The Grammy-nominated rock and roll band Hoobastank will be performing Tuesday, July 31 at The Rock. They have sold over 10 million albums worldwide since they burst onto the scene in 2001 with songs like “Crawling in the Dark,” “Running Away” and “The Reason.” Tucson will be one of final stops for the band before the release of their new album, Fight or Flight on September 11.
In a telephone interview, Hoobastank lead singer Doug Robb said fans can look forward to hearing a lot of new material at the show. “I always thought when you go and see a band play, you want to hear the songs you know, and if they sprinkle in a couple new songs, that’s cool,” said Robb. “We’ve been playing a lot of new songs in our set recently, and it’s been going really well. The reaction and response to the new music has been so awesome that we’re just like, ‘fuck it, we’re gonna keep playing a lot of new songs.’”
Similar to their entire body of work, Fight or Flight, the band’s fifth major release, brings the same powerful rock sound and poignant lyrics listeners of all ages can relate to.
“There’s definitely some cool rifts and guitar-driven music on this record,” said Robb. “And, lyrically, a lot of it is really personal to me, but not so much that it would alienate a listener. A lot of subjects I dabble in are pretty universal. What happens to me in my life isn’t just unique to me, it’s the kind of shit that everybody goes through, and I would like to think it’s the kind of stuff people can hear and relate to.”
Fight or Flight is the first album in which the writing and recording processes were completed with a four-piece band since their 2003 release, The Reason. Robb said that the addition of Jesse Charland aided in the creative and developmental aspects of each song. He noted that the band’s last two records were written as a three piece with Robb himself playing bass.
“This is the first record that he’s (Charland) actually recorded on, was a writer on,” said Robb. “This was the first time since 2003 that we’ve put out music as a four piece, and it feels pretty good.”
He said that while the friend of the band that laid down the bass tracks for the records was very good, having a bassist involved in the writing process allowed for each song to grow and evolve before being recorded.
“I feel like all the songs on this record have lived a little bit of life before they got recorded,” said Robb. “They’ve settled into their own little things, rather than going straight from, you know, right out of the rehearsal studio and onto the CD.”
Listeners can check out the first single from the new record, “This is Gonna Hurt,” on the band’s website, www.hoobastank.com.
UPDATE 7/31/12: The Hoobastank concert at The Rock on Tuesday, July 31 was canceled. The release date for the new album has been set back to September 11.