2010 is just getting started with its musical releases and if Four Year Strong’s new LP Enemy of the World is any indication as to the quality of the releases this year, we’re all in for a really good year.  In 2007 Four Year Strong released their second full-length Rise or Die Trying on I Surrender Records. This album not only picked up buzz from both hardcore ‘bros’ and pop-rock fans but also from Decaydance Records and they signed in 2008.  A little over a year after their signing, Four Year Strong have brought you Enemy of the World and this album  is sure to leave you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end.

“It Must Really Suck To Be Four Year Strong Right Now” opens the album with the guitars and drums that everyone’s always loved about Four Year Strong. After FYS released …Explains It All there were plenty of people hesitating as to whether or not the quality of their next release would be as good as Rise Or Die Trying. Anyone who hesitated, including myself, was slapped in the face with this first track. What are some things that stand out to you about Four Year Strong? Is it A:their recurrent use of catchy gang vocals, B: their hilarious song titles, C:  the way the use riffs as hard as A Day To Remember without falling into those same vocal capacities or is it D: a mixture of all of them? If you answered yes to any of these then Enemy of the World is the album for you. Moving on to tracks #2 and #3, the energy just keeps throwing punches and if you thought the titles were good, the lyrics are even better. Track #3, “Wasting Time (Eternal Summer)” is probably a universal song; with lines such as “I’d give this all up for a chance to find my way back to that summer in 2003 when I felt alive… It was the first time I didn’t fall asleep until the sun came up cause we never had enough. It was the first time that we could rush the streets feeling no defeat cause we were ready to ignite the sky. It was the last time that I had the time of my life,” how can you not relate? Everyone’s felt that way before and if they haven’t, they’ve just been inspired by Four Year Strong to go out and make it happen.

“Nineteen With Neck Tatz” opens with signature FYS gang vocals and doesn’t disappoint in its 3:23 run time.  Actually, everything about this song is virtually perfect for Four Year Strong. It incorporates every single aspect that the fans love about them. If I could go through and highlight everything good about this album, I’d surely end up listing every song but instead lets go through some absolutely flawless tracks. Track #6 , “What The Hell Is A Gigawatt?” is instrumentally AND vocally one of the strongest on the entire album . The drums and guitar are overwhelming and lead vocalists Dan and Alan deliver gruff, fast paced vocals then entire duration. “This Body Pays The Bill$” tells the story of a girl who is, according to Four Year Strong, “everything that possibly could go wrong, a lifelong tragedy” and although they maybe want to contend for this title, it must really suck to be this girl right now (much pun intended). Hell, apparently this girl “couldn’t hit a fly if she was standing in a pile of shit”. If I were this girl, under normal circumstances, I would be pissed that they wrote this about me, but considering how outwardly great this song is composed, I would actually be pretty flattered.

The album closes with the title track to the album “Enemy of the World” and it’s probably the perfect outro. Quite frankly, I don’t think Four Year Strong is an enemy of the world. Actually, after the release of this album, the world is probably going to love them. This is a group of strong guys no doubt and I think they know that they have some seriously loyal supporters. “Enemy of the World” opens with “Well if you’re in from the start then we’re in this together. If you’re not then I’ll have to take on this world cause this world can’t take on me.” Whether or not you support Four Year Strong, whether you actually purchase this album, go to their shows or buy their merchandise won’t be the determining factor of Four Year Strong’s future. See, while they really can’t do it without their fans, there will always be someone who will fill your shoes and Four Year Strong has no intention to give up, despite having people who may turn against them or try to bring them down. They may feel like enemies of the world but come on, it’d be a little foolish to believe that anyone has the entire world on their side; and even throughout them feeling this way, they “still put their trust in this world cause this world can’t trust in them.”

Review by Clarisse Hansard

Could you please state your name and what you do in Gentlemen and Scholars?

I am Wes Beach, I sing and dance for the band. Adam handles the lead guitar, and Pat backs him up on rhythm. Kyle plays drums hard. And Jeremiah rounds us out with his bass grooves and backup, sometimes co-vocals.

What’s a story from tour that you find yourself telling often?

Breaking into and climbing to the top of a clock tower on a Christian college campus was fun. But, more memorable would be our story from Kansas. After playing a great show we were given beer tickets and had much more after they were gone. On the way back to the van, Adam drunkenly stumbles and somehow gets lost in this small city. His phone was dead so we had to split up into search parties and eventually found him lying asleep under a tree. He had ended up talking to girls there and passed out with his head on one of their shoulders. After we left, we pulled over and he took that as a sign to get out. He fell long and hard down a steep hill off the side of the road. Laughs were had by all.

