If you’ve spent any time on Extra Chill, you know that I’m a huge fan of Brand New. I’m not alone, either. Brand New has a huge cult following, and although they have never broken into the mainstream, they continue to sell out shows all over the world. As a member of the cult following, I wanted to delve into that some more and point out some of the reasons why some people like them so much, while others laugh them off as a crappy emo band. If you think they’re a crappy emo band, you just haven’t spent enough time listening to them. But that’s beside the point, and this post should help clear things up a bit.

First of all, their lyrics. I could sit here listing all the Brand New lyrics that have a deep meaning for me, but that would take forever. Jesse Lacey is truly a poet, and his lyrics have gotten me through some of the hardest times in my life, and the same is true for many Brand New fans. I know Vin wrote most of the lyrics for Daisy, and they are good, but I feel that Daisy is more of an instrumentally-driven album, and the lyrics on that album have not had the same impact on me as the lyrics from their first three albums. That’s not to say that I don’t like Daisy, I just wanted to clarify before some of my fellow fans hopped on here to tell me that I don’t know what I’m talking about.

Brand New’s music is all about growing up, experiencing love, loss, and anger when things go horribly wrong. They make you know that you’re not the only one who feels that way, and their fans (including myself) appreciate them dearly for that. There’s just something about their music that speaks directly to those going through dark times, offering assurance that everything is going to be alright in the end. And even if it’s not alright, we can still turn to Brand New for that familiar face-melting guitar coupled with scathing lyrics and screaming perfection. Not to mention Brian’s tight drumming and Garrett’s smooth bass line holding it all together.

Now this brings me to Brand New’s concerts. I have been lucky enough to see them live twice, and each time has been an incredible experience. They really put it all out there on the stage, and you can feel the comradery pulsing through the crowd. The fans are there together, brought together by the music in a way that can only be experienced at a Brand New concert, or at least that I’ve only experienced at a Brand New concert. This also explains why Brand New tickets are so hard to come by – no matter where they’re playing, they seem to sell out within minutes. I’ve personally sat at a computer screen counting down the seconds until the tickets go on sale, only to be told that there were no tickets left, not even a minute after they became available.

With all that being said, I finally want to touch on the possibility of a new album from Brand New this year. It was confirmed in an email a few months back by their label Procrastinate! Music Traitors, and now fans (including myself) desperately await the announcement. Brand New has a special way of building hype that gets all their fans jumping for joy at the slightest sign of life on their social media accounts, little ambiguities sprinkled throughout their lyric books, demo tapes, and everything else about them.

It’s also been hinted by Jesse Lacey on numerous occasions that this upcoming album will be their last, as they have been around for 15 years, and Jesse says he doesn’t feel the same way that he did when he wrote most of his songs. That makes sense, considering he’s currently 37 years old, but it’s bittersweet for his fans. All the more reason to go to as many shows as possible before they call it quits. Die young and save yourself.