Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A Pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
TGEFM had the opportunity to speak with Jamie from Connecticut rockers American Thrills. We had the chance to speak about their recent LP, Parted Ways, forming the band mid-pandemic, what’s next and what is playing in their headphones.
1. Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. Congrats, on the release of Parted Ways. It’s been getting a ton of play on my end. Could you tell us a bit about the album, what you were listening to while you were writing the record and the recording process?
Thanks so much for having us! We have been following the site for quite some time now and check it on the reg to find new bands and tunes! Thanks for giving the record a spin. Parted Ways is about our love-hate relationship with our hometown, losing friends/family and just the general struggle of trying to be an adult in the chaos that is 2022. We grew up on bands like The Get Up Kids, Hot Rod Circuit and lived for the early 2000’s Vagrant Records scene. More recently we have been really into The Gaslight Anthem and The Menzingers. I would like to think that all of the above bands influenced this record in one way or another. The recording process for this record was a bit more difficult this time around. Last year brought new kids and jobs which made studio time and scheduling difficult. Nicky Bellmore @ Dexters Lab really went out of his way to make sure we were able to get everything done to put out this record. We owe him big time for dealing with our nonsense and making a crummy band like ours sound half decent.
2. Which song off the new record are you most excited to be playing live and why?
“Sinking” is definitely the most fun to play live. It comes in with a fun loud riff and has a ton of energy. We actually start our set with the song to pump things up right off the bat. Actually we usually start off with a bit of Creed cover that rolls into “Sinking.” I know it sounds ridiculous, but you gotta come see us live, it kind of works…
3. A few of you had played together but life happened and you went separate ways before forming American Thrills mid-pandemic. When live shows aren’t an option, how did you get your sound out there and more importantly, when you can’t see a live crowd’s reaction, where did you get feedback on what was or wasn’t working for you?
We spent all of 2020, writing songs and recording. We knew that we weren’t going to be able to play out for an undetermined amount of time and decided to write and write some more. It was a breath of fresh air actually. Usually you write a handful of songs and rush out to play shows. We wrote and recorded 2 EPs and a split before we really started playing out. Initially it was difficult to get anyone to listen to/post our music . We were a new band with nothing to show but some songs we chucked up on Spotify. Everyone was in the same boat during that time. Luckily we had some great friends and sites that picked up on a few of our early releases and helped us build a little buzz. Social media was a great place to gauge feedback during that time. We would see correlations with certain songs that would garner more engagement and plays and try to push and promote those tracks. The internet is a terribly confusing place that I still do not fully understand, but it does have its occasional upside.
4. One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should?
3 Bands you all need to go and check out immediately.
–Tired Radio – We played some of our first shows with them. So incredibly talented. Have Beach Slang vibes and they will be blowing up in the next year. Tony is an incredible song writer and one of the nicest dudes I know.
–Oh The Humanity! – Also a band that we randomly asked to play with us and ended up being blown away by. These guys have tech/melodic punk vibes with hooks. Think A Wilhelm Screamish. Incredible live show and put out a great record last year that you should check out.
–Neckscars – Upbeat punk rock with gruff vocals… Hot Water Music vibes. Will Romeo has been writing great songs for like 20 years now, but this is my favorite project of his.
5. Beyond the release of Parted Ways, what’s next for American Thrills?
We got a bunch of fun stuff in the pipeline! We are dropping a few stripped down reimagined versions of some of the tracks as an EP in the new year. Some fun shows coming up with Teenage Halloween and The Punk Cellist as well as providing some support for an OG punk band this summer. We continue to grind out new tunes and the demos are already flowing for LP2.
Thanks so much for having us! Thanks for giving a crap about new music/new bands and always putting out great content!
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/