Yellowcard x Lyndsey Parker – Q&A at Licorice Pizza Records

Clearly, I'm not the rockstar here. I'm the amateur. You're not here to see me. But hi, my name is Lindsay Parker. This is just water. I swear I'm hydrating. It's too early in the day for anything else. Thank you so much for coming today. I have some notes about how exciting it is that we have yellow card here, so give me one moment.

I clearly didn't plan this better. Okay, so obviously we're here to see yellow card better days. Yeah, we can applaud that.

Yay. Thank you so much for coming. This is a really good turnout also for I mean I don't know if you guys took off work or school but

thank you for doing that. We can uh you know vouch for you if you get in any trouble whatever. So yes, Better Days is the first album from Yellow Car. I can't believe it's actually been about actually almost a decade. And this is how exciting it is that they're here and how exciting it is that they have a new record because here are the stats I wanted to bring up. So, the title track from Better Days just became their first ever number one on Alternative Radio.

Very surprisingly, actually, even Ocean Avenue didn't do that. I mean, but this song, Better Days, it stayed at number one at Alternative Radio for three weeks. And here's a fun fact. If you like fun chart facts, this set an alternative rock chart record for the longest stretch between an artist's first appearance on the chart and then their number one entry because they first charted in 2003 with Way Away. And so then let's do the math. 22 years later, that's right, they have their first number one. And that just shows how exciting it is that you know they're back and how excited everybody is, as is the turnout here. So, I think we should just get to it and let's uh welcome yellow card.

Thank you.

You want to help me with this mic? Cuz I'm I'm so not a rockstar. I'm trying to like juggle my Hello. while you guys settle down. Help me out. Okay. You're getting gonna help me out. Thank you.

All right.

That's why we didn't do this last week.

Still still in there, Faker.

Thanks for your help.

No problem.

Appreciate it. All right. So, yeah, must feel good to be back. I was just saying how like how well received the title track is to Better Days. It's your first number one in alternative rock radio. It's, you know, a lot of times I think when a band, you know, doesn't put anything out for a decade or so, you don't know if people are still going to be excited or, you know, so the music industry changes so quickly and is so fickle. So, I guess I'll just ask the first question. How does it feel to be back and have such a warm reception?

How does it feel?

Feels awesome.

Yeah. Um we are um

we are completely blown away by

basically everything that is happening in our lives right now. Um you know in terms of like getting a number one single on the radio. Um, when it when it happened, I thought I was I was thinking all the time like what I'm trying to think of another band, you know, maybe there someone that I know or I would be familiar with that has this story, you know, like we haven't the last time we would have gone to radio gone to radio, we said go to radio because radio is a project.

It's a beast and um songs out and then they're like can't play it on the radio.

you have to have a record company and a team of people and uh it it costs a lot of money to to service a song to radio. So, the last time we would have done that would have been in 2007. Um and the song kind of just barely charted and whatever. But so 20 years apart, you know, from our last radio campaign um to go number one. I'm like, what other band? And and on the day that it went number one, I texted Travis Barker and I said, "Dude, you know, we did it." And he said on his own, I didn't say, "What other band can you think of?" He said, "You know, the only other band band I can think of that kind of has this story is is my band and your band." Um, and Blink had had number ones before, but you know, they had a really long period of time where uh they weren't sort of that like household name all over the radio and everywhere. Um, and then have just completely returned to that space. And um I mean they broke the record for all the one more time was number one at radio for 20 consecutive weeks. Um and you know what's funny about

you broke a record now?

Well we we did. Yeah we we our record we broke was it took them a really long time to do this.

What took you so long? You know, the thing is too,

this is the next question I was gonna

what's crazy about about this song and and how well it did is um and this is hypothetical, but if Sublime had not released a single right right now, um which of course Sublime uh is is going to go number one in alternative radio. That's

Yeah, it fell out. It fell out. You're safe.

Um my my kid is just on the floor.

I was I was going to catch him.

I'm sorry. uh you know, but so Sublime's going to go number one at alternative radio. So, especially with the return and and and the nature of what this song is for them, but if they hadn't released a song right now, Better Days would have would have been at number one for eight weeks, I think, because we stayed number two behind them for another five weeks after. Um,

you're not mad at Sublime?

Not at all. No, that's what I'm saying. I mean,

also, it's like all due respect, it's like

it's still charting top 10. Like that like we don't we don't forget that part, too. Like, that's still amazing. And also and you know uh we're not we're not

senior citizens but we're not young men you know so radio is a huge part of our our life and who we are as music fans. Um I grew up in a household that didn't really play a lot of you know cool independent music or like classic music that a lot of I think a lot of artists and musicians grow up. You know my parents weren't spinning Beatles records when I was a kid. I got all of my music from the radio and MTV, you know. Um, so like popular mainstream outlets of music is how I became a fan of music when I was young. And um, so it's important and it it means a lot to us. I I don't, you know, who knows in the age of streaming what the real difference is and the metrics and all that, but none of that really matters. It's it's just um, being an old school rock and roll fan who got all my music from the radio to go number one on the radio, it's we're all just blown away. I mean that but the radio is just one tiny little part of this. I mean it's um it's uh I've never I don't think I've in the age of social media I've never seen people react to music from Yellow Card like they are right now.

What do you think is the reason for that? I mean I imagine part of it is just the anticipation of you know people being happy that you're back. But there's more to it than that.

