Simple Plan and New Found Glory prove Pop Punk’s Still Not Dead with an upcoming summer tour

This summer is about to get a lot more pop-punk.

Are you interested?

Of course, you are!

On Tuesday (Feb. 11), Simple Plan announced plans to embark on a summertime outing with their friends New Found Glory for the first time ever. Yes, the first time ever.

“It’s finally happening. It took almost 20 years, but we are stoked to announce that we are heading out on a US tour this summer for the 1st time ever with our friends New Found Glory,” the Canadian band posted on social media.

“We’ll be bringing Knuckle Puck as our special guests, so you know it’s gonna be RAD.”

Accompanying the message to fans is a two-minute clip staring Simple Plan frontman Pierre Bouvier (sporting an NFG shirt) and New Found Glory vocalist Jordan Pundik (rocking a Simple Plan shirt). The duo “run into each other” and start a very awkward conversation, where they discuss the impact of each other’s music.

In the end, they just decide that it would be cool if the two bands decide to head out on tour together (because what’s more pop-punk than that?).

It’s finally happening!! It took almost 20 years, but we are stoked to announce that we are heading out on a US tour this summer for the 1st time ever with our friends @newfoundglory! We’ll be bringing @KnucklePuckIL as our special guests so you know it’s gonna be RAD! 🤘🏻⚡️🤘🏻 pic.twitter.com/y48kyNU2bi

— Simple Plan (@simpleplan) February 11, 2020

Dubbed the “Pop Punk’s STILL Not Dead” tour, the trek will find the three bands performing at venues across the country in May and June. The 19-stop tour includes gigs in Atlanta, New York, Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, Denver, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Dallas, and more.

The early summer excursion begins on May 29 at Jannus Live! in St. Petersburg, Florida, and concludes a month later on June 28 at Stubb’s in Austin.

Ticket pre-sales are currently available so long as you use the code PPND.

The bands are also offering special “Very Important Pizza” VIP packages if you feel like dropping a little bit of extra dough (get it?).

General ticket sales begin this Friday, Feb. 14.

On Monday, New Found Glory announced plans to unleash a brand new studio album later this year. Titled Forever + Ever x Infinity, their tenth studio effort is due out May 29 through Hopeless Records.

As for Simple Plan, if they’re hitting the road this summer, then that probably means we should expect some new tunes soonish. Until then, we will just keep rocking some old-school SP.

New Found Glory announce ‘From the Screen to Your Stereo to Your Town’ summertime tour

New Found Glory is ready to take their film-centric covers albums from the screen to the stereo to your local concert venue. On Tuesday (Jan. 29), the Florida-founded band announced plans to embark on a United States-based tour in the summer.

Dubbed the From the Screen to Your Stereo to Your Town tour, the trek will find the group touring around the country during the months of May, June, and July. The upcoming excursion will include stops in major cities including stops in Atlanta, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Boston, Cleveland, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and more.

The 34-stop jaunt begins on May 30 at the Music Farm in Charleston and concludes a month and a half later at Revolution Live in New Found Glory’s quasi-hometown of Fort Lauderdale.

According to New Found Glory’s post on Instagram, their set will include “songs from our upcoming brand new movie cover EP From the Screen to Your Stereo 3 plus, of course, all the other fan favorite jams from all our records.”

Real Friends, The Early November, and Doll Skin are set to open for New Found Glory throughout the trek.

“You’ve waited long enough! 2019 is here and New Found Glory are coming to a town near you! We bring you the From the Screen to Your Stereo to Your Town Tour!” writes New Found Glory on their official Instagram account.

“Beyond stoked to announce that we’re hanging with New Found Glory, The Early November, and Doll Skin this summer,” writes opening act Real Friends on their official Instagram account.

Pre-sale tickets and super fan bundles are currently available for purchase here.

The From the Screen to Your Stereo to Your Town tour is in support of the latest addition to New Found Glory’s From the Screen to Your Stereo covers series. The forthcoming release is due out May 3 through Hopeless Records. Pre-order information for the impending release is still pending but will probably change within the upcoming days.

