| ALL TIME LOW's JACK BARAKAT feels like meeting a girl in NZ... |
| Written by Shahlin Graves |
| Monday, 13 June 2011 15:57 |
 It's JACK BARAKAT's birthday on June 18th. Once he turns twenty-three in five days, he will have seven more years to fulfill his before-I-turn-thirty 'bucket list' - one item of which, is sure to go down a treat among ALL TIME LOW fans of a certain nationality. Barakat, dreams of one day visiting our country and meeting "a girl in New Zealand at a bar". While at home in Los Angeles a couple of weeks ago, Barakat called Coup De Main to discuss the upcoming release of All Time Low's brand new album 'DIRTY WORK', and proved himself a bonafide champion in managing to answer fifty-two fan-suggested questions before his presence was demanded elsewhere... P.S. All Time Low are set to headline COUNTER REVOLUTION in Australia from September 24th to October 3rd! Click HERE for the tour dates and ticketing information. COUP DE MAIN: All Time Low have toured Australia three times already and a fourth trip is scheduled for September as one of the headlining bands of Counter Revolution... when will you finally come over to play New Zealand? ALL TIME LOW - JACK BARAKAT: I'm not sure exactly... I think we're trying to come there when we go to Australia [again] but I'm not sure of the schedule, to be honest. I know that we've had demands on Twitter and everything, so it will happen! CDM: You once infamously let slip that it was a life-plan of yours to come to New Zealand and meet a girl in a bar. Is that still in the cards for you? JACK: <laughs> That's definitely in the cards. I've always had the dream of going to New Zealand and meeting a lovely New Zealander in a bar. New Zealander - is that correct? CDM: Correct! Your new album 'Dirty Work' is released here on June 13th, are you excited for it to finally be out? JACK: I'm really excited! It's our first major-label debut and we've put a lot of hard work into it, so we're excited. CDM: Who or what, were your main influences and inspiration while writing and recording 'Dirty Work'? JACK: A huge influence for this album from a rock standpoint was the Foo Fighters - Alex [Gaskarth] actually does a couple of yelling parts on the record where he's yelling and singing and he definitely channeled Dave Grohl in moments. We definitely went for a Weezer vibe when we did 'I Feel Like Dancin''. And there's the obvious influences on the record like the Blink[-182] aspects and Green Day, and Good Charlotte. CDM: How does 'Dirty Work' differ to the last All Time Low album, 'Nothing Personal'? JACK: As a whole, I think the album is a lot more grittier and a lot more honest from a lyrical standpoint. Also, musically it's the most intricate and most thought-out record that we've ever recorded. CDM: What was the recording process like for 'Dirty Work'? JACK: The recording process took longer than anticipated, because we kept going on tour in between the recording process to make sure that we were still pleasing all the fans across the world. We would go into the studio and record for three weeks, and then we'd go on tour for another three, and then we'd go back into the studio and start recording. It was an on-and-off process for the past year.  CDM: What's your favourite song on the new album? JACK: We recorded the songs so long ago, so I've been listening to it for many months now and they kind of change every week. But my favourite one currently, I'd have to say, [is] 'Forget About It'. CDM: Do you have a favourite 'Dirty Work' song to play live yet? JACK: Yes! I do love playing ['I Feel Like] Dancin'' live because it's a very heavy-driven guitar song and it's really fun for me to play. CDM: What was it like filming the 'I Feel Like Dancin'' music video? JACK: That video was a very really fun video shoot. It was just a really long day because we started shooting at 8AM and there were so many aspects to the video and we didn't really end up stopping until 1AM the next morning, so it was definitely a long shoot. We got really drunk around four or five o'clock so that we could all get loose in front of the camera. I started to get a hangover by 10PM, and we still had four more hours of shooting... CDM: Did you practice walking around in high heels before the shoot? JACK: No, we didn't have to practice - and we had those on for three hours. They really kill your legs. Like, I could not walk for days after that. CDM: How did Rivers Cuomo [of Weezer] co-writing 'I Feel Like Dancin'' come about? JACK: Alex and our manager e-mailed their manager and was like: "Hey, we really want to write with Rivers, we hear that he's been doing co-writes with bands." And so they set it up - and me and Alex went to his house and wrote the song in his living room on his floor. CDM: Was that a dream come true for you? JACK: Absolutely. I've been listening to Weezer for many years and they've always been kind of an inspiration to us. They've always found a way to stay relevant and play the same kind of music and keep their fan-base. It was definitely like meeting a 