Well if you put out a shitty record the anticipation doesn't matter does it?

Good point.

Um but you know so don't don't my advice don't do that. Yeah, which we never try. We never try to do that either.

I just, you know, we've it's been a we've it's been a long time where we've been able to to read what everybody thinks about everything in life, you know. Um, and this has just been so overwhelmingly positive. Um, it's like it's hard to find a a comment somewhere that doesn't like better days, you know, and that's really amazing. So, I mentioned that the industry is kind of fickle or it is very fickle and to you know when was your first album out? 2003ish.

Yeah. The first like first record that the world knew about came out in 2003. Yeah.

I mean

that's an EP. Yeah. That's not an album.

But I mean the amount of things that have changed obviously social

social media didn't really exist. I mean I guess I don't even think MySpace existed then. Um,

it was AOL message board.

It was message boards on the message board.

We had um Make Out Club if you remember that. Makeup club was

I don't.

It was kind of like a a basically an indie rock. It was called Makeout Club. Anyway, makeup club was great.

I wasn't in there.

I was a member of Make Out Club. Um, and we had I don't know Fster, Napster, I don't know. Think the internet obviously changed so many things and and the radio landscape changed. It's streaming didn't exist. I mean, it was so much changed in the last 20some years and then for you to come back. Um, yeah. I want I'm guess I'm sort of rambling, but I wonder what um what any trepidation or concerns, if any, you had about kind of returning to a musical landscape that's so different from how you left it or how how you started.

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think part of that fear of the how do we do this, when, what, why, and it was just kind of all answered organically, right? It was it was that moment of kind of looking at each other and this is a great opportunity. Do we hug it out and say, "Hey, Ocean Avenue in 20 years," and then see you guys later, or are we going to do something really special? And um obviously the answer was how we want to do it special, but how do we do it? How do we get there? And then Ryan had a a brilliant idea. He said, "Let's write the best yellow card record we ever wrote."

Is that my idea?

I'm just That was the final product. I'm going to say you guys are should if you're a fan of our band and this record send the thank you to Third Eye Blind because we were there was an actual conversation of like is should we should we say that's it after that tour in 2023 because it was so massive and we've got some scar tissue from coming down the back side of that mountain in our past and I we we were all just feeling so good about that and there was an honest thought of like should we just take what take that memory and say congratulations on doing the biggest tour of your whole life, your whole career. Uh or do we go cuz the only other thing we can do is go make an album. Um and then third Eye Blind called out of nowhere and said, "Do you want to support us on a full US tour?" And they're one of our, you know, all-time favorite bands from our childhood. And so it was like well we can't can't stop yet you know and uh so that conversation kept going and and I think in 2010s I mean I think anyone in this room does not fall into this category but um No, you don't want to be in the category I'm talking I'm about to say

let him finish.

Yes. But I'm I'm saying that um we put

as much of ourselves into the records in the 10ens as we did into as we have into any record, including this one. You know, we're in the studio, we're in it. Um but during that time, we were grinding it out so hard uh to keep music

as a job, to be able to pay our bills, to you know, we were touring like 10 months a year starting in 2011 when we we came off like a two-year break. And then we would finish the tour and it was just right back into the studio. Two months of writing, recording, right back out. I mean, we just no breaks. And therefore, I think those records started to sort of become like a little more transactional. They were like there I keep saying they're like they were like business cards for tours as opposed to like major events in our lives, in our career. And by taking 9 years to make an

album, we didn't know we were going to make this album, but it's really made this record a an extremely special event for us personally. And I think that is naturally going to translate to fans and people listening to the record. Um, that tour in 2023 did so well that it was like the first time in 20 years that we've been afforded the luxury to kind of relax and take some time and focus on writing and just, you know, not not go, well, you this is you have you have a show on this day, so the record has to be done by this day so we can mix and master it in time for you to be back on the road. That was not the case. We spent over a year making Better Days. We we haven't done that since, you know, we were 23 years old. It took we spent about a year making Ocean Avenue if you count like all the writing and everything for it. Um and License and Sounds too. Probably was close to a year. It was like December to August was kind of that process. So,

sounds right.

Yeah. It's just I think and I hope going forward that that's the case that we have a little bit more breathing room uh to focus on on getting you guys the best songs we can we can write for you and also just our own mental health and and you know being able to enjoy this a little bit more because the 10ens when we ended up deciding to step away from this um we thought we were stepping away forever because one of many reasons we were just [ __ ] exhausted. We were just done. It was just it had been it never stopped. We never came home.

It's just hard to talk about the intersection of business and art, right? Like if you guys are like, "We love the songs." And we're like, "It's hard for us to live right now." Like it's like it's like such a weird conversation.

Well, you had a song on the radio in 2003, so you're a millionaire.

Yeah. I did put some of that away, but it didn't last forever. So,

common misconception, by the way. The luxury of it is now we're able to like make something that we can feel we feel good about it. We always put everything into it, but take a little bit longer and really wrap it up and and finish it in a nice package and take some time away and and take care of ourselves and feel good and be happy about all that other stuff instead of just grind grind grind cuz we like something that's ingrained in us is like we just want to be the best all the time. for us, for you, but and it's hard to do that when you're just grinded out 11 months.

So, you said that you wanted to make the best record you ever made. It seems like a lot of people here would agree. Do you think they

achieved that?

I see a lot of people not raising their hand.