Part three will include “Cups” from “Pitch Perfect,” “This is Me” from “The Greatest Showman,” “Let It Go” from “Frozen,” and more.

FROM THE SCREEN TO YOUR STEREO TO YOUR TOWN TOUR DATES:

May 30 – Charleston, SC – The Music Farm
May 31 – Atlanta, GA – Heaven at The Masquerade
June 2 – Franklin, TN – Liberty Hall at The Factory*
June 4 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground
June 5 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa
June 6 – Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Soundstage
June 7 – Philadelphia, PA – Franklin Music Hall
June 8 – Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
June 9 – Boston, MA – House of Blues
June 11 – New York, NY – Playstation Theater
June 12 – Buffalo, NY – Town Ballroom
June 14 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues
June 15 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall**
June 16 – Detroit, MI – St. Andrew’s Hall
June 18 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
June 19 – St. Louis, MO – Delmar Hall
June 21 – Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theater
June 22 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
June 23 – Chicago, IL – Concord Music Hall
June 25 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
June 26 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
June 27 – Salt Lake City, UT – Union Event Center
June 29 – Berkeley, CA – The UC Theatre
June 30 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
July 2 – Los Angeles, CA – The Belasco Theater
July 3 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
July 5 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues
July 6 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren
July 8 – Dallas, TX – Gas Monkey Live!
July 9 – Austin, TX – Emo’s Austin
July 10 – Houston, TX – House of Blues
July 11 – New Orleans, LA – House of Blues
July 13 – Lake Buena Vista, FL – House of Blues
July 14 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Revolution Live

* – BreakFEST
** – No The Early November

All Time Low, Silverstein, New Found Glory lead first wave of Slam Dunk 2019 bands

The new year hasn’t even started, but one music festival is already getting ahead of the curve by announcing their first wave of artists. On Wednesday (Oct, 17), the United Kingdom’s Slam Dunk Festival formally unveiled the first set of musicians who will head across the pond during the final weekend of May 2019.

All Time Low, NOFX, New Found Glory, and Silverstein are just some of the eight bands confirmed for the music festival.

“There’s been a bit of an ATL drought in the U.K. recently, so we thought it best to come back,” frontman Alex Gaskarth said about the band’s return to the Slam Dunk stage. Previously performing at the 2013 incarnation of the two-day event, All Time Low aren’t the only Slam Dunk Festival veterans returning next year.

Florida-based pop-punk rockers New Found Glory last hit the festival’s stage in 2010 while Canadians Silverstein last performed at Slam Dunk in 2009.

“We are excited to be returning to the U.K. in 2019 for the next installment of Slam Dunk,” the Ontario-founded band said in a joint statement.

“We originally played the festival way back in 2009 and have been looking forward to doing it again. Expect a jam-packed set of old and new material.”

In addition to the returning bands, the lineup will also include Waterparks, Mad Caddies, local hardcore punkers Gallows, and Story of the Year.

Story of the Year’s inclusion on the lineup comes a year after the group released their first post-hiatus album, Wolves.

“We are crazy stoked for Slam Dunk, especially since we haven’t been to the UK in ages,” said Story of the Year guitarist Ryan Phillips.

“We’re itching to get over there and jam some tracks from our latest album, Wolves.”

Tickets for Slam Dunk Festival 2019 go on sale this Friday, Oct. 19, at 9 a.m. local time.

The weekend-long music festival will take place on Saturday, May 25 and Sunday, May 26. The first day of the festival will take place at its new Leeds home of Temple Newsam Park while the second day will place at Hatfield Park in Hertfordshire.

SLAM DUNK 2019 FIRST WAVE:

All Time Low
NOFX
New Found Glory
Waterparks
Story of the Year
Gallows
Mad Caddies
Silverstein

William Ryan Key announces release of debut solo EP

WILLIAM RYAN KEY Photo credit: Ryan Mendez

When Yellowcard officially called it quits a year ago, former vocalist William Ryan Key made it known that he wasn’t about to let the breakup keep him from making new music. Since the band’s final show in March of 2017, the musician has been busy putting together his debut album and now it looks like fans should expect it before the month is over.