What’s an album or artist you can’t stop listening to?

It would have to be Saves the Day, hands down. The melodies are just so catchy it’s impossible to ignore. And the way they experiement with style changes so flawlessly is incredible. They are always looking to improve and refine their sound.

What/who are your main musical influences?

Our music can at times be all over the place, so we really draw from a wide spectrum. We have influences of Glassjaw, and Every Time I Die in some songs. And when we slow it down we pull from artists like My Morning Jacket, As Tall As Lions and Forgive Durden. An overall goal with future albums is to weave these our different styles together to form a free flowing Gentlemen and Scholars genre.

What do you aim to accomplish with your music?

Artistically, we’d like to create an relatable musical experience for the fan. Meaning, to make a song speak for those listening to it. It doesn’t just have to be the lyrics, it can be the mood and the performance that speaks.

Why did you all start playing music?

Well most of us are from a small town where meth and ignorance are the norm. Music became a outlet for escape from the sometimes vile nature of the back country. As far as myself, music and shows were a release for me. Punk and hardcore kids screaming and punching their messages out actually connected with me and opened up to a whole world of music that was previously unknown.

If you could compose a tour lineup for you to be a part of, who else would be on it?

Saves the Day, Glassjaw, As Tall As Lions, Gentlemen and Scholars, annnnnd Eddie Money.

What are the band’s plans for the near future?

We are currently in talks to get started on another album for Torque Records and this time with 100X more touring. The band is all losing our minds sitting at home waiting for things to be worked out. But expect new music and the same ol’ smiling and sometimes bleeding faces you are used to on the road.

Is there anything you’d like to add?

Anyone can message me personally on Myspace or Facebook (www.myspace.com/gentlemenandscholars www.facebook.com/wesleybeach) if you want a free download of some tracks from the new album. The money doesn’t matter, the music does!

Any band that plays a hometown show is usually greeted by a fanbase that is larger than the other shows they play. A hometown show has more emotion from the band and from the fans. The Starting Line’s holiday shows in Philadelphia were a perfect demonstration of this wonderful feat. Never have I felt so much emotion from a Philly crowd.

Up & Go was the first song, which definitely got the crowd going. Throughout their 19 song set, not once did I see the crowd stay still. Before Way With Words, Kenny Vasoli moved his hand around in a circle, and immediately a pit was started. Not just a circle pit with ten bros, I am talking about a circle pit that is the whole length of the venue. Not only did the people in the crowd have the time of their lives, but you could tell all the members of the band felt something was just right. The crowd showed them how missed they were and how exciting it was to have them just play a holiday show, even if that means they weren’t necessarily getting back together.

The last song (which we all knew wasn’t the last song), Best of Me, really got the crowd going. Everyone sang along, and seeing how many different people could appreciate one band so much was almost moving. There were people there who have followed The Starting Line since their beginning in 1999, and they were right along singing with someone like me — not a fan from the beginning but a fan none the less. While I awaited the typical “one more song,” I heard the crowd chanting something else. It took me a while to figure it out, but I clearly heard, “play all night,” and joined in the chants. Of course they came out to play their encore, but not without giving a speech. The roar of the crowd was literally indescribable when it was said that The Starting Line would be seen more in the near future. Everyone in the venue was excited, and the screaming didn’t stop until a big, “SHUT THE FUCK UP” came out of Vasoli’s mouth.

Were these shows their unofficial comeback? Will we be seeing more of them in 2010, one year before their set comeback? Only time will tell, but I know that if a TSL show rolls through here anytime soon, I will definitely be buying a ticket.

Review by Liz Janczewski

Photos by Kristopher Castro

Norah Jones is arguably one of the most popular contemporary jazz-influenced musicians, a title that she reflects with ease on her most recent album, The Fall (Blue Note, 17 November 2009).  Jacquire King, who has also worked with the likes of Kings of Leon and Modest Mouse, produced the album, which features musical collaboration with artists such as Ryan Adams.  The Fall debuted at an impressive number three on the Billboard 200 and sold 180,000 copies within a week of its release.  If you’re still wondering why, aside from these technicalities, this album may very well deserve a chance in your musical library, read on.