It was more

I'd like to talk to you after.

It was more um it was more we just need to make a record that really matters. I don't you know that it wasn't this has to be the best. You can't you're never going to make the best record of your career if you're consciously saying I'm make I'm going to make the best record I've ever made. But it just had to, you know, every aspect of it had to matter.

Not just the songs, the the the record company we decided to, you know, team up with, the promotion of the album, the who's going to produce the album, who, you know, um it just had to carry some

some weight because we just did not want to fall into that pattern of of putting out a record that um you know, that that didn't feel like we were uh making progress, you know, like take take the money out of it. take the show, the size of the shows and all like those things come if you're making progress, right? And we just felt for a long time when we led up to the inevitable decision to no longer be in yellow card that progress had come to a halt. And then that's you know why why keep doing especially creatively like why keep doing something if you're not if if you're if you're not advancing in you know in many different ways but like this feels like 20 years

of progress in how long has the record been out? Seven days 5 days in 5 days. I mean it's like this is what we were looking for. This is what we hoped for so much. Um, we owe a a whole lot of this to Travis and his leadership and his mentorship and um, his guidance making this record and and kind of helping us. Uh, I keep talking about the source code of Yellow Card. He helped us kind of find and tap into like the sound that uh, you know, I we think you guys have been looking for from us for a long time. Um, and uh, yeah, he was just it was incredible working with him and he's a big reason why the record is what it is.

So, yes, obviously I wanted to ask more about that. How I mean, I obviously I assume you guys go way back, but how did he uh, come on board with this project and what exactly did he do to sort of inspire you and galvanize you and get you excited about this uh, coming back together?

We don't go way back.

We don't. This is this is a very new friendship.

Oh, I'm kind of by that. I struggle with the firstname basis thing. I It's still It's still respectfully Mr. Barker.

He still calls him Mr. Barker.

I assumed you were on I don't know the word.

Mr. Barker, sir. Hello, Mr. Barker.

Never even played a show with them before.

Wow. Okay.

Like festival Bills, but we never kind of ran together. And um in that luxury, in that element of time, it happened organically. And so it wasn't a decision that we got to make. It was like, hey, who do you want to drum and do the record for? Travis Parker, of course. Top of the list. and it worked out that way. Um, we had uh the idea to work with

some other writers for the first time in yellow card history and something that you're creatively kind of protective about cuz you don't want to have it be, you know, just a like a business transaction. This guy comes in, this is what I do for work. You're going to sing this part or I'm going to play your part. We didn't want to feel like that. And so we kind of sought out some friends that were band guys or guitar players. Nick Long had worked with Blink and uh but was longtime friend of our guitar player, Ryan Mendes, who apologizes why he can't be here. He was he's not feeling well.

So um but he was in Ryan's first band, Staring Back. And so uh we were going to work with Nick, top of the list, uh in Los Angeles. We uh did a song for Disney, A Whole New Sound, a whole new world. And uh we were gonna kind of write a couple songs living room style just like this with Nick. And Nick had texted uh Ryan Mendes and was like, "Hey, I talked to Travis and uh he wants to know if you guys want to come over to his place and write some songs." And we're like, "Travis who?"

Like like that wasn't that wasn't in our vocabulary yet. And then we sat around the table at the Airbnb. We're like, "We're going to go over there, right?

Like don't get nervous."

And uh we wrote some songs and they ended up on the record. So, it was it was pretty organic. Again, the luxury of time and having those decisions kind of be laid out in front of us and making sure that they're the right decisions for Yellow Card.

It's funny how I I just kind of had this feeling like it was time to maybe do some co-writes. Um, like Sean said, we've never done it before. And um, if you got I know I recognize some of you friends here in this room, you know, I'm just like an EDM kid now. I don't rock and roll has like left my body for some reason. It is what it is. I mean, I still look I still listen to like if I if I'm going to put on a record, I'm still listening to, you know, Radio Head or Nirvana or what my records from way back, but like there's not a lot of new rock music that I seek out. And there's definitely not music like in our scene that I'm like familiar with

except for the new Yellow Card record where he's spinning that.

Um, you know, that I'm familiar with in terms of like having my finger on the pulse of like what's what's working right now and all whatever. So, when all those conversations about if we're if we're going to make a record, it needs to kind of be these things. Um, yeah, I just I kind of brought up the idea thinking, you know, I full full disclosure, I think I might need a little help to to get the ball rolling and get the creative juices flowing um

to see if I can still write pop punk songs, you know.

Did you doubt that you had it?

Oh, yeah. 100%. Uh, I went into this process like as insecure and unsure of myself as I've ever been in my life. Um, but having someone like Nick, to Sean's point, we wanted we want, if we were going to do this, we wanted to work with friends, people we knew. We didn't want to bring in, you know, just like LA like topline writers that we didn't know. And I've done that. I've I've been in those sessions outside of Yellow Kart. It's it's a surreal thing. When the band broke up, I lived in Nashville and I thought I was going to get into songwriting. That's what I thought I was going to do, but I hated it. I hated it.