On Thursday (May 10), Key confirmed the release of his debut, solo album. Titled THIRTEEN, the five-song EP is set to be released on May 25 via The Lone Tree Recordings. The record was co-produced by Arun Bali of Saves the Day at his studio, The Lone Tree Recordings. Pre-orders for THIRTEEN are currently available on Key’s website here.

The record’s first single, “Vultures,” is due out next Friday, May 18. According to Key, it was the first song he wrote for the album and the one he thinks will bridge the sound fans have come to expect from Yellowcard and the sound he is trying to achieve on his solo material.

 

“‘Vultures’ was the first song written and recorded for Thirteen,” he explains in a press release. “I feel like it is the right song to help fans across the bridge from old to new, as well as introduce people who are new to my music to the sound.”

In support of THIRTEEN’s release, Key will hit the road alongside New Found Glory for their Sick Tour 2018. The tour will officially begin on May 17 at the House of Blue in Lake Buena Vista, Florida and conclude a little over a month later on June 22 at the House of Blues in Dallas. Not only will Key perform his new material, he will also play guitar during New Found Glory’s sets.

“It’s such an amazing opportunity to be able to share my first work as a solo artist with fans on a tour of this magnitude,” Key said about the upcoming tour. “It’s also super special for me that it happens to be with some of the best people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing throughout my musical journey.”

Prior to the tour’s kick off, Key and New Found Glory will join fellow Florida-founded act Dashboard Confessional for the “#ParklandStrong: A Concert Benefiting Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School” benefit concert. The show will take place on May 16 at the Pompano Beach Amphitheatre in Pompano Beach, Florida. Both Dashboard Confessional and Key will perform “intimate acoustic sets” while it New Found Glory will perform a normal, full set.

The full list of upcoming tour dates can be found here while the track listing for THIRTEEN can be found below.

THIRTEEN TRACK LIST:

1. “Old Friends”
2. “Vultures”
3. “Form and Figure”
4. “Thirty Days”
5. “Great Unknown”

New Found Glory, Dashboard Confessional to headline Parkland benefit concert

While the country, and much of the world, is still reeling from the senseless shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., those in the South Florida community have made it their mission to come together and help those victims any way they can. On Wednesday (Feb. 28), local rock radio station 104.3 The Shark announced how they intend to help the victims of the shooting and it includes the healing power of music. Taking to social media, the radio station and its hosts announced a concert to benefit the Broward Education Foundation Victim’s Fund.

Titled “#ParklandStrong: A Concert Benefiting Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School,” the show will bring together several rock musicians who call the southern part of Florida home. Headlining the springtime show will be New Found Glory who not only call the Parkland area home, but are also MSD alums.

In a Twitter post, the band writes: “As some of you may or may not know, half of our band went to MSD, so it is important to us that we do as much as we possibly can to help the school and families of the victims. They deserve our love, support, and help and we will help in any way we can. We have decided that in an effort to help raise funds for those impacted by the events at MSD and to honor the victims and heroes, NFG will be playing a benefit show at Pompano Beach Amphitheater on May 16.”

Also performing at the benefit will be Dashboard Confessional (who call Boca Raton home) and former Yellowcard vocalist William Ryan Key (who calls Jacksonville home). Both Dashboard Confessional and Key will reportedly perform “intimate acoustic sets” while it appears New Found Glory will perform a normal, full set.

As New Found Glory posted in their open letter to fans, the show will take place on Saturday, May 16, at the Pompano Beach Amphitheater in Pompano Beach. Tickets for the benefit show will go on sale beginning this Monday, March 5, at 10 a.m. local time here. Tickets will cost $25 each with 100 percent of the proceeds going directly to the fund.

The show will be all ages with door opening at 5 p.m. and the show beginning an hour later at six.

Last week, local Fort Lauderdale concert venue Revolution Live held their own concert benefit for the victims of the shooting. Pop star Austin Mahone, DJ-duo Jack and Jack, and 20 others artists performed at the show.