With an overall jazz tone, The Fall is an incredibly mellow, soulful album that opens with the first single, “Chasing Pirates,” and continues through to the second song, “Even Though,” both soft, simple tracks devoid of much vocal enthusiasm.  Both numbers, however, contain firm beats and rhythmic selections.

As the album progresses, the slightly mysterious sound of “Light as a Feather,” the song on which Ryan Adams collaborated, showcases Jones’s vocal range much better than the previous songs, and then follows “Young Blood,” a track that finally pulls away from the beginning of the album with a more upbeat, acoustic guitar-driven feel.  Further on in the album, the fifth track, “I Wouldn’t Need You” reverts to similarities of the first few tracks, while “Waiting” emits a nature of longing, such as the title suggests.  The following track, “It’s Gonna Be” takes a surprising turn from its predecessor with strength and excitement, featuring an impressive rhythm section, sharp guitars, and a much wider vocal range.

The next two tracks, “You’ve Ruined Me” and “Back to Manhattan” are both simple, piano-laced tunes packed with emotion and slight, but definite, hints of melancholy, but their successor, “Stuck,” improves the mood by adding power to the slew of songs.

The album’s last three tracks vary widely, with “December” being somewhat monotonous and unmemorable.  “Tell Yer Mama,” though, ties in an interesting rhythm that is different from the rest of the album, and even highlights some folksy twangs.  Finally, the last song, “Man of the Hour” functions incredibly well as an album closer, with a cute, quirky feel and fun lyrics.

Overall, The Fall is an album definitely worth looking into, especially if you’re looking to expand your musical library beyond those same-old sounds of pop-punk.  So sit back, perhaps grab some tea, and soak in the modern jazzy tunes from Norah Jones.

Winning tracks:  “Young Blood,” “It’s Gonna Be,” “Stuck,” and “Man Of the Hour.” Songs from The Fall can be streamed on www.norahjones.com or www.myspace.com/norahjones.

Review by Kaitlin Higgins

December 13th, 2009 — Vanna, Therefore I Am, A Loss For Words in Delaware

Massachusetts-based bands, Vanna, Therefore I Am, and A Loss For Words embarked on an 18-date tour this winter. Having seen A Loss For Words back in 2006, it was great to see them again four years later now touring with these bands. That said, AL4W put on a fun, energetic show as always. Following bands Therefore I Am and Vanna impressed me with their equally exciting sets. I was especially fond of Therefore I Am’s frontman, Alex Correla, when he spoke to the crowd of why we’re all here and how much the times have changed what with technology’s advances and speaking face to face with other people becoming awkward. Next chance you get to speak with him or see TIA, listen.

Maika Maile, lead vocalist of There For Tomorrow took some time to talk off from the New Jersey date of their Hit The Lights tour to talk about what he was like in high school, what their future touring plans are and how high strung he thinks people can be.

Introduce yourself and your role in the band.

I’m Maika Maille and I do my best at playing guitar and singing in There For Tomorrow.

What would you say are some of the differences between the EP that your first released and your full length?

Obviously, we’re firm believers that being a person is the best way of being a musician in general so with the first EP, half the songs we wrote, we were sixteen and we were playing them until we were nineteen. With Faster we were 18-19 and we’re twenty now. It’s a couple years ahead; we’re a little more mature. It’s like a soul searching process because it is new to us. We’re talking about relevant things, not talking about like high school break ups and we’re not talking about getting drunk etc. It’s real stuff, I’m not putting down any of that but yeah I think it’s just more growth.

What do you think has been the most memorable part of this tour so far?

Every day is a memory. With Hit the Lights everything is up in the air, funny, light hearted. I’d say Orlando was a great experience.  I mean we’ve been playing Orlando since I was like thirteen so it seemed like they were getting a little bit tired of us but this time around they caught us off guard. There were so many people there, so many people passionately singing lyrics. It was a good time.

What’s something about you that people wouldn’t expect by looking at you?

I think people have definite presumptions that they’ve made. A lot of the bands that we associate with, that we tour with, they think of us kind of as just another come and go band and just another… trying to write hit songs and appeal to little girls. But we don’t try to appeal to little girls or anyone really. We just do our own thing, write what we like, we naturally graduate toward whatever… especially females.  These next few years are really just proving grounds for us.

If you could pick a five band lineup of any bands, dead or alive, which would they be?

I would say [Jimi Hendrix] but he’s not alive. Okay it would be us in the parking lot, Third Eye Blind, Jimmy Eat World, Foo Fighters and then Rascal Flatts would headline.