'hero'. CDM: You name-drop Ke$ha in 'I Feel Like Dancin''... has she spoken out about it yet? JACK: <laughs> Not yet! She probably... who knows if she's actually heard the song? But she hasn't said anything yet. CDM: Maja Ivarsson from The Sounds sings on track four of the new album, 'Guts'. How did that come together? JACK: It's actually almost very similar to the way we got into the studio with Rivers. We just e-mailed her manager and were like: "We're big fans of The Sounds, would Maja be interested in singing on the record?" And sure enough, she heard the song and loved it, and was down to do it. CDM: Awesome, I know that Alex has also named Ella Fitzgerald as a lyrical influence on new song 'Under A Paper Moon'. What other musicians might people be surprised to find out that All Time Low are fans of? JACK: All of us are huge, huge John Mayer fans, which I guess might be kind of surprising because he's such a chill musician and we play in such an upbeat rock band - but we're all huge John Mayer fans. And we've all been on a big Ellie Goulding kick recently, I can't stop listening to her record CDM: 'Dirty Work' is a great Summer-y album. For those of us here in New Zealand stuck in Winter, what can 'Dirty Work' offer listeners? JACK: There's definitely a couple Summer songs on the album, but as a whole, one of the biggest things about 'Dirty Work' is that it's so versatile from a mood standpoint. There's all kinds of different moods on it. There's dark songs and happy songs, and sad songs... it's definitely got a bunch of different vibes on it which can apply to any time of the year, really.  CDM: Have you noticed any differences in how the business-side of the band works, now that All Time Low are officially a major-label band on Interscope Records? JACK: I think the only thing that's very noticeable is that we have a much bigger team working for us, where as we came from a small record label where there was like eight people there. Now we're on such a big company as to have so many people doing little things - especially, I feel like we're definitely getting the attention that we need. Not saying that we didn't before on Hopeless [Records], but we were definitely scared to be on a major label and not get the right attention. But, they have enough people there that they're all doing their own little part. CDM: Is there any pressure on you for the new album to break commercial radio? JACK: Yeah, I think there's a lot of pressure to break commercial radio. This is our fourth album out now, so we definitely don't want to keep staying at the same pace. We always want to become a bigger band. So yeah, there's always pressure for that. CDM: One of your fans was telling me earlier today that they feel like All Time Low are becoming less accessible, as you become more and more publicly promoted. What would you want to say to fans that feel that way? JACK: The band is getting bigger as every record comes out, but we've all always made it 'our thing' to be outside after every show. And if we can't do that, we try and set up an in-store in most major cities so that we can meet all the kids. We try to be as accessible as possible, and especially through Twitter we can get to a lot of people across the world that way. CDM: And! All Time Low are well-known for answering questions from fans!! I have heaps of questions submitted by by your fans, so let's just go quick-fire and try and get through as many as possible before our time runs out... Do you know what the difference between New Zealand and Australia is? JACK: They're two different countries? <laughs> I don't know how they look different because I've never been to New Zealand, but I can imagine it's beautiful. I don't know much about New Zealand... but I do know that I did watch 'Lord Of The Rings' so it looks really pretty. <laughs> CDM: What's it like being Jack Barakat? JACK: Kind of like a blur of male nudity and a little bit of female nudity. CDM: How do you feel sharing your initials with Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers? JACK: More importantly than Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers, I share my initials with Jason Bourne and James Bond, who I think are more awesome. CDM: Your fans want to know when you and Alex are going to tie the knot... apparently you two share a pretty epic bromance? JACK: <laughs> As of now, we're just friends... I don't know if that will change on the road or something, when alcohol is involved... CDM: If you could invent anything, what would it be and why? JACK: Probably a self-parallel-parking car because I'm really bad at parallel parking and I live in a big city so it becomes a problem. Actually, those already exist, but I'd make them cheaper! CDM: What's the weirdest dream that you've ever had? JACK: Last night I had a dream that Matthew Perry was at one of our shows and I told him that I heard he's a big dick. But he was being really nice and we became friends. CDM: Will All Time Low be releasing a second DVD? JACK: Yeah, absolutely. We've been constantly filming more footage which we will use as ammunition for our next DVD.  