The After Party have had a busy past year with the release of their self-titled EP and are gearing up for an even busier 2012. Before they hit the road on January 13 with Allstar Weekend, guitarist Andy Bell chatted with J-14 about their evolution as a band, their latest single, and their hopes for the future.
J-14: Last year you released your self-titled EP. How do you think your music has evolved since your previous music and your EP All the Wrong Places?
Andy Bell: When writing and recording our self-titled EP, we really wanted to do something that was different from what other bands were going for at the time. Growing up we were huge fans of boy bands like *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys, so we incorporated that vocal style into the fun, pop-rock sound we had started to create in our first EP. Our self-titled was more complex and thought out musically, and we are really proud of the outcome!
J-14: How do you think you've evolved as a band since you guys got together?
Andy: Without a doubt, we have matured immensely as individuals and as a band since we first got together. We have learned so much about touring, writing, friendship, and life in general over the last two years, it's crazy. When we started out, we had no idea what we were doing and didn't have a mentor or another band to learn from. Being from Kansas we were very limited in that sense, so we literally went out and made our way completely on our own. It goes to show that hard work, dedication, and trial and error truly pays off.