New Found Glory confirms release of ‘Makes Me Sick’

A couple of months and cryptic messages later, New Found Glory has finally confirmed the title and release date for their brand new album. On Wednesday (Jan. 25), the Florida-founded band announced that their ninth studio album will be titled Makes Me Sick. The new record is set to be released on April 28 through Hopeless Records.

“Lyrically, this album looks at our culture and where we’re at—even in ourselves. We live in a place where people, ourselves included, spend so much time pointing the finger at others. They point at everything else they want to fix with the world, but they never really point at themselves,” guitarist Chad Gilbert explained to Alternative Press in a recent interview.

“This album is more vulnerable, but it’s a different kind of vulnerability and honesty than our other records. Musically, we’ve found this sort of freedom because of our fans and their loyalty to us over the years. We use this juxtaposition between our most accountable lyrics and our most fun music.”

In addition to the new album confirmation, the band has also announced that the first single off of the record will be titled, “Happy Being Miserable.” According to the band’s social media accounts, the music video for the track will premiere on Thursday, Feb. 16. On their official Twitter, the group posted an image of a table with four chairs, four pies, and a sign reading “New Found Glory Bake Off & Pie Eat.”

Back in December of 2016, New Found Glory announced plans to hit the road in the spring of 2017 to celebrate their 20th anniversary. Titled the “20 Years of Pop-Punk” tour, the North American leg of the trek will kick off on March 22 at the Soundstage in Baltimore and wrap up a month and a half later on May 12 at Revolution Live in the band’s hometown(ish) of Ft. Lauderdale, FL. During the excursion, the band will play selected albums in full. Those records include everything from 1999’s Nothing Gold Can Stay to 2009’s Not Without A Fight. The full list of tour dates can be found here.

Makes Me Sick will be the follow-up to the group’s 2014 release, Resurrection. Back in 2015, they re-released the album as Resurrection: Ascension which featured two new studio tracks, two reworked tracks including a newer (but not better) version of “Vicious Love,” and three acoustic tracks.

Bands join forces for Orlando compilation

Following the horrific Pulse Nightclub shooting, musicians have gathered to help support the victims/families of the shooting and the city of Orlando however they can. Panic! at the Disco held a blood drive and released a limited edition t-shirt with all proceeds being donate. PVRIS and Beartooth did the same by releasing limited edition t-shirts while You Blew It!, who call Orlando home, released an EP benefiting Center Orlando, an LGBT center providing counseling in the wake of the shooting.

On Friday (June 17), it was announced that a slew of artists have joined forces to release a compilation titled Forever Beautiful: A Collection Of Love For Orlando. The record will feature a total of 49 bands with all proceeds from the release going directly to the OneOrlando fund; the fund created to assist those who were victims of the shooting. Bands like  Taking Back Sunday, Real Friends, New Found Glory, Modern Baseball, Allison Weiss, Knuckle Puck, Foxing, Bad Religion, Somos, Anthony Green, You Blew It!, Into It. Over It., Pity Sex, Pinegrove, the Menzingers, Citizen, Thin Lips, Sorority Noise, Tiny Moving Parts, Turnover, Anti Flag, Tigers Jaw, Basement, and more are featured on the massive album. 

“This compilation is a love letter to the community of Orlando, FL. Following the tragic events at Pulse Nightclub on June 12th, we wanted to show our support and love for our LGBTQ community the best way we knew how; through music,” begins a collective statement from all the contributing artists.

“The tracks on this album were all individually contributed by the bands and artists themselves; artists from Orlando, New York, California, England, and all over the globe. All proceeds from this compilation will be donated to support the victims of the Pulse shooting as part of the OneOrlando Fund as a symbol of solidarity as our city rebuilds. The price of this album is whatever amount you would like to donate to this cause.”

The compilation can be found here. If you want to help out and donate directly to OneOrlando, that link can be found here.

Simple Plan Drop New Song Featuring New Found Glory’s Jordan Pundik

With less than a week until the release of their highly anticipated new album, Simple Plan have returned with another new song from Taking One for the Team. On Sunday (Feb. 14), the Canadian group joined forces with Alternative Press to debut “Farewell.” “Farewell” features vocals from New Found Glory’s Jordan Pundik and is one of the tracks the band had teased on Instagram last week.

