25/04/2011 – Yellowcard (Ryan Key) – english

Enjoy The Show: It’s been a month since When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes was released. In general, how has the response been so far? Is everything going as you expected with this new one?

Ryan Key: The response has been amazing. We found out today that we are back up to number 20 on the iTunes top 200 chart here in the states. We have gotten an overwhelmingly positive reaction from fans all over the world. We are feeling great.

ETS: You have already released two singles. Any idea of which song will be the next one? Which ones would you personally choose and why?

R.K.: We are hoping to work ‘Hang You Up’ for a good while. It is just starting to catch on. If we are fortunate enough to make it to a third single, I think we all hope it will be ‘With You Around’. The fans seem to really love that one.

ETS: How long did the writing process take? Songs like ‘Hang You Up’ and ‘Hide’ were written while on Big If. Have you used any more material from this other project?

R.K.: We started writing in the spring of last year. We had a lot of ideas, some of which came from the work that Sean O’Donnell and I had done with Big If (the project we were working on during 08-09). We felt ready to record in September. We did one other Big If song called ‘Empty Street’ as a b-side, and some of ‘Be the Young’ was taken from a Big If song as well. The core of the record, however, was really a collective effort by Yellowcard that spanned most of 2010.

ETS: You decided to stick with Neal Avron to be the producer for this new album. He had already produced Ocean Avenue, Lights And Sounds and Paper Walls, your last ones. How is working with him?

R.K.: I can’t imagine making a record with anyone else. Neal has taught all of so much about recording and helped us to become better songwriters and musicians. He is pretty much a sixth member of the band.

ETS: You stated on your Twitter account that you would release two bonus tracks (one of them, ‘Promises’, already released, right?) and 10 acoustic versions of the original songs. How did the idea come and when will the fans be able to listen to those ones?

R.K.: We don’t have a set plan for the release of those songs. We just wanted to take on the mission of doing the acoustic versions. We have always loved playing our songs in an acoustic setting so we thought it could be something cool for the fans. We will have to see how and when they become available.

ETS: What was that made you go on to hiatus? Was it difficult to take that decision at that time?

R.K.: There were so many factors. Exhaustion, internal conflict, and troubles with the record company all played a part. It was definitely a tough decision, but in the end it led us to ‘When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes’. So I have to believe we made the right choice.

ETS: On November 13 (2010) you played your first show after coming back. How did you feel? Was it good to be back on track again?

R.K.: That was an incredible night for all of us. The show was sold out and there were fans from all over the country there to see us. We were all really nervous, but as soon as we hit the stage everything felt perfect.

ETS: Why did you decide to start touring on places like Europe and Japan and not the US, your country? How is the reception in Europe?

R.K.: We had the US tour with All Time Low booked before we left for the international tour. It just worked out that the international markets became the launch pad for the touring this year. We didn’t get to play much on the mainland of Europe, but the shows in the U.K. were unreal.

ETS: Are you excited about any specific tour date coming up? And as our website is in Spanish, we want to ask… will we be able to see you in our country before the end of this year?

R.K.: In June we are co-headlining with Good Charlotte in the US. I am so excited for those. Also we are planning two more trips to Europe this year so I think you can count on us finally coming to Spain.

ETS: What is your best achievement as a band? Any expectations for 2011?

R.K.: I think making this new record is our greatest achievement. We have been through a lot and I am very proud of the fact that we fought for this second chance to get our career on track. I just hope we have a great year on the road and that the record does well.

ETS: Favorite album and favorite songs in general?

R.K.: It is hard to pick just one, but ‘The Bends’ by Radiohead is pretty high on the list. I listen to a whole lot of Radiohead these days.

ETS: And finally, anything you want to say to your fans?

R.K.: I would like to say thank you to our Spanish fans for waiting so long to see us and not giving up. We are really looking forward to visiting your country and enjoying some rock shows together!

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