Stand Atlantic may seem like an overnight success, but they’re far from it. The pop punk band has spent years grinding it out, slowly building their fanbase with consistent and catchy music. The fact that people still may not know this band in 2023 is blasphemy when they are Blink-182 for Generation Z.
I remember hearing Skinny Dipping for the first time in 2018. I had just moved into my college dorm and heard some buzz about this new band. They were everything the scene needed: fun, youthful, and punk with witty lyrics. They didn’t take themselves too seriously, but they made genuine and honest music. I skateboarded all over campus blasting that record.
Fast forward to Pink Elephant in 2020 – a year otherwise characterized by misery and claustrophobia became significantly less downtrodden. Driving through Rhode Island, windows down, sun on my face, all soundtracked by Pink Elephant made me feel warm on the inside. The world might not have been alright, but in those moments… it was. Upbeat guitars in the major key layered with heavy synths; it was astounding. That record secured its place in my top albums of the year.
Now fresh off the heels of their new album F.E.A.R. and out with a new single, Stand Atlantic is here to prove that they’re not just passing through. I had the amazing chance to talk with Bonnie Fraser about Sad Summer Festival, their tour with The Aquarian‘s friend Mod Sun, new music, and everything in between.
Right off the bat, your new single, “kill(her),” is out now. How are you feeling about it?
Really good, but it kind of feels like a fever dream because it’s been out and I feel like we only just released our record. The whole experience of recording “kill(her)” and then doing the music video… everything went so quick and we did it in such a condensed amount of time that I don’t even feel like it happened. I’m glad it’s out and I’m stoked about the response. I feel like people are really digging it. I’m excited to play it on this upcoming tour.
I was shocked to hear new music was coming so quickly. F.E.A.R. has not even been out a full year yet.
Yeah, I don’t think we thought that through until it was too late. Once it was done we were like, “Damn, did we just release too much music too quick?” [Laughs] We just don’t stop! I don’t know. We took a second away and were like, “Maybe we should just chill for a bit,” but then we’re like “No, let’s keep going. Fuck it.”
It’s exciting because the music never dips in quality. Even with Pink Elephant in 2020, you guys dropped “deathwish” featuring nothing,nowhere. right after that record cycle. You always have this very strong momentum.
Thank you, man. Obviously we’ll never put something out in a rush if we’re not happy with the song. I think the song needs to be strong enough for us to even want to release it to begin with. We’re definitely focused on making sure everything we put out is 100% quality [Laughs]. I sound like a meat salesmen!
I know it may be too early to tell, but is this new single leading up to a record or to an EP, or is it a one and done kind of thing?
I feel like we’re always writing for the next record… always, potentially. Every time we do a single after an album I always have the same answer: “Maybe it will be on the next album..” Sorry it’s a boring answer, but I don’t know.
That’s ok! We’re so excited to see this song live. Your tour with ModSun starts tonight. What’s going through your head there?
I’m excited! The show is sold out. All of the shows have been selling super well. We’re excited to be out with Mod – he is super down-to-Earth and a good dude. It’s going to be good! I feel like we haven’t left the US in a whole year. I feel like we keep coming back here. Always love it – it’s always a fucking weird adventure.
Of course! I feel like with Mod Sun that’s got to be a unique tour because you’re both in this pop punk/emo scene, but each sound very different. It’s a cool lineup.
Yeah, it’s different to things we’ve done before. I don’t think we’ve ever toured with an artist like Mod Sun before. We were surprised he reached out and wanted to have us on the tour! It was awesome and we were very flattered. It’s going to be a good one. I think everyone on the tour is going to be super nice. I haven’t met them all, but I’m just going to assume – fuck it.
[Laughs] Absolutely! Stand Atlantic has been support for a lot of tours. I’ve seen you so many incredible times throughout the years. Early on in your career you have to work to over the crowd – you’re this new band fresh in the pop punk scene and trying to get the crowd’s approval. Now you’ve already established yourselves and you have this massive following. Does the pressure still get to you?
There’s way less pressure when you’re starting out, I feel like you can just be like, “This is who we are. Fuck it. Let’s go,” and win people over. Whereas now it’s like, “Let’s keep doing good and push the bar every time,” so you have to keep one-upping yourself. Even to this day when we did the tour with Pierce the Veil and I Prevail, we had the mindset of, “These are not our fans whatsoever.” It made us go back to our roots and have to win these people over again. It was kind of refreshing and nice. When you’re doing headlines and you play shows, you know people are there to see you. You don’t really have to work as hard to get their approval because like, “Y’all bought tickets!” You can kind of just do whatever. When you’re on an opening slot, it’s different. It was nice to have that refreshing outlook again and work for the new fans.
That tour was insane because that was Pierce the Veil’s reunion tour.
Yeah, it was mad!
I Prevail is one of the biggest bands in the world right now and Pierce the Veil has come back. I can only imagine what that tour was like.
Yeah, it was sick! We were very happy to be doing that tour. Everyone was super sweet, as well. I think that makes a difference; if you’re just having a shit time with the people around you, it’s not good and it’s going to come out in your performance. You’re not going to want to be there. We were happy to be there and we wanted to win over people and prove we deserve to be there, too. Yeah, it was awesome! Fucking sick! We learned a lot.