Is there anything that you think sets you apart from other bands?

Geez, those crazy girls out there. Jersey people are so high strung. SO HIGH STRUNG. SO HIGH STRUNG.  Anyways, what were you saying? Oh, I don’t know. I guess I could sit here and say we do this, they do that, but I think it’s just that we’ve become comfortable with letting our music speak for us.

Is there an album or artist you can’t stop listening to?

Drake! His mixtape is amazing. I’m really into dub-step music. It’s from the UK and it’s just very bass-heavy club music.

Do you have any future plans for after this tour?

Yeah Mayday Parade is right after this. We’re doing that and then, that’s B-market tour that hits places we don’t usually go to. Sorry, NJ. We’ll be back in February, I would jump the gun and tell you but you’ll know soon enough.

Headliner?

Why would we headline? We’re terrible. Ha. No. Pft.

What do you think is one of the biggest issues in the music industry right now?

Well, I mean, we’ve become very hands on with what happens but I think as of late we’ve gotten to the point where we think we know it all almost and it’s like, alright, where’s the road because I think we should start walking down that one. We’re learning a lot. The music industry changes every day and it’s all about thinking forward and that’s the risky part because you can’t see the future. It’s just kind of seeing down the path and how things are going. There’s a lot to understand but… you don’t really need all the understanding. Like, you don’t have to go to college and read, actually, go to college, but yeah just do your own thing and there’s a lot you could find along the way. Expect to make mistakes.

What were you like in high school?

I was that kid that hung out with everybody. At lunch time I was bouncing everywhere just goofing off. I took school serious in the most not serious manner. Like I just had no drive. Okay one over two equal five over I DON’T CARE. It’s not gonna matter to me because I want to be on stage. I did well in school, trust me. I got accepted to a couple of colleges, I could have done that whole thing but I knew from a very young age what I wanted to do. But I did graduate with an unweighted 3.9. I just didn’t care enough to do well.

What would you classify each of your band members as if they were to all fit into a high school stereotype?

Seriously what the fuck are those girls out there doing? They’re going crazy! Anyways, Chris was like a little skater kid that didn’t really skate. He played drums; he liked music and loved to vandalize things, just a little Blink-182 kid. Then in 12^th grade he started getting into other music.  He went to a private school and he graduated early. Christian… he was the nice, young, innocent, rabbit. Back then he was really exuberant. Jay in high school, I don’t think he took education really seriously. He’s just always, always, always loved music. We would get together at least four times a week and just play shit. I think our main education came at band practice.

How did you all meet?

I knew Chris because we played football together in fourth grade. We starting jamming with Jay and this other kid and they called me because they wanted another guitarist and I stumbled into singing.

What’s your favorite thing about performing?

Just getting… That’s like our one time to show what we can’t show. It’s our one time to be the biggest, most retarded assholes and just get away with it. Not pretentious, rock star, cock sucking assholes. We’re just having a good time and having fun. I just look forward to escaping being a normal person while I’m up there.

Do you have a favorite song to perform live?

No. Not really. It always changes. I like Deathbed. It’s one of the newer songs but other than that there are songs that I look forward to because of crowd reaction but all of our songs come from the heart so it’s hard to favorite one of them. It’s different for the rest of the band but for me, I look at the set as one whole song.

Interview by Clarisse Hansard

Jimmy Stadt: My name is Jimmy and I sing for Polar Bear Club. Can I just say, for the record, that I’ve never raped anyone on the road?

What has been your best tour experience?

On the giglife tour(with Set Your Goals and Four Year Stong), we played Austin, Texas and Dallas the next day. Austin was insane, and we were like, “nothing is going to top this,” and then Dallas completely destroyed it. After Austin, we went out after the show and all of the sudden some very trailer-parkish girls started fighting us, then they started fighting each other. We just watched and some boobies popped out, but not necessarily boobies we wanted to see. Our van was pulled up to the sidewalk and the fight was right outside the door, and we were like, “That’s crazy, nothing is going to be cooler than that!” Dallas was the next night and the show was absolutely insane. Four Year Strong headlined that one, and I think by the end of their set, almost the whole crowd was on the stage. Matt Wilson from Set Your Goals jumped on an amplifier and dove to people on the stage, and then fell off of them into the crowd. It was awesome! Those two nights were probably the highlight of that tour…and the day we went to the water park.

