We The Kings, Mayday Parade hope Valley fans will take action

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Imagine working 349 days out of the year. Sound impossible? Exhausting? Insane? Tell that to emo pop band We the Kings. In 2008, the Florida-based band played 349 shows; last year they played 310. They show no sign of stopping.

“I think this year we’re going to try to beat our 2008 record of shows, which means we’re going to try and play multiple shows a day — whatever we can do to beat that record,” said lead singer Travis Clark in a recent phone interview.

The hard work has definitely paid off. The band’s determination and their relationship with their fans landed their self-titled debut at No. 1 on Billboard’s New Alternative Album sales chart. This summer, the group is scheduled to headline the Warped Tour, and even got Disney darling Demi Lovato to lend vocals on their new album Smile Kid :). These days, it’s definitely good to be king.

THE TAKE ACTION TOUR
WITH: We The Kings, Mayday Parade, A Rocket To The Moon, Stereo Skyline
WHEN: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16. Doors open at 6 p.m.
WHERE: Las Palmas Event Center, 500 E. Hackberry, McAllen
COST: $16.50
BUY: www.ez-tixx.com

“It’s a dream come true, a surreal moment,” said Clark about the band’s success. “The record is just moving so much faster; it’s almost too fast for us because we’re not used to it.”

Currently, the band is touring with Hopeless Records/Sub City’s 10th annual Take Action Tour. Each year, the tour chooses a charity to which they donate a percentage of ticket profits and album sales. This time around, the tour has chosen Patrick Pedraja’s Driving for Donors project.

Fourteen-year-old Pedraja, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, drives across the country with his family to help sign up donors to the National Marrow Registry.

On Tuesday, Feb. 16, the tour will stop at the Las Palmas Events Center with opening acts Mayday Parade, A Rocket to the Moon, There For Tomorrow and Stereo Skyline. The National Marrow Registry will be present at the venue to sign up people between the ages of 18 and 61. All it takes is a simple swab of the cheek to register.

“The tour is special because this is the first time that us, as We The Kings, have been able to use our success to help a charity and help save lives,” said Clark.

But the group is no stranger to charity work. Having worked with Invisible Children, an Ugandan children’s charity, and To Write Love On Her Arms, which deals with suicide prevention, the band was glad to be involved in furthering a cause. All four members have already had their cheeks swabbed for the National Marrow Registry.

“It felt good. It took 10 minutes and hardly any effort and that could potentially go to helping save somebody’s life if we are a perfect match for someone who needs help.”

On using Twitter, Myspace and YouTube to keep in touch with fans:

It’s the No. 1 thing on our priority list — to keep in contact with our friends and fans through the Internet, because they’re the people that made us everything we are and everything we have is because of them. We try as much as possible to give back. For a lot of our fans, it would make their life if you give them a Twitter response or post a new song on MySpace. We try as much as we can to make dreams come true, and I think it’s definitely easier now because you can get to more people through the Internet versus before with all these different sites. You had to write letters. It definitely helps, but for us it’s just one way we can help spread our name, We The Kings, and help kids spread our name as well to keep continually growing and progressing.

On their recently released Smile Kid:)

On this record there are definitely the songs that are “Check Yes Juliet 2.0” and “Secret Valentine 2. 0” — like all the singles from the first one done in the same light. And then there are songs that are a little different — “Promise The Stars” or “In And out” — that have bells and whistles and strings and everything added into it to make it sound larger than life. I wanted this record mainly to sound like a movie soundtrack — almost like you could listen to the first track all the way to the last track without having to skip a song.  And the way it made you feel was like you were almost watching a movie – that dynamic.

On recording with Disney sensation Demi Lovato on the track “We’ll Be A Dream”:

The whole song is about these two kids who are growing up trying to figure out what they want to be when they grow up and seeing if they’re going to live their dreams. So when I wrote this song, it sounded like it needed a female vocal and she had been a friend of mine for a while and she was a fan of the band. I asked her if she wanted to be part of the record. She was so stoked about it and just started giggling on the phone, which was awesome. And when she went into record it, her voice is so crazy good, it gave everybody goose bumps who listened to the track. For me that’s when I know I have a good song, when you listen to it and it literally gives you goose bumps and takes your breath away because of how beautiful the song is.

