Results tagged “all time low” from J-14 Magazine

Hey J-14ers,

I'm a big fan of compliation CDs -- I have all those punk goes pop albums and will scour YouTube for a good cover, so I was psyched to check out Take Action Volume 9. The whole CD was put together just for charity as part of the 2010 Take Action Tour. We The Kings, Mayday Parade, A Rocket To The Moon, and There for Tomorrow are a part of the tour and the two-disc CD includes 35 songs, and bands like 3OH!3, Cobra Starship, Taking Back Sunday, and All Time Low join them on the album.

There are two things I really like about this CD. One is that 5% of the retail price will be donated to Driving For Donors, a group started by 14-year-old Patrick Pedraja and his family. When Patrick was 10, he was diganosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and at 11, he started the group to get people to sign up for the National Marrow Registry. The other cool thing is that the album isn't filled with hit songs you've already heard on other albums. Eighteen of the 35 tracks are exclusive or previously unreleased, including We The Kings' riveting acoustic cover of Jimmy Eat World's "The Middle."

The acoustic tracks make the mix for me. I love when musicians can strip down their tunes and get to the real essence of the lyrics and melodies. You can really hear the pain in Mayday Parade's "The Silence," and if a song on the mix gets you a bit more down than you'd expect, a tune like Hit The Lights' "Liars And Cheats (Acoustic)" comes along and makes you want to clap your hands -- in the most rockstar way, of course. I was most surprised by There For Tomorrow's "Backbone (Acoustic)" -- it was truly stripped-down and let singer Maika Maile's voice shine through.

3OH!3 and Cobra Starship's start off disc two with remixes of "Don't Trust Me" and "Hot Mess," and they're the kind of versions you want to hear when getting ready to go out on a Friday night. Much of the second disc was hit with the dance stick with tracks like Let's Get It's "Maps" to Lights' "Saviour," which I thought was a Britney Spears song the first time I listened to it. Disc two very quickly moves into the hardcore world with August Burns Red's "Indonesia" but then gets right back to pop punk with All Time Low's "Poision" and The Downtown Fiction's "I Just Wanna Run" - both got me totally pumped up.

Take Action Volume 9 runs the gamut from punk to pop to dance thanks to the acoustic versions and remixes. While I lean towards pop punk over anything else, the compilation has a good mix for everyone -- think the type of CD you could put on when you have friends over and never need to change.

So tell me - what do you think of charity compilation albums?

<3,
Emily, J-14 editor

Take Action Volume 9 drops tomorrow, February 9. More information on the tour and the charity can be found at TakeActionTour.com and Sub City.

J-14 has five copies to giveaway - enter the contest here!

Photo: Courtesy of Fueled By Ramen

Hey J-14ers,

Alice In Wonderland was one of my fave stories when I was a kid, which is why I was psyched to hear about Tim Burton's new reincarnation of the classic tale, starring Johnny Depp.

What I wasn't sure about was the Almost Alice soundtrack. Can 3OH!3, Avril Lavigne, and Metro Station really make music for the flick? And what are two of my fave bands, Motion City Soundtrack and the All-American Rejects, going to come up with? Turns out I have nothing to be worried about because there are two Alice in Wonderland soundtracks! One is the official score by Danny Elfman, while Almost Alice is music inspired by the Tim Burton flick.

I feel better already, especially after streaming 3OH!3's "Follow Me Down" on their MySpace page. Avril's track "Alice" will premiere on MySpace on February 4, followed by All Time Low's "Painting Flowers" -- which lead singer Alex told me exclusively that he was psyched to write -- on February 19. The whole album will stream on MySpace on February 28, with the album officially dropping on March 2.

I'm excited to hear the bands' takes on the story of Alice in Wonderland. Check out the full track listing after the jump.

Tell me - what do you think of an inspired soundtrack? Are you psyched to hear the musical collabs?

<3,
Emily, J-14 editor

Photo: Courtesy of Pamela Littky

All Time Low just released dropped their MTV Unplugged CD/DVD set last week and to celebrate the band's acoustic endeavor, J-14 chatted with All Time Low's lead singer Alex Gaskarth to get the scoop on their unplugged song choices, their contribution to the Alice in Wonderland movie soundtrack, and those rumors about ATL and Demi Lovato!

J-14: Why was it important to you to do MTV Unplugged and release the set on DVD?
Alex Gaskarth: Fist of all, Unplugged is legendary -- Nirvana's played it, and all kinds of amazing bands that I consider legendary. So to even get the invite to come and do it was very cool. On top of that, it's always fun to strip down your songs and play them in a very honest way in an intimate setting like that. It was a good time. I think the kids that were there really appreciated it. We wanted to share that with anyone who didn't get to see it, so we put it on DVD.

J-14: Which song was the most important for you to play at that show?
Alex: I really enjoyed playing "Jasey Rae." It's one of our older songs but it translates to acoustic well. I think people really appreciate the lyrics and the sentiment of that song, so I'm glad that we got to squeeze it in there.

J-14: How did One Tree Hill's Kate Voegele get involved with singing on "Remembering Sunday?"
Alex: It was a very last minute thing. I wanted to do "Remembering Sunday," and I said is there anyone that we can get to come in and do that part, and she was the first person who came to mind. We spoke on the phone a couple times and planned it out and sure enough, she showed up and she's great. She's an awesome girl -- a really great singer and a great artist. Itt was fun to do that collaboration.

