All Time Low and The Early November

The band have maintained the same lineup ever since they started; talismanic frontman Alex Gaskarth sings and plays rhythm guitar and keyboards, Jack Barakat takes care of lead guitar and backing vocals, Zack Merrick does the same on the bass, and Rian Dawson is behind the drum kit. Over the course of their decade-plus career to date, they’ve pretty much become poster boys for pop punk as a genre; it’s a style of music that permeates every aspect of their back catalogue, right from their early days playing Blink-182 covers in school, through to their rise to prominence through the Vans Warped Tour, which is to pop punk and emo bands what Download Festival is to metal.

When promoting their debut full-length “The Party Scene” back in 2005, they were happy to play on the undercard to bands like Plain White T’s and Forever the Sickest Kids, but their follow-up “So Wrong, It’s Right” - released in September of 2007 - saw them genuinely break through, and become one of the best-loved pop punk bands on the circuit. Album number three “Nothing Personal”, was another huge step up, landing at number four on the Billboard charts, and their fourth record, June 2011’s “Dirty Work”, saw them begin to flirt with alternative rock influences - not that it lost them many fans. 2012’s “Don’t Panic” continued that approach, and why not? It’s served them impressively well so far.

Formed by frontman Arthur Enders, guitarist Jim Sacco, bassist Sergio Anello, and drummer Jeff Hummer in the blueberry capital of the world Hammonton, New Jersey, The Early November’s earliest output was a five-track demo recorded in 2001. The band then sent the demo to Californian label Drive-Thru Records and Drive-Thru Records only, who ultimately signed the band after representative Richard Reines paid them a visit in their hometown. Guitarist Sacco departed the group during this time and was initially replaced by Steve Nakovich, and subsequently Joe Marro.

With very little stage presence and a limited number of songs The Early November were thrown into the deep end and put on the bill on 2002’s Skate and Surf Fest and Warped Tour. In November 2002 the band released their debut EP “For All of This” aided by the summer’s touring success, which introduced the Early November’s style of post-hardcore grittiness to a wider audience. The EP paved the way for another “The Acoustic EP” later in 2002, featuring acoustic covers crafted by Enders of songs from their debut.

After the departure of Marro who was replaced by John Dubitsky, the band issued their full-length debut “Room’s Too Cold” in October 2003. Complete with string and ballad accoutrements and a strong vocal performance by Enders, the album earned strong reviews and peaked at No. 107 on the Billboard 200. A year later frontman Enders recorded his eponymous debut solo effort under the moniker I Can Make a Mess Like Nobody’s Business.

With the addition of guitarist Bill Lugg, the Early November recorded and released a split EP with the band I Am the Avalanche in 2005, before issuing their triple-disc sophomore album “The Mother, the Mechanic, and the Path” in 2006. The album which showcased three different sides of the band debuted at No. 31 on the Billboard 200, making it the Early November’s most successful album. After the release and subsequent tour alongside The Rocket Summer and Mêlée, the group announced an indefinite hiatus in May 2007, which lasted until June 2011.

After a stream of sold-out comeback gigs across the U.S., the band signed with Rise Records who issued their third full-length album “In Currents” in 2012. The album was debuted at No. 43 on the Billboard 200 and was supported by an extensive touring schedule including slots on the 2013 Vans Warped Tour and an anniversary show at Bowery Ballroom in New York City, U.S.