What’s the biggest challenge Polar Bear Club has had as a band?

There’s a lot of ups and downs. I think getting used to losing money fast was pretty hard. I think we’re better with it now, but when we first started touring we lost a lot of money. It’s really scary, but that’s the way it is. People come up to me and ask, “What advice do you have for me? I’m starting a band,” and I just tell them to be prepared to lose money. Honestly, what I’ve learned has all been learned by making mistakes so I can’t really tell them what to expect.

What influences your sound the most?

I think the band is influenced by solid, consistent, interesting bands. We want to be a good, solid band that puts out records that are just different enough to not alienate the original fanbase, but not so much the same that it becomes boring.

How did Polar Bear Club transition from sort of a local band to a nationally-touring act?

I went to school and I got a degree in acting. I was really into theater and that’s where my life was heading. We were doing Polar Bear Club at the same time as a part-time thing. I would go to class during the week, play shows on the weekend and repeat. My girlfriend and I were planning on moving and have me pursue acting and she’d do law. When the band decided to really do this, I was a preschool teacher… We had really done everything a part-time band would be able to do, and we were getting messages from people in Japan and England and California asking when we would tour there, and we would just be like, “Never.” That’s when we decided to either do this full-time or just quit. We were all just like, “Fuck it,” and decided to go for it. We all quit our jobs and I was laid off recently so it kind of worked. It’s paid off so far.

Do you have anything to add?

I don’t. I always want to though, but I guess I’m too lazy to think of anything, haha.

Interview and photo by Ali Carcache

Mikey and Dan of Set Your Goals took some time out of the day for an interview while they were on the AP Fall Ball Tour. Read more after the cut

How has the AP tour experience been so far?

Dan: It’s been good, we’ve been playing some really different crowds but it’s been pretty good overall.

What do you aim to bring people with your music lyrically? Does it reflect your morals?

Mikey: Real life stuff. I don’t know, I don’t write the lyrics but that seems to be the overall theme.

For anyone who doesn’t know, who does write the lyrics?

Mikey: Our two singers Matt and Jordan. We have two of them… which is kind of weird.

Dan: A lot of our stuff is mostly geared towards just positivity. Not necessarily overly sappy, obviously but more just living your life.

Mikey: We try to not focus on girl topics.

Dan: Yeah, nothing cheesy. The new album definitely touches on a lot more topics though. There are actually a few specific themes. Like, “Gaia Bleeds” is about the way that human beings are depleting the earth’s resources and we have another song about capital punishment so we kind of got a little more in depth but there’s still a general ‘good times’ idea going on in our lyrics.

When did you decide you wanted to play music professionally?

Mikey: Are we professionals? (laughs)

Dan: About as close as we can get, I guess. We don’t have normal jobs.

Mikey: For me it was when I graduated high school which was in ’05. That’s when we started touring full time because I’m the youngest one so it was hard for me to get away but I got the parental stamp of approval and we’ve been running with it since. That was kind of all of our turning points.

Dan: As far as me, I’ve always wanted to play music ever since I started playing guitar when I was fourteen. I mean as you get older you kind of have to weigh out what you want to do with what you need to do and I actually quit Set Your Goals in 2005 right before they signed to Eulogy Records. I just didn’t feel like I could commit myself to touring full time due to work related issues and not being able hold a steady job at home. Then they asked me to fill in on a couple of tours and I ended up just sticking with it and I rejoined as a permanent member.

Mikey: We took him to Australia his first tour back so it wasn’t so hard for him to say yes.

How do you feel on this tour? Do you feel you fit in considering there are so many different genres?

Mikey: Not at all. It’s just the strangest bill we’ve ever been on. Lucky for us everyone has been really receptive. The shows have been great. It seems like they all keep getting better as we move around the east coast. The crowds been receptive even though we knew coming in we’d be playing crowds that the majority wouldn’t have heard of us and that’s what touring’s all about.

How do you feel about being looped in with both Hardcore and Pop-Punk bands? Where would you place yourself?

Mikey: We’re like one of those chameleon bands. I guess we take influences and listen to all kinds of bands in the spectrum. You pick up our iPods and you’ll be pretty shocked I’m sure.