On what fans can expect from their live shows:

We put everything we absolutely make, everything done that goes into our band fund we put back into touring, because I think that’s important. Like when we would go to shows, they always made us want to go back to go see another show if the band really put in the time and effort and the money into really putting on a good show.

On playing in the Rio Grande Valley:

The very first time we went, we played with Boys Like Girls. It was such a cool show because the kids were so excited. It was almost like going to see a different country because we never go down there. So I’m obviously excited to play in places we haven’t been before or haven’t visited much.

Mayday Parade

Mayday Parade are no strangers to the Valley. With several shows in McAllen under their belts, the Tallahassee, Fla.-based quartet returns Feb. 16, but this time they’re rocking for a cause as part of Hopeless Records/Sub City’s annual Take Action Tour.

Vocalist Derek Sander said the group is happy to support an effort by raising awareness through their music.

“The great thing about the Take Action Tour is that it brings people together for a good cause!” said Sander on the Take Action Tour Web site. “We’re happy to be able to use our music in a positive way, and we are excited to tour with a bunch of great bands.”

The group recently released their major label debut Anywhere But Here in October and saw chart success when the album made the Billboard Top 200.

Mayday Parade also includes bassist Jeremey Lenzo, lead guitarist Alex Garcia, rhythm guitarist Brook Betts and drummer Jake Bundrick.

The group, who previously toured with All Time Low, spent much of their off-time writing more than 50 songs for the new record and worked with Paramore and Underoath producer David Bendeth. Their song “Get Up” was recently featured on NBC’s late night Winter Olympic spots.

A Rocket To The Moon

Last in town supporting Cobra Starship, A Rocket to the Moon will land in McAllen again to support Driving for Donors.

Drummer Andrew Cook said his first encounter with Take Action was back in 2002 when the band Thursday was a part of the tour. Cook says he was moved by the effort to bring awareness to issues like suicide prevention.

“I felt like I was a part of something bigger by simply being there, like my dollar was not just going into someone’s pocket who promoted the show,” said Cook on the Take Action Tour Web site.

The group released On Your Side on Fueled By Ramen and Pete Wentz’s label Decaydence Records in October — an album that took only 17 days to record.

The Massachusetts group has had stints on MTV’s Total Request Live, The Warped Tour and Bamboozle.

There For Tomorrow

Orlando-Fla.-based There For Tomorrow were formed in 2003. Comprised of vocalist/guitarist Maika Maile, guitarist Christian Climer, bassist Jay Enriquez and drummer Chris Kamrada, the band started off playing radio station showcases.

Influenced by Jimmy Eat World, Blink 182 and The Hives, the quartet has opened for AFI and Taking Back Sunday.

The group also joined the Warped Tour. Their brand of pop punk got them an MTVU Woodie Award for breakout artist of the year. Their cover of Omarion’s “Ice Box” sounds like it could fit right on their latest album, A Little Faster, which was released last summer.

Stereo Skyline

Up-and-comers Stereo Skyline from Long Island, N.Y. have a sound so bubblegum you’ll get a cavity with one listen. The power pop trio, formed in 2006, has gone through several lineup changes throughout the years, finally settling on band members Kevin Bard, Rob Michaelsen and Brian Maddox.

The band takes pride in their catchy pop and embrace the optimism in their music.

“If we are having fun singing it, you should have fun hearing it,” said Bard on the band’s official MySpace page. “There is just too much negative music floating around.”

The group is currently working on their first full-length album but fans looking to see what Stereo Skyline are about can listen to their self-titled EP for a taste of their ear candy. With sugary, synth-driven pop songs, the band will, without a doubt, keep their female fans’ hearts thumping. Find out more about Stereo Skyline at www.myspace.com/stereoskyline.

Crystal Olvera covers live music for Festiva. You can reach her at (956) 683-4427 or at colvera@themonitor.com.