Atlantic Avenue is a pop-rock band formed in 2009 has reunited in 2014 to release brand new music.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Jon Sayer: Vocals
Joe Croft: lead guitar
Pierce Wiltrout: bass
Brandt Haage: Rhythm guitar
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Atlantic Avenue? How long has the band been around?
Jon Joe and Brandt were all in different versions of the band Atlantic Avenue in different instruments and different band names, and pierce joined up with us when we decided to re-form Atlantic Avenue
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
For several summers we’ve always spent a lot of time at the jersey shore or Ocean City Maryland and at all the beaches one of the main roads in was “Atlantic Avenue” and we always liked the way it sounded, people think we got it from the monopoly game but we didn’t realize it was actually on there till we decided on the band name
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?
Jon will generally come up with a melody or a vocal part and a few chord ideas behind it and then as a band we’ll generate a structure of the song and then when we go to studio we generally piece the song together. Our songs used to be generally based lyrically about relationships/partying and other pop punk themes but now we’re focusing more mature versions of those themes and growing up and accepting the next phase of life.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
We all listen to a variety of different musics and seek inspiration from them, but generally as a group we’re big fans of 90’s music and early 2000’s pop punk
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
The warped tour era was a big inspiration in starting a band and seeing all of your favorite bands in one day was a life changing experience and made you just wanna go home and follow in their footsteps
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
Generally before a show we like to relax and unwind and eat good foods. Before we go on is usually hectic gathering all the members make sure everyone is on the same page with set list, and/or any changes to the show and also making sure everyone's sober enough and ready to go
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
I think playing warped tour for 2 summers and also getting a video onto MTV was amazing and hearing your songs and seeing your video in stores at the local malls was pretty surreal
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Hit The Lights, Cartel, and Cute Is What We Aim For would be awesome for the pop punk side of us but to play with Third Eye Blind or Goo Goo dolls would be awesome too!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
We recently released a new EP called “Home Is Where the Heart Is” on iTunes, amazon.com, Spotify, and Google Music so please check it out if you have time and continue to help spread the word!