I know you just said you didn’t think it was your fanbase, but on that new album, you’ve got some heavy moments. You’ve got “Molotov” and “Cabin Fever.” I feel like there’s definitely a bit of that heaviness in Stand Atlantic. It wasn’t totally out of left field.
I feel like that’s kind of our roots. When we started this band – at least for me and Potter – we listened to heavy music all the time. I’d went to a festival in Australia, the one called Hardcore ’08, so it was in 2008, and then there was Hardcore ’09 and whatever. Like we’d go to these festivals and be listening to heavy music all the time. One of my favorite bands is Parkway Drive. We’ve always grown up with that. It’s always influenced us in some way. As I’ve always said from day one, we don’t want to be boxed into any kind of genre because influences are changing all the time. New music is always coming out. You’re going to be influenced by different things. It will always have a moment in your writing and come through in some way.
Since you just talked about Parkway Drive, I want to segue into something a little different… about how you guys are both from Australia. From a third party looking in, Australia has such a strong and vibrant music scene, but not a lot of bands from Australia try to tour the US or tour in the UK like you and Parkway have done. How does it feel to be known around the world?
It’s something I think a lot of Australian bands want and strive for. It’s very hard because it is super expensive. I always say, being from Australia in a band is the same as being from a fucking country town on a worldwide scale. You’re just stuck there and it’s got its own ecosystem, as well, in terms of the industry and stuff. You can make a great living and have a great career just being an Australian band, but that was not something we ever wanted to do so we just pushed and pushed until we didn’t have to do that and we could travel the world. It’s always been what we wanted to do. We feel very lucky, but also we work hard for it.
I love it! You’re right, Australia has such a strong music scene, but is in its own little bubble.
Yeah, it is cool. We’re proud to be repping Australia.
Switching gears a bit to talk about why we’re on this call right now, Sad Summer Fest is happening all summer. It’s going to be crazy. You played the very first Sad Summer when it was still in its baby inception phase.
OG!
Now it’s massive and playing arenas. How are you feeling?
Scared shitless, but so excited. We still think it was one of our favorite tours to date. It was so fun. We never got to play Warped Tour or anything like that so to do a summer festival in the US… obviously it doesn’t have as big a lineup as Warped Tour did, but it’s getting there. It’s an honor and it’s super cool. I’m so glad the first one went well enough to keep going and keep doing it. I’m so glad it’s still around. I hope it’s around for a long time. It’s run very well and it’s a very fun tour to be on. It’s awesome.
It did fill the absence of Warped Tour! All Time Low? Taking Back Sunday? It’s like Warped Tour 2.0!
100% and I think we needed that. We need something! I’m glad it exists – it’s fucking sick!
You covered Taking Back Sunday’s “MakeDamnSure” in 2019. Is it weird to be on tour with them now?
I totally forgot we did that until you just said it! That’s actually mad! That’s such a weird full circle moment. Thank you for reminding me of that! That’s awesome.
Even from the fan’s perspective, I’ve been following your career since your sidewinder EP, so to see you on tour with Taking Back Sunday for years later as support is insane.
It’s an honor. It’s really cool. They’re one of the pioneers from back in the day. We’re very excited to be on tour with them – whether we cover the song or not!
Hey, I’ll be happy to hear the song twice in one night! I don’t care! I’ll be happy!
We can’t do that [Laughs], You don’t mind it, but I feel like Taking Back Sunday would be like, “Why are they playing our song?”
Just make it your closing song sung three times in a row! Here comes “MakeDamnSure” again! [Laughs] Now, with Sad Summer, as mentioned before, it’s in amphitheaters now. Is there a different way that you approach the arenas versus the club shows?
I think in some ways, yes, but at the end of the day we always have the same ethos for our shows, which is as big as the room is, just make it feel intimate, that you and the fans are having this sick moment where you get to know each other a little bit. We will always do that. We just want to be ourselves and make sure people feel super welcome at our shows. Anything fucking goes! If you want to stop the show because some little dickhead in the pit wants to do a shoey mid-song, we will do it. We don’t care. We just want to make sure everyone has as much fun as possible. Anything goes… it makes shit fun and memorable! The fans leave being, “At our show some random kid did a shoey in the pit and they stopped the song,” or something else random happened and it keeps it interesting. You never know what to expect. That’s how we will treat it and always will. Size of the room doesn’t matter. It’s just scarier.
Yeah! It makes a more interpersonal connection with the fans. If you’re talking to the fans throughout the show it’s not this well rehearsed, “Thank you guys for coming out tonight, see you soon.” It adds a bit of flavor to each show.
I feel like we would never be able to do that because my memory is such shit. I would never be able to follow a script.
There was one question I wanted to ask you in 2020 when we last met and I totally forgot.
You’ve been waiting three years?
I’ve been waiting three years! Obviously with your singing style in the studio, you have a lot of grit, a bit of pop punk edge, but you’re also on pitch. It’s like singing but it also has a bit of roughness to it. How did you learn how to do that? How did you perfect that?
Didn’t learn, haven’t perfected, don’t know what I’m doing. It just happens, I’m sorry. It just started happening when I’d sing. There [are] not many female vocalists in our scene. They have heavy screamers, but nothing like really like that. It just felt like a unique little thing, a point of difference, something I haven’t heard before. Let’s just lean into it. Now I just do it and I don’t know what I’m doing. It’s just cool and I like that we do it! I don’t overthink it or I’ll fuck myself up.
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