Like the the transactional nature of it where you show up in the morning. Hi, nice to meet you. All right, let's pour our hearts out and write a song. It just didn't Some people are amazing at it. Nick is amazing at it. Uh but I just felt like I it was like I take two months to write a song. I can't do this in three hours, you know? Um but anyways, we didn't want it to feel like that. And we knew that if Nick was on board, we'd be writing like kind of through the whole process with him. We worked with our friend Andrew Goldstein, uh, who's written on so many songs that you guys know and love right now. Uh, he's he's an amazing dude and also just a band band first, you know. So, it's like it's it's like having another member of the band in the room. Um, and fans of Yellow Card, both of them, you know, and so that that helped too because they were part of the reason we were able to tap into that, like I said, that like source code of the band because they were like, well, let's focus on, you know, these kinds of riffs and these these kind of melodies cuz this kind of feels authentic to you guys. And once once we got a couple of songs out, then as typically happens for me on a in terms of lyrics and melody and stuff on a record, it was like floodgates just open. And I started um I I was Skin Scraped and Love Letters Lost were both demos that I basically flushed out in their entirety at home alone and sent to everyone. I was like, "Is this good? Are these okay?" And everyone's like, "Yeah, dude. Let's put then they made it on the record." So that was those were big breakthroughs for me uh just in terms of songwriting because it was um also just so you know,

like when he's like, "I don't think I have it." We're always like, "Yeah, bro.

You got it." I know. Yeah.

He just doesn't want to listen to us. Just right. I didn't want him to paint the us in a negative way, you know.

Yes.

I work best when I have no confidence in myself. No. Um uh I it it it was really a breakthrough thing for me and and and making the record and now that it's out and hearing how happy it's making people. I cannot tell you the last time. Uh, going back to what I was saying about the records we made in the 2010s, which sort of started to feel a little bit more um for forced like we we had to

do them versus really wanting to do them at the times that we did. I can't remember the last time that I we had an album that came out 5 days ago and I'm already like just my brain is firing to go write more songs and that's just a really cool feeling. Uh, especially when I don't listen to rock and roll or pop punk anymore. It's like I just want to go write some pop punk. Let's go. You know,

let's go.

Did any of your EDM world I don't hear a lot of EDM on the Sugar, but in any way did it sort of influence the way you write?

Um, I don't know about the way I write or we write. I think it does. Um,

it makes its way into like production in certain ways, you know, just flourishes of things that could maybe do with a keyboard but could do with a guitar instead or um but City of Angels on the record which is kind of like the segue in the middle of it is fully electronic instrumentally with there's a little bit of guitar on top but um that was a and violin and the bridge which rips and um

we did a lot of uh well I mean yeah this is like something to you know um a production thing that we haven't always done and you can hear it on the record a lot. Um we for violin parts like that we

doubled the violin all over the record. So you it gives it this really cool kind of chorusy feeling that um again it's like you're it's very clearly not um you guys all remember on lights and sounds when you were like well what happened to the violin? It's all over the record. It's just going through distortion pedals and delays and reverbs and stuff and it sounded more like a guitar. This is like, you know, it's at the violin and it's very signature yellow card, but it has something new to it. Like there's a

Yeah, baby.

I don't know. I'm run running fisherman's. They sound great.

Yeah,

we got we got you.

So So there's little production tricks and things like that that I think made the win. But I I was that demo uh City of Angels was a demo that Travis had. It was just it was just sitting there and he was like, "We I've never used this, but I love it." And I was like, "Give me that. I'll go home tonight and I'll finish it." And um I just came back in the next day with all the lyrics and melody and then he started ripping the violin on it and that that one came together really fast.

Yeah, it was amazing.

And I surprisingly too

and Travis was into it.

It's like one it's it's it's a very regular favorite song on the album so far when I see people posting about the record and it's my son's favorite song.

I'm so surprised by that because we've tried some outside the box things to not with with not much success

to mixed reviews.

Yes. to mixed reviews. So, I didn't know what people were going to think about this fully electronic song on the record, but um it's really connecting with people and um I think it it's cool. I look forward to maybe using that piece um in the live show down the road somehow.

What about a Better Days remix album?

I mean,

that's a thing people do these days.

There may or may not be uh one that's going to be mind-blowing in the works already right now. Not the whole album, but a song. Can you divulge who might

I'm not going to tell you.

All right. Watch this space.

That's all I can say. That's all you get.

That's I'll take it. I'll take it. We mentioned

tell all our secrets.

I mean, that's exciting though. Um, but we I'd also want to talk about lyrics. You've mentioned lyrics because I mean, you made that joke like about not being senior citizens, but not being kids anymore. And, you know,

feel fine. I don't think you're even close to being senior citizens. But yes, of course, when you're reflecting on your career, the nostalgia that your fans would have um a hiatus and coming back, changes you've all had in your lives, uh personally as well as professionally. I mean, it's got to affect what were you writing about? How were how were you taking stock of your lives or your history as a band or whatever? And how did that come out in these lyrics? I mean, the title Better Days makes it seem like you're reflecting. Yeah. Um I think this whole

getting here from there kind of thing from from when we said it's it's over.

