The following article appeared in the April 2008 edition of Buzz Magazine.
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Winning acclaim from the industry and fans alike, punk rockers Against Me! are one for breaking all the rules and living the rock n’ roll lifestyle all the while keeping their heads well and truly back on planet Earth. With an ever evolving lineup and a volatile membership (with guitarist and vocalist Tom Gabel being arrested for battery in 2007) they have climbed the heights of success from humble beginnings in their native Naples, Florida to signing to Sire Records in 2007 for the release of “New Wave” which Spin Magazine described as “the best album since [Nirvana’s] Nevermind.”
“We try not to talk about the whole selling out thing because it is such a beaten-to-death, pointless argument that people bring up, and people usually bring it up not even wanting an explanation, they just want to argue," says bassist Andrew Seward on their recent signing. "We're not going to stay the same; we're not going to be anyone's personality party band or whatever. We're going to do what we want to do and if that turns people off, I hope it wouldn't. I hope people would understand that the band wants to grow.” Their experiences shouldn’t be a blueprint for success, Gabel says – “As far as advice to people, I would say, you know, I think you’ve just kind of got to figure it out on your own. Anything anybody tells you is based on their own experiences and everybody’s chances are different. You know, it’s really about knowing what you want to do with your band and being honest with yourself and not worrying about catering to other people’s opinions of what you should be doing with your band. Just figure out what you want to do, and just do it.”
Not satisfied with the traditional punk ethos of rejecting the tradition of the past, Against Me! still keeps in touch with the classics and the greats - Springsteen, Tom Waits and the Replacements - not going so far to say that the new has lost all sense of direction. "There are some icons from the past still making great music. But that’s different than new bands–and that’s not to say that I think there’s no good music being made now, it’s just different for some reason." says Gabel. Idiosyncratically, he keeps his distance from the new trend toward online music, sticking to the time-honored way of listening to an album. “I dislike MP3 as a format, I think [it’s] very temporary. And to me you’re paying basically a buck per track for the ghost of music. I don’t like that. You know, for me, in the real world, I’ve always been a vinyl fan anyway, so I’m in the minority when it comes to my chances in the argument. I think that everything should be available on vinyl.”
One tradition that the band steeps themselves in is their contempt for the establishment, railing against popular opinion and the status quo which has bestowed upon them an almost incalculable reverence in the alternative and indie scene. Last year, Gabel described former Mormon preacher and Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney as “[one] scary motherf—ker.” In addition to spitting in the eyes of big-wig hypocrites, they also have an active social conscience; working with the humanitarian organization Harvest for Hope, which gives ninety-eight percent of all money taken to migrant farmers. “We did a benefit show for them in Gainesville in August and raised a lot of money that went straight to them. They're a great organization. We're very into giving back. Because we're on tour so much, sometimes we feel like we're not socially connected to people and causes because, like I said, we're half insane and on the road gone all the time, it's almost impossible. So whenever we can do things like this for friends we jump at the chance." Andrew reveals. The band recently supported Wheels for Humanity, a charity which provides wheelchairs to third-world countries.
If they're not listening to music, they're playing or recording, relentlessly touring around their home country and of course, the globe. Australian fans have the chance to taste of the fury and bold emotion of an Against Me! live tour in May. How do they manage the strain of calendars full of tour dates and that endless killing road? Andrew breaks it down: “Here's the thing…how is this not going to sound like an asshole, for normal people, touring would drive you crazy, absolutely insane. We've been doing it for so long, relentlessly, that we're just used to it. Our bodies and our minds, and I'm not saying this is a healthy thing, are completely conditioned to tour. Not like we're some noble warriors or anything, it's probably actually 75 percent insane. So that's how we can do this.”