Dan: I think it really benefits us because it creates that much bigger of a spectrum that we can tour in. If you look at hardcore bands, they pretty much tour with hardcore bands and anytime they try to break out of the hardcore scene, it’s really a struggle for them because it stands out so much.  Trying to get a Metal crowd to be receptive to a Hardcore band isn’t always the easiest thing.  For us it’s like because we have so many influences and because we’ve toured with so many different bands, it’s easier for us to just kind of go with a different flow on every tour. With our last tour it was kind of just all our friends’ bands and before that it was the New Found Glory tour. We’ve toured with Terror, there was Warped Tour.

Mikey: Metro Station was on the Saves the Day tour. We’ve toured with Anti-Flag. We’ve kind of dipped into everything. I’d definitely say we got lucky with that.

What do you love to see at your shows as far as the crowd or the atmosphere?

Mikey: Interaction. Any kind of response from the crowd makes us go off more. The hardest thing for me is when the crowd isn’t responsive and we’re still trying to perform. It never really was about “performing” per say, you know like some bands do. We’ve always, since we’ve started, have just thrived on the crowd interaction. It was vital to our performances.

What song would you say means the most to you to play?

Mikey: I like “Our Ethos” which is the last song on the new record just because I think it encompasses the reasons why I got into music and sonically I think it’s awesome, it’s fun to play, it covers all my bases I guess.

Do you play it on the tour?

Mikey: It’s been in and out of our set list so I’m not sure if we’re playing it tonight. We decide that literally two minutes before we go on stage.

So if you could only play one song live the rest of the tour, would it be that one?

Mikey: Oh well I don’t know if this would be the song that would win people over but it’d definitely be the one I’d have the most fun playing.

Dan: I’d probably stick to an older song because it’s an old standard that people sort of know the words to. That’s a tough one because our set is really dependent on older and newer songs.

Mikey: Yeah we just had our record come out in July so we’re still transitioning with new and old songs because there was a long time gap between our last release and this one. So for us we were kind of burnt out on playing all the old songs but those seemed to be ones the fans enjoyed and knew the words to.

Dan: Yeah we couldn’t just dive right into the new ones.

Mikey: Yeah we always hated that when we’d go to see bands we liked and we’d see them the tour after their latest record came out and it’d be all new songs that you wouldn’t know the words to yet and you’re just like ‘come on…’

What’s your opinion on bands in the industry nowadays that are in this for the wrong reasons?

Mikey: They’re plentiful.

Dan: There’s always going to be somebody in it for the wrong reasons. More often than not though, light tends to shine on those reasons and people kind of find out and they end up just dying. It comes full circle, it really does. If you’re in it for the right reasons, you know, for what you want to do and playing music then you’ll end up lasting.

So would you say that’s the greatest issue with the music industry nowadays? If not, what do you think it is?

Mikey: That you don’t actually need to play your instruments to play a live show and have kids like it. The average music fan doesn’t really know what goes on behind the scenes and the mechanics of it all. If a performer can make it seem like there’s all this going on by just blasting stuff on the PA, it’s just too perfect nowadays. I’m not going to go into specifics…

Dan: It’s the age old debate of substance vs. style and that’s what it all boils down to and I think that’s always going to be an issue in music. There’s going to be bands and musicians that are making it big only because they look good and they sound good and it’s all a load of ear candy but they really don’t have substance. They’re not really saying anything meaningful, like he said they’re not playing their instruments and it’s just a bunch of fluff and this kind of sensationalism that ends up blowing over. You look at bands in the past that made it huge but it’s just sensationalism and  it’s all just an act and they were never really there for anything meaningful at all and anybody who was behind them was probably aware of it and just used them to make a few quick bucks. Once that flame died out they just get pushed aside and some other piece of manufactured nonsense gets put in their place and it just starts all over again. There’s always going to be the kind of off to the side bands and musicians that really focus on playing from the heart for their fans, for the people who care about them and they may not get the limelight as much as some of the poppier, fluffer nutter bands but they’ll end up lasting longer and making more of an impact in the long-run. That’s what I think.

How was the recording experience and working with some of the guest vocalists on your new record?

Mikey: This one was draining. Not the guest vocalists’ part, that was great.

Dan: That was probably the easy part.

Mikey: It was just three years in the making and it got to the point where like, all we’d done for the past three years was tour and we hadn’t written a lot or made a lot of headway into what the next record was going to be so we had to step off the road and just focus on writing. It was really concentrated. Jordan and I, our other singer, were the ones who kind of started the process and then everyone was brought in. There were a lot of ups and downs, a lot of emotions but I feel like the more we put into it, the harder it was to make, the better the outcome. That seems to be the overall consensus, everybody make their own sacrifices in their own way and we got through it and I think we can do it again. It’ll probably be easier this time, especially if we keep the momentum going. We want to just keep writing in our off time and have a record out earlier rather than later, another record. You know, try to survive.

