New Found Glory wsg Cartel, Living With Lions
The Intersection, Grand Rapids
May 21, 6:30p.m.
$19.99 advance, $23.00 day of show
All ages
sectionlive.com, (616) 451-8232
It's difficult to just slap an all-encompassing genre on a band, as many pull from a variety of influences to shape their sound. But to not acknowledge New Found Glory as a pop-punk group is to ignore their influence on the genre's rise to mainstream popularity.
The simultaneous success of the genre and band saw two gold records for NFG at the beginning of the 21st century. So, in 2012, the guys set out on tour to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the second of those two albums, Sticks and Stones.
"That record was one of our biggest," said Jordan Pundik, lead vocalist for NFG. "A lot of people grew up on that record, and even we grew up on that record. Heck, we were still in our early 20s."
And it was Sticks and Stones that made an impact on the pop-punk scene and bands to come.
"[Sticks and Stones] has been cited by other bands as an influence on them, and so I think that we decided to do that record because it was like, 10 years for just one record is kind of a big deal," Pundik said. "There are a lot of bands in our genre that come and go, but our longevity is because of successes like that."
May actually begins the second leg of NFG's Sticks and Stones Anniversary Tour. The first, according to Pundik, was an absolute riot.
"We did it all in small clubs," Pundik said. "The biggest capacity was maybe 1100. A lot of the venues didn't have any barriers, so there were a lot of kids on stage."
Even with its current touring schedule, the band has its sights set on some more recording, including an upcoming live album.
"We're going to [record] two shows in Anaheim, two super small venues," Pundik said. "We're just going to do two different sets and see how it goes. We're trying to mix it up and put three new studio songs on the live record."
And after that?
"Our plan is to probably, hopefully, do a new record after the New Year."
"That's really what our focus is on," said Pundik. "I'm super excited, and our fans are excited about it. We always try to keep our fans involved, like they're a part of everything."
