Yellowcard

Living in the Moment
How Alt-rockers Yellowcard found a way to say yes

By Andy Argyrakis

For those keeping close tabs on Yellowcard, 2007 was a tricky year that could’ve signaled the alternative rockers’ end if it wasn’t for time apart and space to think. Though the band released the ambitious album Paper Walls and plotted an extensive tour, Capitol Records was in the midst of restructuring, and the album didn’t score as much attention as the previous pair. Add in an ill family member, a wedding, plus a general sense of exhaustion amongst everyone, and it was no surprise to see the players embark on an “indefinite hiatus.”

“The most important thing we did was keep the door open to make a record down the road, but I have to be honest and say I didn’t know if we would or wouldn’t,” admits front man/rhythm guitarist Ryan Key. “Everybody needed some time away from it all, and the motivating factor [for the break] was the fact that we were working really hard on Paper Walls. But the label started to fall apart, which made it really hard to do what we wanted. The natural thing other than to break up would’ve been to jump right back in, which is not as good for the creative process, and I don’t think the energy would’ve been right.”

Fast forward to today, and the band’s batteries have finally recharged, thanks first and foremost to some much needed relaxation, followed by time with family and working on a variety of side projects. The fact that the guys moved all across the country (including Seattle, Los Angeles and Phoenix) from their original Jacksonville base also contributed to everyone missing one another musically and personally.

“We actually started talking in February of last year, and I think what really motivated us initially was the fact that our drummer had been touring with Adam Lambert, but they were coming to a halt with his record cycle and he called asking how we felt about doing another Yellowcard record,” continues Key. “For the first time in a couple years, we all really thought about it, and one thing led to another and we were sitting at the same table looking at our options. We all came to a place we were happy with and decided it was time to start working on it.”

The sessions yielded the aptly titled When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes, which features the group’s most adrenalized attitude to date, while also mirroring the instantly connective spirit of 2003’s double platinum selling breakthrough Ocean Avenue. The project also finds the fellas reuniting with producer Neal Avron ( Linkin Park, Fall Out Boy).

“We just wanted to make the best Yellowcard record we could make, not reinvent the wheel, but just to have a great time writing songs that meant lot to us,” confides Key. “Not only are we really excited to share them with the world, but we also approached it as if we were a fan dreaming of the next album they wanted Yellowcard to make, and we tried to do just that.”

Though the musical parallels to Ocean Avenue are evident, the lyrical direction has certainly matured, if only due to the wide swath of experiences members have racked up from their late ’90s beginnings through now. “This record is talking a lot about living in the moment and holding on to the stuff that’s most important, like the people I lost touch with because of the crazy ride over the last 6 to 8 years,” explains Key. “I wrote a song for my friend Scott who passed away in 2001, basically revisiting how I felt about it ten years later. And ‘Sing For Me’ is about a family member who’s been diagnosed with brain cancer and all the emotions that go along with it. I’ve approached writing the same way I’ve always approached it, looking at my life and where I am, but what’s different are the changes in my life since the previous records.”

Indeed the idea of living each day to the fullest is apparent throughout You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes. But more than merely a recurring theme across the collection, it has become a mantra for how Yellowcard approaches its return to record store shelves and the road with its new label and mended relationships.

“The big thing going for us this time around is to really focus on one song, one show and one day at a time,” Key concludes. “When you’re 24-years-old selling a million records and everything’s spinning out of control, you set your sights far away. We’re really focused on making sure we don’t miss anything this time around and I think that will help us be in the head space where we’re still writing records five years from now.”

4/1 Orlando, FL House of Blues
4/2 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle
4/4 St. Louis, MO The Pageant
4/5 Kansas City, MO Beaumont Club
4/7 Houston, TX House of Blues
4/8 Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom
4/9 Austin, TX Stubb’s
4/11 Tempe, AZ Marquee Theatre
4/12 Los Angeles, CA Club Nokia
4/13 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues
4/15 Anaheim, CA Grove of Anaheim
4/16 San Francisco, CA The Warfield
4/17 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom
4/18 Seattle, WA Showbox SoDo
4/21 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
4/22 Milwaukee, WI Eagles Ballroom|
4/23 Houghton, MI Rozsca Center
4/25 Toronto, ON Sound Academy
4/26 Cleveland, OH House of Blues
4/28 Detroit, MI The Fillmore
4/29 Chicago, IL Congress Theatre
4/30 Cincinnati, OH Bogarts
5/3 New York, NY Best Buy Theatre
5/5 Clifton Park, NY Northern Lights
5/6 Boston, MA House of Blues
5/7 Baltimore, MD UMBC Fieldhouse