Does having two singers ever pose as an issue?

Mikey: When they run into each other on stage.

Dan: Their chords get tangled.

Mikey: Its cool, I mean it something that people aren’t really used to seeing and you know, having a second voice to do various vocal jobs makes it easier on the other. I guess they can kind off bounce off each other and do each other’s harmonies. It’s double the vocal strength and excitement I guess.  It’s one more person on stage though, that’s the only downfall, when we play smaller stages.  Like last night at Toad’s Place. Usually you’ll have a drum riser with the headlining bands set and then their backline and then everyone kind of lines up in front of them and the opening band plays on the floor. Well last night there was just one stage, no drum riser and they still had two kits on stage and the second kit was almost all the way in the front and we have five other people in that line and everybody was just kind of stationary jumping around. We make it work though.

What are some small bands that you would recommend to listeners?

Mikey: Well we’re trying to think about all sorts of small bands right now that we potentially want to take out on tour next year.

Dan: Title Fight

Mikey: Yeah Title Fight, they’re great. Cruel Hand, Trapped Under Ice, those are a little heavier but they’re great. My brother plays in a band called The Story So Far and I’ve been listening to their new demos a lot lately. They’re all seventeen but they’re pretty talented.

So you’re headlining next year?

Mikey: Yeah at some point we will. In the spring, probably sometime before the summer. Nothing’s finalized yet because we’re looking at a few other tours but there’s your exclusive information for the interview!

So are those your immediate plans for after this tour ends or do you have any plans before that?

Mikey: We’re going to be going to Europe and England like ten days after this tour. We’ll be home for Thanksgiving and then we’re going overseas with Fireworks and Broadway Calls. We’ll be there for two and a half weeks and we’ll have some time off in January and then we’ll be out again on the road and I can’t tell you who with* and then after that… we’re just going to stay on the road as much as possible. [*Set Your Goals will be touring with Motion City Soundtrack and The Swellers early next year.]

Dan: Yeah you’ll be seeing plenty of us on the road.

Mikey: It’s all we do. The only time we’re off is when we need to be writing, demoing or recording. The rest of our time is spent in this thing and on the road playing shows.

Lastly we have a little cliché word association. You have about a second and a half to answer otherwise you’ll get voted off the island… if you catch my drift.

Mikey: Oh man this is dangerous. We have filthy minds. Lay it on us. [Dan] You’ll go first.

Twilight.

Mikey: Whack!

Timon and Pumba.

Both: Awesome.

Cagefighting.

Mikey: Cool.

Dan: Eh…

Slayer.

Both: Awesome!

Neon.

Mikey: Bad!

Dan: No.

Bro.

Both: Never.

Cheeseburger.

Both: Yeah! Road Noms*! [*http//:roadnoms.tumblr.com]

Billy Mays.

Mikey: Dead!

Epilepsy.

Mikey: Sucks.

Clark Kent.

Mikey: Cool! Yeah, he was my childhood idol, there you go.

Interview by Clarisse Hansard

Let’s be honest. Set Your Goals doesn’t really fit into any particular scene. Even their drummer, Mikey Ambrose, will admit that. So why did they make it onto the AP Tour Fall Ball’s bill? This is a question that takes hardly any deliberation. What separates this band from others out there today is the fact that they’ve still managed to keep a message within their songs. Instead of losing their focus and turning towards what the crowd or the public may want, Set Your Goals has taken on a no-one’s-forcing-you-to-listen attitude. Despite this, they’ve picked up a lot of buzz in the recent past. Admittedly, their “genre” isn’t always received well and if you showed up at this year’s AP Fall Ball Tour looking for artists falling along the lines of fellow tour mates The Secret Handshake, you might not want to sit through them; but just give them a shot because they deserve to be heard.

Although they weren’t headlining this year’s Fall Ball Tour, that doesn’t mean that the crowd was any less receptive to Set Your Goals. As a matter of fact, even the band will admit that they’ve gotten a much better response than they expected. There were several points during their performance where it almost felt like the floorboards were going to collapse from so much activity in the crowd. Whether it was from all the jumping or the intensity of the crowds shouting and sing-a-longs is unsure but, for the thirty minutes that Set Your Goals took the stage, no one in the crowd seemed to care about anything else.

