Yellowcard’s Ryan King just had to get out of Los Angeles for a while. Although critics at Rolling Stone and other major music publications made the five-member band one of the hottest pop-rock-punk bands in recent memory, the members announced an “indefinite hiatus” in 2008.
| Onstage |
| The Dirty Work Tour featuring All Time Low, Yellowcard, Hey Monday and the Summer Set |
| When: 5:30 p.m. doors Monday |
| Where: 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW |
| Info: Sold out at press time; tickets may be available from online resellers; 800-955-5566; 9:30.com |
“I just had to get out of the madness here,” said Key, the band’s frontman, from Los Angeles as he was putting touches on the band’s March release “When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes.” “Honestly, spending time with my family and friends allowed me to come back here and not get all caught up in all the craziness here that will eat you alive.”
Especially if you’re a young band. After all Yellowcard members were only in their early 20s when they hit the big time in 2003 with the release of “Ocean Avenue,” which won both critical and commercial success. The band’s sound — that featured violin by a classically trained musician — was so well received that it caught the five members up in a whirlwind. Yet there were plenty of lows in that whirlwind, too, including guitarist Ben Harper’s departure, Keys’ vocal surgery, and two albums that were commercial disappointments.
Now the remaining band members have mended fences and returned under a new label. They’re on the road as headliners and support for All Time Low, introducing fans to the new songs to fans and also reminding them of past favorites.
Key tends to see this as a rebirth for the band.
“Everyone is so focused and together right now,” said Key. “Right now, I just want to make sure we focus on this great album. I don’t want to worry about six months from now or one year from now. We found success so early, we could only think about what was happening on the next record or the next record after that rather than [relishing] the moment we were in. … We’ve all matured and learned and are ready to focus on the music and longevity of the band.”
The songs on the album reflect the band members’ new maturity. Songs have deep personal meanings yet also recapture the entire band’s original energy and focus, he said.
“I’m excited about the way they came out because they’re very true to Yellowcard. We step outside of the box,” he said. “We are able to capture the original sound and energy and go from there. The fact that we did it all together, it was much like how we worked on [‘Ocean Avenue’]. We’re all really excited to have this cool stuff happening.”