J-14: What's the inspiration behind your song "Painting Flowers" off the upcoming Alice in Wonderland soundtrack?
Alex: It's about realizing who you are, questioning your beliefs, and truly finding and accepting what you believe, not for any other reason but because you want to believe. It's an awesome song, and I'm really glad we the opportunity to contribute to the album. I'm a big fan of Tim Burton so I think he's probably done an amazing job with the movie, and Johnny Depp looks hilarious in it.

J-14: Which band has been your favorite to tour with?
Alex: I would have to say Fall Out Boy. They're a band we came up listening to. It was not only a dream come true to finally tour with those guys, but they're all great dudes and we befriended them pretty quickly. Every night was a party on that tour. Everybody got along and hung out all the time. Our bus sort of turned into the common area for hanging out after shows. Pete Wentz always tells us we're like the adopted brothers into the Decaydance family. We're not actually part of the family, but we roll with all those people. I have nothing but love and respect for all those bands.

J-14: Are the rumors true about All Time Low working on a song with Demi?
Alex: As of right now, no. We've never done anything as far as music goes. Her and I are becoming good friends - we're hanging out. She's awesome.

Photo: Courtesy of MTV

Think Selena Gomez and Miley Cyrus are the only musical peeps who can design? Think again! All Time Low's bassist Zack Merrick is way into the world of art and music. In fact, he just teamed up with Kill Brand to form the The Zack Merrick Collection!

Zack's designs feature fun concert-ready tees for both girls and guys, like the "Rampage" shirt below which features a photo Zack took and the characters from the game, well, Rampage!

Check out the vid of Zack signing some posters of his prints above and his new line on killbrand.com. Then let J-14 know what you think!

When J-14 hung out with Every Avenue at during their stop at NYC's Highline Ballroom, we had to ask lead singer Dave Strauchman what's up with the band, especially since their new album, Picture Perfect, drops today, November 3! Check out what Dave had to say about Every Avenue's new music, touring with All Time Low, and the one thing he has to have with him on the road!

J-14: Where did the band name Every Avenue come from?
Dave Strauchman: I used to play guitar in the band, and the original singer and drummer was like 'Yeah, Every Avenue!' And I was like, 'Cool! I'll play guitar!' I was like sixteen.

J-14: What's your favorite song off the new record, Picture Perfect?
Dave: My favorite song is called "Mindset." It's the very last song we recorded and almost didn't make the record. It was a last minute thing. They were like, "We're done doing everything," and I was like, "No, no, no, no! We've got to do this one. We've got to play drums." "Mindset" is pretty much the whole random situation of meeting someone -- it totally caught you off guard and you're like, 'Whoa! Whoa!' and falling head over heels for that person.

J-14: Have you gotten used to mixing your the songs with your old ones on this tour?
Dave: It's ridiculous. The last record we've been playing for awhile, so I kind of got use to it. But we put these new songs up on Myspace and, I barely even know the song! Literally I forget the words and I'm like, "What am I going to say next?"

J-14: Who are some of your biggest influences?
Dave: So many! As a band, Jimmy Eat World is one of our biggest influences. They're amazing. I'm a big fan of Gavin Degraw -- he's so good -- John Mayer, Butch Walker, and Elvis Costello. I like the new Jay-Z album, and there's this band called Phoenix that I really love.

J-14: What was "All Time Low" like to tour with?
Dave: All Time Low is amazing. They're just the most down-to-earth guys ever, really big-hearted people. They're not like a huge band that's jerks to everybody - they try to accommodate everyone on the tour like, "What are you guys eating?"

J-14: Is there one thing that you always need to have on tour?
Dave: Probably my cell phone. I don't really need much! I wear the same stuff everyday, but I have to have socks. If I don't have black socks, I freak out. And a toothbrush - that's pretty needed.

Hey J-14ers,

Intern Jenna here! Summer's a great time find some of the hottest bands out there, but I already know who my all time fave band is -- All Time Low!

I stumbled upon ATL while looking up Warped Tour tickets last year (I'm a concert junkie!), and I've been completely in love with their music, and them, ever since. Lead vocalist and guitarist Alex Gaskarth, guitarist Jack Barakat, bassist Zack Merrick, and drummer Rian Dawson are all really close friends who aren't just super talented, they're also incredibly cute! ;)

Their concerts are always crazy fun because the boys are always joking around! And while I've never met them, my dad met Zack without me! I still haven't forgiven him for that!

My fave things about All Time Low would be a really long list, so I'll just give you my top 5!

1. Alex has the funiest tattoo on the inside of his left wrist - a skeleton that's dressed up like a skeleton trick-or-treating!

2. They were still in high school when they were discovered!

3. ATL's new album, Nothing Personal, debuted at number 4 on the Billboard Top 100 chart.

4. Their band name comes from a phrase in New Found Glory's song, "Head On Collision."

5. All Time Low will be a part of The Glamour Kills Tour this fall, along with The Friday Night Boys (also awesome guys - I've met their guitarists Andrew Goldstein and Mike Toohey) and Hey Monday!

What do you guys think of All Time Low? What would you say if you could write a top 5 list about your fave band? And will you be catching The Glamour Kills Tour?

Check out The Glamour Kills Tour dates after the jump.

Your J-14 intern,
Jenna

Courtesy of Earshot Media