Before they even began performing, Set Your Goals let the crowd know that they were in for a good time. Eruption of shouts and laughter came from the crowd as vocalist Matt Wilson danced on stage wearing a formal shirt and tie carrying a blow-up doll in a prom dress. They then proceeded to open with “Summer Jam”, a song that, even if you didn’t experience the particular moments they sing about, makes you feel nostalgic of your previous summers. Their set continued as they played both older songs such as “Mutiny!”, “Echoes” and “Goonies Never Say Die” as well as songs off their new album. It seemed that the atmosphere only became progressively more riled up as they carried on and by the time they reached their final song, the title track off of a previous album, the room almost felt like it was going to burst from excitement. That night there wasn’t a doubt in the world that the crowd wanted to hear more from Set Your Goals. Even if their set was too short, they’d certainly made their mark.

Sometimes people aren’t in the mood to hear sad songs about break ups and mourning. Sometimes those issues become cliché. Hell, they’re almost always cliché and Set Your Goals can appreciate that. So if you’d rather hear songs about something else, songs about being on the road, good times and even songs about capital punishment, then Set Your Goals might just be your saving grace.  This is a band that is truly on your side and something tells me they always will be.

“Because when there is no one there to hear you, the music will listen.
And when there’s no one there to tell, the words will write themselves.”

-          “Our Ethos: A Legacy To Pass On”, Set Your Goals

Feature by Clarisse Hansard

Photos by Ali Carcache

On their second tour after the release of their arguably disappointing album, Nothing Personal, All Time Low has decided to switch things up… well, some things. With their opening acts including The Friday Night Boys, Hey Monday and We the Kings, it seems as if it’s impossible to escape certain bands these days because they all tour in the same, minute circle. This summer All Time Low did a short, two week run with We The Kings and Cartel. Earlier in the year the band also toured with Hey Monday in support of Fall Out Boy, and late last year All Time Low did a string of holiday shows with The Friday Night Boy. It’s becoming tiring.

The Friday Night Boys deserve honorable mention in this lineup for having actually brought something new to the table. With the release of their full length earlier this year, they played a string of new and considerably enjoyable songs that warmed up the crowd nicely. Hey Monday, having been on perhaps three or four tours(including one headliner) with just one album have almost barely changed their set at all. The band has become somewhat of a nag to sit through…unless you’re into that. We The Kings have a somewhat similar dilemma because you really only want to hear aboutJuliet so many times before you’re prepared to gauge your eyes out. Perhaps once their new album, Smile, Kid, comes out, the liveliness of their set will return but until then, they have virtually the same set and appeal that they had on their headlining tour early last year.

Opening with one of the more enjoyable songs off of their latest release, “Lost in Stereo”, All Time Low has thankfully never forgotten how to be a crowd-pleaser. Unfortunately there’s plenty of disappointment in store for the “old school” fans because the only old song they’re going to get is the obvious… “Jasey Rae”.  See now, this is where we have an enormous problem. When even favorites such as “Coffee Shop Soundtrack” and “The Party Scene” don’t make it onto their set, but songs like “Dear Maria” and the almost sickeningly terrible “Too Much” do, it really makes you wonder exactly what the band was thinking. All negativity aside however, their set was fun. After flipping the mood completely and playing “Remembering Sunday” followed by “Therapy”, what came next is something that no one would have expected. The medley that followed was something you would either enjoy, or be disgusted by. The positives of this medley are that it included about thirty seconds of crowd favorites such as “This Is How We Do”, “Coffee Shop Sound Track”, “Let It Roll” and “The Girls a Straight Up Hustler”. The negative aspect to this is that if you were going to this show in hopes of hearing any of these songs, this is probably the last way you’d want to see them performed.

Overall, the night was enjoyable. As usual, regardless of whether or not you liked their choice of songs, it would be difficult to say that you didn’t enjoy All Time Low’s set.Perhaps things will change on their next tour and they’ll play a more diverse stretch of songs. Or maybe they won’t. Perhaps Nothing Personal needs its chance to be in the spotlight and I understand that completely. However, for now let’s hope that All Time Low will jump out of the touring clique that they’ve been a part of because, honestly, if I have to hear about Homecomings or Skyway Avenue one more time, heads will roll.

Review by Clarisse Hansard

Photos by Ali Carcache