“‘Farewell’ is one of the last songs we wrote and recorded for our new album ‘Taking One For The Team’ and definitely a favorite for us!” the band reveals in a statement to Alternative Press. “It combines a lot of classic, old-school, pop-punk vibes, with some more modern influences from all of the newer bands coming into the scene. We really love that post-chorus melody with the awesome guitar riff Jeff plays and the breakdown drum beat—it’s heavy but so catchy! One of the highlights of this album is having our good friend Jordan from New Found Glory make an appearance on this track. He sounds so good singing that second verse; the melody suits him perfectly, and it sounds rad and exciting when he comes in for his part. He really killed it, and we’re proud to have him sing with us. Lyrically, at first glance, this feels like a straight up, bittersweet breakup song, and in a way it is, but while we were writing it, we were also channeling a lot of different emotions and there’s a second hidden, deeper meaning to every line that relates to being in a band. We’ll let you guys figure that one out!”

“Farewell” is the latest song the band has released from their fifth studio album, Taking One for the Team. The new song will join previously released tracks “BOOM!,” “I Don’t Wanna Go to Bed,” “I Don’t Wanna Be Sad,” and “Opinion Overload.” Taking One for the Team is set to be released this upcoming Friday, Feb. 19. Pre-orders for the new album are still ongoing, so those who pre-order now will get instant downloads of all the singles including “Farewell.”

So What?! Music Festival Unveil More Artists for 2016

The So What?! Music Festival just keeps getting bigger and better. A little under a month since their last update, the folks behind So What?! have unveiled a large list of artists taking the stage at the weekend-long show in March of 2016. Back in October, it was announced that acts like New Found Glory, Bayside, Being As An Ocean, Emery, Saosin featuring Anthony Green on vocals, and more would be making their way to Grand Prairie for the tenth annual event.

Before that, The Devil Wears Prada, Beartooth, and the recently reunited Underoath had been confirmed for the festival as well. On Tuesday (Dec. 1), festival organizers did not hold back, announcing a lineup that will make any pop-punk fan want to book a hotel and plane ride to Grand Prairie during that weekend in March.

Instead of us listing all the acts that will be playing at So What?! Music Festival, we’ll just tell you to look at the lineup below, because we’re pretty much stoked (even though we probably won’t be making it) for the festival.

And to think, “third announcement more TBA” means more acts will be announced soon.

The So What?! Music Festival is scheduled to take place during the weekend of March 19-20, 2016 at the QuikTrip Park in Grand Prairie, TX. Tickets for the weekend festivities are currently on sale, so if you have the time and the cash, now might be a good time to get them.

Paramore Announce Second Annual PARAHOY! Cruise Lineup

All aboard the second annual PARAHOY! cruise.

On Wednesday (Oct. 28), Paramore announced the lineup for the second voyage of their now-beloved cruise. Taking to Facebook, the band posted a video revealing the 2016 lineup. The video features frontwoman Hayley Williams (and her pooch, Alf) pulling out a notebook and writing the names of the acts joining Paramore on the four-day trip.

Heading out on the Caribbean cruise alongside Paramore will be X Ambassadors, LIGHTS, mewithoutYou, Vacationer, New Found Glory, and CHVRCHES. The announcement that CHVRCHES will be joining the trio on the cruise comes a couple of hours after footage of Williams joining the Scottish trio on stage for their song “Bury It” in Nashville surfaced.

The four-day excursion will kick-off in our hometown (and New Found Glory’s, kind of) of Miami on March 5, 2016. From Miami, they will head to Cozumel, Mexico and then return to the port in Miami on March 9, 2016. Sadly, tickets for the cruise have been sold out since May, but there is a silver-lining. The band announced there is currently a wait list going on the PARAHOY! website for those who might want to test their luck a little bit.

The inaugural PARAHOY! cruise took place back in March of 2014. Due to the band’s full touring schedule earlier this year, the group wasn’t able to bring their touring fun to the high seas.