“That song came from this folky idea that John [Nolan, guitarist] had while he was messing around on an acoustic guitar,” says Adam Lazzara, who has served as the band’s lead vocalist since 2001 and sings on all of the band’s studio albums. “He brought it to the band, and somehow it just turned into this Ramones/Clash-style song. That’s the kind of music that the five of us have all been listening to ever since we were kids, and the spirit of that has definitely been in our music for as long as we can remember. After so many records and so many years though, we were finally at a point where we truly felt comfortable wearing that influence right there on our sleeves. There’s definitely been times in the past where we’ve been a little too careful. For us, it was really refreshing to not worry about anything else but us making the record that we wanted to make. When it was all said and done, we were looking around the room at one another thinking, ‘Holy shit, we just did that.’”
Tidal Wave arrives two years after the release of the band’s last LP, Happiness Is. It also marks a particularly unique milestone – this is the only time in the band’s history that the same lineup has recorded three consecutive albums together. After the release of their debut, Tell All Your Friends, both founding member Nolan and bassist Shaun Cooper quit simultaneously; returning seven years later. Now with six years of solid foundation, Lazarra sees the band as having something to prove – that there is still vitality and energy running through their collective veins, even 17 years after the band’s inception.
“It seems to be a pretty universal experience that if a band or an artist has made it to their seventh album, there’s a fairly good chance that they’re really settled into what they do,” he says. “They keep putting out the same kind of songs over and over. For us, we wanted to do our best to avoid that. We wanted the record to be a reflection of us – how we’ve grown and how we’ve changed as we’ve gotten older. In order to stand by that, we had to be as honest as we could – it was a matter of our music saying in its own way, ‘Fuck it – this is who we are, and this is what we can do.’”
If you’re in your mid-20s currently, then you unquestionably bore witness to the emo trend passing through your high school years – and, indeed, there’s even a chance that you partook in said trend if you’re reading this. For many, Taking Back Sunday were an inextricable part of that time in their lives; faithfully soundtracking every waking moment – and, as much as people can change, you never truly forget things like that. The relationship with the band is weighted equally in coming-of-age nostalgia and an investment in their continuing work, which is something that Lazzara does not take for granted in the slightest.
“I have a hard time getting my head around things like that – and I mean that in the best way possible,” he says. “To know that we’ve grown with people that listen to this band – and that they’ve grown with us – is a huge compliment. The thing with music, or any kind of art, is that certain things are going to hit you at certain points in your life. You find something, and you feel like you were meant to hear it or experience at that exact moment. The fact we’ve been able to meet up with people so many times over the years on similar paths that connect with our music because of that, it’s such a great thing.”
Touring in support of Tidal Wave is very much underway, arriving in Australia next March. The tour takes in theatres in most capital cities and marks a step-up from the clubs that the band have previously played as a headlining act here. “It’s so great to see that people are still so engaged with this band – especially on the other side of the world,” says Lazarra. “We’ve always wanted to go to Australia more. All of us love it there. To have it not only be a bigger tour than last time, but to have it include some of the biggest shows that we’ve ever played on our own there, is so gratifying and validating. Still, knowing me, I’ll just be pacing around back and forth as always, hoping people show up.”
BY DAVID JAMES YOUNG
