian: Our biggest ambition is always being accomplished as our music is being spread. We've recently done an interview on Idobi, and people were giving us feedback from all over the world. That's what we want--to have as many people hear our music as possible. As far as [what] still needs to be accomplished... we need to go on tour. But tours are being planned, and as of right now, we are feeling very lucky about them. Alex: I have to say, it would be utterly amazing to get signed and tour and simply get ourselves out there to anyone and everyone who is willing to accept us. We are still very young, and have tons of time to try to achieve our goals... and that's what I'm most excited about--just doing this as a career. To travel around with your best friends and play music for new people every day... what could be better? Jack: Agreed. E: What sort of help have you gotten along the way with your careers? Alex: We practically owe our lives to some of the people who have helped us. Other bands, friends, family, and especially people like Stef from Breaking Star Productions and Paul Leavit from Paul's Basement, a recording studio that we've been working in. Jack: This company, Breaking Star Productions, has been a great help. Also, the Ottobar has put us on so many shows there... they have been a great help as well. Rian: Breaking Star Productions! They have helped us so much... Steph and James are two people we love so much. Alex: Too true. Jack: Yeah, you gotta love Steph and James. Rian: We love you Steph and James! Love love love! Jack: Also, my friend who is interning for the Militia Group as we speak has been a great supporter and helper. He is also the Maryland Drive-Thru Street Team leader. Rian: Yeah. Jack: And of course, all the local bands have been a huge help in getting our music out, and getting us shows! Rian: Yes, yes. Alex: Also, the lovely PureVolume.com. I think I speak for thousands of bands when I say that there could not be a better network on which underground and more mainstream music can be heard by a massive amount of people. And it's legal... and that's how I like it. Jack: Yeah. E: Do you think that a fan can get a good idea of what the band is like after having only heard a thirty-second clip of a song? Alex: No... I really don't. In fact, we did that with one of our newly recorded songs, and we got so much positive feedback. It felt good, but at the same time, I couldn't wait to get a few tracks, because that's really when you know. Rian: Not at all... to be honest, I don't think a fan gets a good idea of what a band is like by listening to a full-length CD. Shows, to me, are the only way you can experience the band. Jack: Yeah. I think the only way for a fan to get a really good idea of a band is to see them live. To me, any band could make a CD. But not every band can put on a kickass live show. That's how a person should fall in love with a band. Alex: A band can be polished so much in a studio and still suck live. So yeah... a live performance is what narrows it down. E: What do you think is unique about All Time Low? Jack: I think the fact that we are so young and have accmplished what we have is incredible. I never thought we would have played for some of the bands we have gotten to open for, this early in our career. Rian: I know it sounds trite... but our passion for what we do is very, very strong. Each of us absolutely loves our part in the band, and I think it shows live. We love playing any show, regardless of venue or money... and I think that's the way it should be. Jack: Yeah, I think the live show we put on is a bit different, just because we are such plain, boring people... but onstage, we are totally different, and [we] try to put on a show that will not make the crowd want to leave the room. Alex: I truly feel that we connect with people in a way that many bands don't--live, especially. I come away from each show amazed at how much love we receive. To be honest, we are quite different offstage than we are on. Sure, we joke around--we have the same sense of humor and attitude... but in performance, it's amplified tenfold. Maybe even twenty-fold. Twenty-one on a good day. We go nuts, and I think our audience enjoys that. Jack: I think the audience enjoys Alex when he flips his hair. E: How much do you think money is relevant to a band's career? Rian: I think each step of a band's career may change that answer. Alex: It depends on the scale of things. To pull off a nation-wide tour, you're going to need funding. To put out a CD, you're going to need funding. If it's going to be a career, then money is definitely going to be an issue. That's the truth--I'm not going to sit here and say, "it's not about the money, it's about the music"... because when it's being done to an extreme, there has to be payoff to even continue doing it. Jack: I've only seen money band-wise to be used for one thing: Equipment. We aren't one of those bands who uses the money we get to buy clothes and food and stuff... but I think as our career expands, that might change, if this becomes our job. Rian: Yeah. Alex: As of right now, money is really not that important to us. Yes, we are poor... we need money for merch, CD release, and whatever else might go along with it. But it's for the band, and not for our own prosperity. Rian: We just need money for equipment and merch. Other than that, it makes no difference to us. We play shows for free, but it is always nice to have a venue shell out a few bucks. Jack: Agreed, totally. E: What do you think has been your favorite experience with the band to date? Rian: This is tough. Alex: Yeah, this is the hardest question you've asked... because I really don't have fun with this. At all. Actually, to be honest, the experiences I've had with this band are probably some of the best of my entire life. Rian: I think one that we'll all agree on is some of the shows at St. John's where thirty or forty people have come up on stage and sang along to one of our songs. That's what we strive for in a band. Jack: My favorite experience with the band was June 18th when we played St. John's on my birthday... and like two hundred people came to the show, and they all sang "Happy Birthday" and, like, forty people came on stage to sing a song with us, and I couldn't even hear our music because they were so loud. It was the best day of my life. The love in the room was beyond belief, and when I sit and think about that night... it made me think we actually have a chance to get somewhere. When people show that much love, it means something. It was rad. Rian: Another great moment is when we found out we were playing with The Early November. *Laughs* That day was crazy. It was just... none of us thought that so soon, we'd be playing with a band that all of us idolize. It was just so f*cking rad that we finally had a chance to play with some of our favorite bands. I don't think any of us will forget that. Alex: To narrow it down to one single experience is very difficult, so I'm going to be a bit more cryptic... I'm going to say that the greatest experience of all is an ongoing experience. It's the rush that I get over and over again, whenever we hit the stage or go into the studio or hear some great news concerning the band. It's like one big, amazing experience, and I never want it to end. It really is like my dreams are playing out right before my eyes. And I f*cking love it. E: Well, thanks a lot for doing the interview... any last words? Rian: Thank you to all the people that support us. Whether you come to every single one of our shows, or whether you've only heard us on PureVolume... you mean the world to us. Thank you so much. Also, check out every local band that you possibly can. Alex: You make us feel so amazing. Support the hell out of your local scene, wherever you are... because that's the next generation of awesome kids who are going to grow up and rock out in stadiums and the like. Jack: We can't thank any supporters enough... everything has been going so fast, and I hope things keep looking better for us. All the bands and fans are the coolest people ever. Also, fans from out of state are a really super addition to our fanbase. Alex: I'd really just like to say that to anyone reading this interview... thank you. Thank you to everyone who's ever given us the time of day to listen. Thank you to anyone who's checked us out live. Thank you to anyone who's ever helped us out. |