Could you start off by stating your name and what you do in The Amity Affliction?
Joel, I yell at people.
You have just begun The Fuck The Reaper Tour, where most of the shows have sold out. How were you feeling heading into the tour?
We had our first show last night and it was crazy, I always go into tour a little worried about how we will go, but it just keeps on getting better and better. We’re playing better than we ever have, and the kids are going more mental than they ever have, it’s a wild ride.
Does it still surprise you that no matter how many tours you guys play shows still keep selling out? Did you expect that kind of response?
Hahaha definitely, it blows my mind, every time.
Asking Alexandria and Skyway are playing the tour with you. Are you excited to play with those guys?
Yeah, for sure. We’ve toured with Asking Alexandria over in the UK, but we’ve always wanted to do a tour with Skyway, so this is rad. Hopefully the kids pick up on just how good they are, they’re definitely the best pop punk band getting around Australia right now, and in my opinion they’re more than capable of doing well overseas as well. I love that band.
What have the shows been like so far?
We’ve only played the one show so far, last night at the Tivoli. It was the first time I’d ever been to that venue so it was quite the jaw-dropper for me. I loved it. The crowd went mental for the whole hour we were on stage, that blew my mind.
The Amity Affliction is also about to release a deluxe repackage of Youngbloods. How did you guys come up with that idea?
That’s out now, it was just a way for the label to get a release out I think, as they switched distributors from Shock to Warner, but it also gave us a good chance to put together a little treat for kids in between releases. Hopefully that can tide them over until our next record, which shouldn’t be too far off.
Since the original release of Youngbloods, the band had really taken off. What have been some of your biggest highlights in the last 12 months?
Touring America was awesome, and while we were on first and the goat band of the tour that no one had heard of, that experience was awesome. Playing Riverstage was definitely up there… This kind of question is hard, because I really enjoy 99% of what we do, there’s the occasional van ride that sucks, but it’s an awesome life to be living – I’m kinda stoked on everything.
You recently got a new guitarist on board. What has that been like and how is he fitting in?
We’ve known him for a while now, he tour managed us over in the UK and we got along with him really well, so knowing that he played guitar he was an almost immediate thought when Clint decided to bail. It’s cool because we were bummed about losing Clint, but it’s awesome having Imran around. He fits right in with us and it’s been a really seamless transition.
There has been talk of work on a new album. What is the process on that? How are you progressing?
We’re writing for it at the moment, which means that Troy and Imran are working together in Brisbane, Ahren is writing down in Melbourne and I am writing lyrics whenever they spring into my head, which was at around 3am the other morning while sitting in the dungeon-esque basement of an Auckland backpackers… It’s coming together well, and already the songs the guys are writing are matching the songs on Youngbloods. I’m definitely excited to get back into the studio that’s for sure.
Thanks for helping with my article. Enjoy the rest of the tour.