Um collectively probably the lowest

point than like in our career and and possibly live our lives. You know, it's like you're you're saying goodbye to the only thing you've really ever known. I mean, for for me, it was getting getting out of the band was like, well, who who am I? what what do what do I even do or who who who am I without yellow card, you know? Um and so

getting from there to here for all of us has been both individually and collectively a lot about healing, you know. Um something we talked about really early on. Uh we had a lot of really cool like adult conversations when we got started talking about getting this going again and we just talked about the concept that we have to be more kind to each other, you know, and to ourselves. Um but that we have to allow space for ourselves to express how we feel and not not make it such an individual effort as it had been for so many years. Um, so I think the record at its core is about healing and growing. Um, you know, being the lyricist, you obviously I'm kind of taking charge of that direction, but there's there's I wrote about my my son and becoming a father for the first time. um wrote about some some tough

things I went through uh before I I met my wife. Kind of like um just allowing myself to sort of be taken advantage of by um certain situations and kind of what that felt like. But nonetheless, all part of the growth and the learning of of how to get where we are now. So um I think that's another reason maybe why people are pumped on the record. But I it's just that, you know, I feel like the lyrics are really honest and uh intelligible. I The last couple yellow card records we made before we broke up um are probably my favorite lyrics I have ever written, but they were definitely I would kind of out of line with what cla you know the classic yellow card. It wasn't as much about storytelling. It was more kind of internalizing thoughts and feelings and a little more abstract I guess is a heady word to use for it.

But I feel like these lyrics kind of found their way back to being more to the point. Um and uh yeah, seems like seems like they're hitting people in the right way.

When you're talking about band relations, band dynamics and healing and all that. I'm asking this sincerely, not in a facicious way. Did you go to therapy together? Because some bands do that like Metallica has done it. Aerosmith I think did it. Did you do that or did you just work at Did you conduct your own therapist?

Our manager is our therapist.

Yeah, we I mean we have an amazing support system. Uh we're a female Ram business. We have our booking agent long time.

Let's cheer for that.

Absolutely.

Absolutely. You need that energy out there. And uh Corey Christopher Martin, she's been our booking agent. We talk about her quite a bit. She signed on to Yellow Card Project first like 26 years ago. And that is so rare to have someone care about your band and book you and put you places and take care of you, but also guide you. Like I mean, she pulled me aside and she was like, "Hey, I know you have kids and a whole different life, but like just trust me. Like if you love music still and you want to play, like we can make this happen." and Kristen uh our manager, she's just been there for us and giving us time to heal and talk to each other and talk to her and you know we started this band you know Ryan and I we dropped out of college together and so you go through so much growth in that period and then life takes you in different ways but but yes to your point we have worked on ourselves right and then sometimes you have to give each other time to grow and be kind to them as well and and remind them that you still want to support and love. It just comes from a different place. So, um, we did all that, you know, within the whole yellow card camp. And it's not just it's not just us up here. It's it's the people that that help us. Our director of touring, Chris Nat, is in the house. He's our he's our road therapist. So, yeah, we got we have wonderful people and and that's part of like this great chapter of Yellow Kart is it's like we just have amazing people and we always have, but like right now it's just it feels like it's it's the greatest hits like all all together. Was there a period of time during your hiatus or whatever you want to call it where you guys didn't speak at all or were you guys in communication even if you weren't a working band?

Yeah. Sean and I didn't talk to each other for six years.

Oh wow.

It was until like rehearsal for Riot Fest. I mean we didn't really have a reason to talk at that point but like I mean I ran a second I I started a whole new second executive life with my family. Like we just we're in the same state. We're in the same orbit as same with I don't mean I didn't you didn't talk to me either did you

this guy

I mean

but but it's just like you know we said goodbye in 2017 and

there wasn't really anything else to talk about.

Yeah it was

it was really it was rough. It was awful. It was terrible.

I didn't I also didn't pick up the violin for like six years. I every every time I

Wow.

I play I I played mandolin and ukulele. I still had an outlet. But it did. It reminded me of that and there's heartbreak in there and whatever you know the the way the story was told and how it was ended like there was joy in it but also was very sad for each of us.

So do you mind me asking how who broke the ice about being like let's get the band back together? Literally

our our agent

Cy.

Shout out to Cy.

Yeah. What up girl?

How did it when that happened? like was it like riding a bike or was it a little awkward at first because it seems like things are great now.

Yeah, we we had we had um some conversations before Riot Fest in 22. Um

Sean and I communicated a little bit via email just kind of opening up to say, "Hey dude, let's let's figure this out so we can move forward." you know, and then when we all got in the rehearsal space in Chicago, it was it was pretty rad. I remember like we played

the re cuz it's we're playing Ocean Avenue all the way through at that show and so we played it like two we were we had three days of rehearsal I think booked and

on the first day we played the record like two times and we were kind of like you are you good? I think I'm good.

I think we're good. We had we had our first viral Tik Tok moment

in that in that rehearsal.

First and only really, but

that's it. We only had one one,

I think. So, um, so it it it came, you know, it came

together and became clear that there was a lot left in in this story pretty pretty quickly. But but honestly, we at the end of the tour in 2023, there was a real legitimate conversation about like this is the biggest thing we've ever done and it was perfect. Should we call it? You know, it's crazy.

Yeah. And if we tried to do what we're doing right now, then it the timing was totally wrong. So, it's just amazing how it worked out.

So, is that why this album is called Better Days? Because you're having them right now. that. Okay. So, it's the tit, you know, there's a song we we've had albums that are named after a song and then albums that were not, but um the title track of the record Better Days obviously carries with it a lot of hope and, you know, looking forward to a more a more positive time, you know. Um but I will say selfishly that there was a little bit of manifesting there where I was like Ocean Avenue was called Ocean Avenue. Let's call this Better Days because Better Days is the single. Just maybe maybe it'll help.

Just line the stars up.

Maybe it'll help.

Um

I guess it did.

I It's working out.

