Summer has hardly begun and we’re already dreaming of cooler pastures. Until then, we’ll be posting never-before-seen interviews and bonus clips from our archives as a thank you for sweating it out with us. No, this won’t make up for that fact that you woke up stuck to your sheets (again), but hey, that’s what window AC units are for.
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Upon the release of their newest album There Are Rules in January, Jim Suptic of The Get Up Kids muses about auto-tune, the death of emo, and why the only rule going forward was to get weird.
By: Britt Middleton
Sundae Magazine: Presumably, you had the choice to re-write Something To Write Home About, your most successful release. You went in a completely different direction with There Are Rules. Why buck the system? (And by the way, thank you.)
Jim Suptic: We have had three chances to rewrite that record and we never have. All of our albums sound different. I think that’s what has given our band longevity.
SM: The indie scene today is so vastly different from when you first emerged in 1995. Do you at all feel responsible for the “sea of neon shirts” and autotune of today’s indie scene, as you pegged it in a 2009 interview?
JS: A lot of what I said was a joke. I think there are a lot of good bands out there.
SM: Who are you listening to right now?
JS: Rob’s been rocking Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark (pre-saxaphone albums). I just heard Lykee Li’s new album. I think it’s going to be huge in the States.
SM: Where would you say Get Up Kids fall into the fold today?
JS: I really don’t know where we fit in, though. We have always been influenced by so many different things. We can play with punk bands or indie pop bands or whatever.
SM: There Are Rules is such a definitive title. Are there, then, rules for writing a Get Up Kids album? What are some of the themes on this record?
JS: The only rule for this album was “get weird”. The lyrics are all over the place. I don’t really think there is a theme.
SM: Despite your history with Vagrant Records, you released this new album on your own imprint, Quality Hill. Does this album feel more authentic in that right?
JS: We have always tried to be authentic. It wasn’t like Vagrant told us what to do.
SM: What did you learn about yourselves after the band broke up in 2004? How much did the outpouring of support for the subsequent reunion tour impact your decision to record another album?
JS:I wouldn’t say the outpouring of support is why we made a new record. It is always nice to be liked, though. We just thought it would be fun thing to do.
Photo Courtesy Terrorbird Media
SM: It seems like ages since anyone used the term “emo”. Does it still sting to be labeled as such, or is it more of a badge of honor since GUK are hailed as elder statesmen in the genre?
JS: I really don’t know what emo is anymore. We could put out a spoken word album and people would call it spoken word emo. There is really nothing we can do about it. So why care.
Catch The Get Up Kids on tour with Saves the Day this summer:
June 2 Durty Nellies Palantine, IL W/ Saves The Day
June 3 The Loft Lansing, MI W/ Saves The Day
June 4 Headliners Toledo, OH W/ Saves The Day
June 5 Mr Small’s Theatre Pittsburgh, PA W/ Saves The Day
June 7 Northern Lights Clifton Park, NY W/ Saves The Day
June 8 The Crazy Donkey Farmingdale, NY W/ Saves The Day
June 9 Toad’s Place New Haven, CT W/ Saves The Day
June 10 Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel Providence, RI W/ Saves The Day
June 11 Starland Ballroom Sayreville, NJ W/ Saves The Day
June 12 Crocodile Rock Cafe Allentown, PA W/ Saves The Day
July 7 The Waiting Room Omaha, NE W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 8 Blue Moose Tap House Iowa City, IA W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 9 Summerfest Milwaukee, WI W/ Dashboard Confessional
July 10 Triple Rock Social Club Minneapolis, MN W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 14 Outland Ballroom Springfield, MO W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 15 The Firebird St Louis, MO W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 16 Historic Southgate House Newport, KY W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 17 Exit/In Nashville, TN W/ The Globes & The Caves
July 30 Fuji Rock Festival Niigata, Japan
Aug 5 The Hi Fi Brisbane, Australia
Aug 6 The Metro Sydney, Australia
Aug 7 Billboard The Venue Melbourne, Australia
Aug 9 Fowlers Live Adelaide Australia
Aug 11 Powerstation Auckland, New Zealand
Aug 13 The Satellite Los Angeles, CA
Aug 14 Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown, CA
Sept 21 007 Prague, Czech Republic
Sept 22 Luxor Cologne, Germany
Sept 23 Reeperbahn Festival Hamburg, Germany
Sept 24 Batschkapp Frankfurt, Germany
Sept 25 Backstage Halle Munich, Germany
Sept 27 Universum Stuttgart, Germany
Sept 28 Zeche Bochum, Germany
Sept 29 Lido Berlin, Germany
Sept 30 Bolwerk Sneek, Netherlands
Oct 1 Rockhal Luxembourg
Oct 2 Melkweg Amsterdam, Netherlands
Oct 4 Cockpit Leeds, UK
Oct 5 Koko London, UK
Oct 7 Mod Hasselt, Belgium
Oct 9 Nouveau Casino Paris, France
Oct 11 Arean Vienna, Austria
Oct 12 A38 Budapest, Hungary
Oct 13 Mocvara Zahgreb, Croatia
Oct 14 The Bronson Ravenna, Italy
Oct 15 New Age Treviso, Italy
Oct 16 Abart Zurich, Switzerland
Oct 21 Sala Live Madrid, Spain
Oct 22 Estraperlo Club Barcelona, Spain
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