CDM Have you mastered the art of roly-polys yet? JACK: <serious voice> Yes. At a very young age. CDM: How often do you Google yourself, and what do you find when you do? JACK: I Google myself pretty often. I usually find something about All Time Low or my break-up with Holly [Madison]. CDM: What's your favourite thing about going home to Baltimore? JACK: I live in Los Angeles now, but going back to Baltimore is awesome because all my friends still live there and there's never a dull moment when you're hanging out with your high-school friends. CDM: If you could be Madonna, Britney Spears or Rihanna, who would you choose to be and why? JACK: Probably Madonna, because she's the Queen of Pop in my opinion. CDM: If you could form a band with any other five musicians, who would you pick? Why? And what would your band be called? JACK: Mark Hoppus. Dave Grohl. Pete Wentz. Benji and Joel Madden. And we'd be called Pop-Punk Disaster. CDM: Do you ever get stage fright? JACK: No, I don't get stage fright. I do get nervous before we play in front of big audiences [though]. CDM: Why do you only ever wear black jeans and never blue jeans? JACK: I feel like blue jeans are kind of too 'country' for me. CDM: Do you have any clothes left which aren't 'Glamour Kills' or 'JAGK'? JACK: Yeah, I do! I do have a lot of clothes that aren't 'Glamour Kills', but for the most part they are all 'Glamour Kills'. CDM: What's it like co-owning your own clothing label, 'JAGK'? JACK: It's really fun! I have so much freedom to put whatever I want on a t-shirt, and it's cool because I get a lot of fan feedback so I like to see what kids like to wear and I like to use some of their ideas to make t-shirts. CDM: If you were to change the letters J-A-G-K to stand for other words, what would be the most outrageous thing they could stand for? JACK: Jack Attacks Goonies and Kaleidoscopes. CDM: Who is your favourite All Time Low crew-member? JACK: At the moment my favourite crew member is probably Ian Planet because he's the chillest, illest dude around. CDM: What has been the funniest question that you've ever been asked in an interview, that was meant seriously? JACK: I don't know what the funniest is, but I remember when we were being interviewed in Brazil once, they asked us if I consider our music to be heavy-rock. I said "yes". CDM: Will you ever play 'Sticks, Stones, And Techno' live? JACK: Absolutely not! <laughs> We wrote a joke techno song when we were sixteen and I doubt that we'll ever perform that. CDM: What has been your funniest moment on-stage? JACK: We were playing a hometown show once and I slipped and fell into Rian [Dawson]'s drum-set. CDM: There's a lyrical line in your song 'Heroes' that is similar to a line from the film 'Sucker Punch'. Is that a coincidence? JACK: I haven't seen it yet, so it's probably not related! CDM: What's the weirdest rumour that you've ever heard about yourself? JACK: The biggest, weirdest rumour is probably that we're breaking up, which we get like once a week. Which has never even come close to being true, but it's just fun to hear.  CDM: What's the most expensive thing that you've ever bought? JACK: I bought a house about two years ago in Baltimore. That was definitely the most expensive thing I've ever bought. CDM: If you were a superhero, what would your power be and what would you be called? JACK: I'd be 'Gleek' and all I could do is chuck boogies at people from my fingers. CDM: What's the weirdest thing that a fan has ever done? JACK: I remember when we were in Texas one day and some girl snuck onto our tour bus and confessed her love to Alex. She started crying... it was a little weird. CDM: If you were a girl for a week, what would you do? JACK: I would probably just lay in bed and touch my boobies all day. Too easy. CDM: What's a question that you've never been asked before and always wanted an interviewer to ask? JACK: No-one has ever asked us what our parents do for a living. CDM: What do your parents do for a living? JACK: My Dad's a gynecologist. CDM: If you were to re-make 'Home Alone', who would you cast and why? JACK: I would definitely be Kevin McCallister and the Dad would be Tom Cruise, because he's Tom Cruise and he's awesome. CDM: Tell me something no-one else knows about yourself and each of your band members... JACK: Well, we're all actually pretty nerdy which no-one really realises. We all play a lot of video games and talk about comic books and stuff - and I guess, not many people know that. CDM: What are the five things that you most want to do before you turn thirty? JACK: Skydive from an airplane. Hook up with a pornstar. Buy a plane. Go to India. And meet a girl in New Zealand at a bar. CDM: And lastly, how does it feel to have fans all the way on the other side of the world in New Zealand? JACK: It's awesome! It's a good testament of how dedicated our fans are. It shows that the Internet has been a huge thing in the music industry - it's rad! We definitely have to make it there soon!! |