Seems to be working out.

Knock on wood. Somebody

Yeah, it was just that song is just um it's such a powerful piece of music and uh it was a song that Nick had written with Travis. Um and our friend Taka from 10K Rock uh was actually a writer on that song, too. And so a lot of what it was kind of existed as a demo and it was the same situation as City of Angels where Travis and Nick were like we have this song and the first time I mean as soon as it start the riff started we were just like that's that's a yellow card song. I mean I you know Nick do you want to be in our band? Do you just want to be in our band? Cuz I I I either want to just play guitar or just sing. I someday can that just come play guitar in our band so I can stop doing it. But um we heard the demo and we were just blown away and you know then we we took it and and it didn't have a bridge. Um obviously didn't have violin uh melodies and and parts and and I tweaked a lot of the lyrics. Um kind rewrote the verses and things like that to make it our own.

Uh but it was just such a powerful piece of music. Um, and so I think it's fitting to be the the title of the album, both for what it implies and for the song it represents.

So before we uh hand it over for some audience questions, because I'm sure there's many people here who want Yeah. Get ready. Get your questions ready. I have a couple more because we talked about obviously you working with Travis Barker and there's a couple other icons of that era who are on this album. Averal Lavine's on the record. I just saw her sing with Billy Idol last month which was really fun. She's on his record, too. Um, I assumed you guys went way back, but maybe you didn't.

Nope.

How did you guys get together?

We we we didn't really, but

it was my idea.

It It's I I'm finding when we're doing press for this, it's easier to answer both like Skia and Averil in the same question. We had nothing to do with either one.

We said, "Man, this sounds like a classic Averal Lavine like ballad from 2002." And Travis said, "Do you want me to get her to sing on it?" Man, this this

and we looked around the room like

Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, Mr. Travis Barker.

When I when I when I came into the sessions uh after the break and I had I had demoed Love Letters Lost. I was like, "Hey guys, check this demo out that I did." Sean was like, "This sounds like an Alkaline Trio song." Travis says, "Do you want me to get Skea to sing on it?"

Well, now, yes. Why did I assume that you guys were fully hanging out on like the Warp Tour or whatever? Like at TRL or whatever.

I don't know. We we know uh we we're we're super friendly with the Alkaline Trio guys. We've played lots of shows with them um

and stayed in touch over over the years. So, I hadn't talked to Matt in a long time, but it was really cool. They they Travis and Matt facetimed me the night that he was recording the the vocals. Um, and it was a pretty mind-blowing phone call for me because Matt was like, "Hey, it's great to see you." And whatever. And he straight up just said, "Also, [ __ ] you because I want this song for my band." And so to hear, he was like, "The chorus is just, you know, and so to hear Matt Mattkea, someone I've been listening to since I was 20 years old, say that uh to me was pretty pretty wild." Um, but then, you know, we hung up the phone and like three hours later, Travis sent me a rough mix with with Ska's vocals on it and it was just wild.

Just wild.

Awesome.

So, Alkaline Chio aren't playing uh when we were young festival, but Averil is. You guys are. Blink are. Um so, I'm kind of curious. Obviously, Better Days isn't totally an exercise in nostalgia, but there is nostalgia there. And people are nostalgic for just this whole era of music which I would argue was is maybe the last time that guitar driven music was really just at the

you are correct

the center of youth culture that you know

violin guitar driven music.

Sorry my apologies. My apologies.

Excuse me.

That's what I meant to say

all day. It's been uh

pardon me. I'm just curious why it feels like all of you know it's not just this what you guys are doing or the fact that like you know everyone's very excited about My Chemical Romance when they reunite a few years ago like Averil is out there again like people seem to really want this back and that's why this festival is so successful. What are your thoughts about why this music is connecting and not just with your old fans or people who remember it the first time but like young kids as well?

I don't like to think about it.

I like I All right. I I choose to just enjoy it.

That's amazing.

It doesn't matter.

What do you think, Josh?

I think people are nostalgic for when times were better cuz obviously things are

super screwed up right now. And I for me, this kind of music takes me back to when I was like really, really happy and way younger. So, I think that probably plays into it. I mean, there's a balance, right? I think if you have synths or um

computer-driven music, I think there's just a a craving for some real organic

just good oldfashioned sit in a room, play guitar, string to instruments. So, uh it's e either way, whatever the reason is, we're here now. We're we're so happy to be here.

We're happy to have you. Although, I am looking forward to a possible remix album that's the best of both worlds. I did like the Steve Aoki uh Ocean Avenue uh 20th anniversary reading.

Yes, Steve is our bud. I'm hoping to see him this weekend.

All right.

I'm hoping to jump off his roof again.

Wait, when did that I got to get that story.

Yeah, when we did the song,

you jump off his roof.

He gave us a tour of his complex.

He built his pool in a way that is deep enough to safely launch from the third floor of his third floor. He he had well yeah it was like either way but he built a runway off his roof with a gate that you just open up.

Yeah,

that's rock and roll.

It took me a while to get back to the surface. I didn't know I was going to be underwater that long.

Oh my stars. All right, so yeah, we're happy to have you. Better days ahead. I assume you you already are excited to write another record. We're going to get another record.

Even better days.

We we signed that we signed um Thank

you. I'm We signed a three record deal. So, it's um but they but hold on hold on hold on get they have to they have to option the they have to say yes you we're going to make

it's one with two options.

It's not it's not really up to us. It's kind of up to you guys. So, no pressure.

So,

you guys can go independent at this time.

Uh that would probably not be the best move right now.

Yeah, we're we're on a really great team. We're just going to lean into better days for for a minute, but yes, there's

two possible options.

Makes sense. All right. So, let's before you do your your signing, let's take some questions from the fans. Anyone raise your hand?

Yes. I'll get to you next, but you first.

Um, you mentioned this um a little bit about your inspirations and influences now in your personal lives writing the new album. Um, and in the lyrics in the past,

there's been references to Big Fish, uh, Spider-Man, even Shakespeare, Lost Star Wars. Uh, I've seen a reference to a third eye line. What are the inspirations now where you are in your life? Is it the same that it's been? Is it, you know, deeper or different understanding? Or is there something kind of new that's come through over the last 10 years that's kind of like, no, I'm digging this. Like you said, EDM, it's like where you're into,

but what are your main influences and inspirations now that you found?

You mean in terms of of lyric like inspiring lyrics? Well, the trick here is with with it being so the thing about nostalgia is I think we are we've p

we're past that. I don't I don't think I think if if women were young blew popped off for a year and then no none of the bands made records and we're having success then it was an it was a let's get together to celebrate this thing we remember. I think we're I think we're out of that. I think people are listening to music. That's what I think is happening. And they're listening to this kind of music and they're excited about it. Um, so for us to make a record

that fits into our the fan base now, um,

what pe, you know, what would people be most excited to hear from from our band? because I don't I don't I don't think we're in a a a place in our career where

um making you might not all get this reference but you know making kid a radio head is like that's not what we need to do right now and if we felt like we needed to though and we would not be creatively fulfilled otherwise that's what we would have done. I think we agreed we would be creatively fulfilled to try to search for this source to try to find the the what what made us all excited about writing songs for Yellow Card when we first started doing it. But the trick is how do you do that when you're 45 and not just sound like you're desperately trying to be 25? Um it is a

super fine line to walk. Um, and I think a place that the record achieves in that is the lyrics because um, the music to me feels very authentically yellow card, very energized, very fresh. Travis's production brings a a kind of newness to the sound as well. Um, but lyrically I'm writing about fatherhood and uh, you know, uh,

falling in love again for real and and my, you know, finding my wife and her absolutely uh, there may or may not be a song you guys haven't heard yet, but but um, but

um, you know, having my life changed in these amazing ways um, and then having

the maturity to look at our story as a band and in and and talk about it openly through the lyrics in terms of that healing process and um being honest with you guys about how how um unhealthy the

whole thing was at the end. You know, our relationships were not good. We were not friendly. We were in a really bad place and we're in in quite frankly the most amazing place we've ever been as a band in any version, any lineup, any whatever. I know that's been a a you know wild part of this story is all that the members have changed and it's been really hard on the fans and we've always felt awful about that. But this lineup and this moment we're having is without question maybe the only iteration of the band and time in the band where every single thing about it is just positive energy.

Um so I think with that maturity of understanding those things and writing lyrics is that's that's where I got the inspiration from.

You had a question. Yeah.

Ventura, California and there was a rumor throughout high school that You guys I know you're from Florida and I and I was informed by my dear friend here that your first show was in the lobby

of the Ventura Theater.

Correct. Yeah.

Is there any further connection to that city past that?

Oh yeah.

My wife and I will walk down Ocean Avenue in Ventura. I don't I don't know if it's an omage. It started. It's not necess it's not specifically V Ventur, but if you count Thousand Oaks, Camaro, Oxnard, that whole

area,

that's where we home that's that that was our home base when we moved here in 200

when we threw the dirt at the map,

like rolled the van up, six dudes living in a house like

Yeah, Newberry.

We had I It's a long story that I don't need to tell the whole thing of, but I was in a band for a short time before I I left Florida, joined a band in Santa Cruz, and then it didn't work out and I went home. But during the time that I was in that band, uh, we had a band open for us at a show in Ventura. And the guys in that band became like family to me at that time of my life. And like on my way back home to Florida, I stayed with them for like a month. I just stopped in in Camaro and slept on a couch for a month.

What band was it?

Um, the band I was in.

The band that became your

Oh. Oh god. What were they called? What was Travis and Joey's band?

No. like a band that

it was before Stole Your Woman and Duck Butter. It was before both of those.

I don't know.

I'm sorry. I don't remember.

I I didn't know if it was like

Sorry, Travis. Um different Travis. Uh but anyways, when I when when when I started playing with Yellow Card, I had had this experience of being in California and what it was like to play shows out here and um just kind of how much more opportunity there was, how many how many more, you know,

came back to Tallahassee, Florida, and he told us a story of this land.

Yes. gather around and so we but we had a place to go. That was kind of the point. That's the point of the story. We had I had I had a a really um solid network of of friends and support in in central California. Um and so when I suggested that well first we got our first little record deal which was out of Santa Barbara which is also kind of Ventura adjacent you know. Um, it was like, let's go be close to that, but also we I have friends here like we we can get job and they help us get jobs and help us kind of plug into life there.

We worked at Chili's

and we did Chili's Westlake Village.

I feel like you guys need to do the baby back ribs song for them. That's Chili, right? We have

You have We have long time ago.

Okay. I did not know that. Is that on the Is that on the internet? Can I find that?

Oh, no. He means like us singing it in the van. Yeah. Or at work.

Yes.

There we go. There you go.

There you go.

Chili's we are open for sponsorships.

Um, how how much time do we have for questions? Would you say a couple more?

Okay. Well, let's take one more question. Uh, I saw you first. So, well, let's take two if we can make them quick and then apparently I'm going to do some kind of game show thing.

Raffle.

It should be quick. So, do you actually like soccer?

Football. I mean much. So, do you like football? Soccer?

Yes,

we do. Who's your team?

Who's your team?

Manchester United.

No,

not City.

Give the guy a break. It's It's a bit not It hasn't been great.

There's like a City United rival. City United rivalry. I understand.

I don't I don't personally I don't know that I I have like a club team that I follow as closely as I follow American football.

Josh has a team. Um, uh,

Braves,

but the Braves, my, um, I was, man, when I lived out here though, I was really deep into the Galaxy game. I I would, I went to the games all the time. I was at the, I was at the MLS Cup Championship in 2010 when they beat Houston. I was at the game. Um, it was awesome. Um, I saw David Beckham score that that corner kick for the Galaxy that went in. It has like 60 million views on YouTube or something. I was sitting behind the corner like when he kicked that ball. My hair is standing up right now. Like it I was at that game. Um

it was posh there.

So I don't know. Probably not. He was playing MLS. She didn't give a [ __ ] about that. Just uh but I love I love the I the World Cup is just I live for it. Live for it. I can't you know can't wait to watch us lose next year.

Uh

yes.

So I I work in football in Australia. When you come back next year we should go to a game.

Um yes. Yes, we're coming in February and we have lots of days off with Good Charlotte.

Drop us a business card on the table. We'll figure it out.

Yeah. Thank you.

Awesome. There was one quick question over there. We'll end with that

question. Uh if you could go back to your 25-year-old self and you were trying to get into the music industry here in LA. What is the one biggest piece of advice you give yourself back?

Man, so

is it 2005 when I'm giving the advice or is it 2025?

It's kind of it probably would be the same thing. Well, it's tough because I don't know how to tell you how to get streams, dude. And that's all anyone gives a [ __ ] about anymore.

As an artist or as an like like some type of employee,

as an artist? Yeah.

Good luck.

No, for all all I can do is tell you what we what we did, right? I mean, that's the advice comes from life experience.

We played every single show

we could possibly do. It didn't matter. We played a 9-year-old kid's birthday party in a living room for our buddy who was a manager at a Domino's Pizza.

We played a graduation party in a kid's back, you know, yard. We jumped in the pool. Like, we we just did everything. We wanted high school lunchrooms on show days. We would we would carry a PA on sticks in the trailer, load in, we would call ahead, find the student president or the principal or whoever, get it cleared, roll into the lunchroom with our amps and PA on sticks and play shows, and then go play a show that night on whatever tour we were on.

Yeah. You just like tripods.

Yeah. Like just out work everybody, right? And like we never cared.

I mean, the first idea was we just wanted to be on Warp Tour. We didn't even want to get signed. We didn't like that wasn't really an option. And so you just, you know, stay in your lane. You got to be original, right? You got to do your own thing. You got, it's got to be different. But like, if you work hard enough, people are going to notice and they'll they'll come find you. It's it's just impossible. I I just I can't imagine it. So, good luck.

And and and clearly live live music and and you know, people playing live music is is really having what feels like a moment right now. Um and that's not streams. That's people wanting to connect and and you know, feel the energy in a room. So, who knows what the future of all this is. And again, it's like I who can give any advice on streaming? It's just like it's it's a hellscape. I mean, um, but if you I Yeah, I think if you're if you play well and write good music, I mean, that's the t intangibles, right? Who knows what songs you're writing, but um, man, we played a lot of shows. I had to have surgery on my voice because I think we played too many shows.

I wonder why you sound different than you did Ocean Avenue and everything after

that. Yes, because I had a huge cyst on my vocal cord that I didn't know was there until they cut it off and it changed my voice once it was gone.

So,

yeah.

Yeah. All right. On that note, um what am I I'm doing this game show moment. What are we raffling off here?

Five. So, I'm going to pull five of them.

All right. So, I'm going to say your name and then go to the front desk to get it. And there I'm closing my eyes.

Or do you guys want to do it? Do you want You do it.

Go.

Drum roll.

What are you doing? Last three.

Yeah, last three probably.

8 812.

Yeah.

Do you have a vinyl? Do you have a vinyl record player?

Say you you got to get a vinyl.

You guys got to clap for everybody though. Okay. It's not like Yeah. Yeah.

Go. Uh, ticket holder number 822.

Yeah, let's go, boy. Do you have a vinyl player?

Yeah.

Congratulations.

Uh, I've got 8003.

There you go.

I think we have

If anyone wins one of these and doesn't have a vinyl player,

you won a yellow card, please.

I apologize to your bank account, but it's time for you to start. It's time.

And wait, you said there were five total, so Yeah. Okay. So, two more.

Two more.

Oh, thank you, sir. 820.

Yeah.

One last drum roll.

This is a for the last

yellow card coaster.

I can't roll my tongue or I would do it.

Number 81 nine.

Yeah.

Congratulations. Hey, thank you guys for being here today. Thanks everybody. Thank you. Thank you for coming. Um

and yeah, you're gonna you're gonna sign

We're gonna go sign some stuff. Yeah. All right.