For most people, the sheer notion of turning 30 can, frankly, be scary as hell.
It’s something about those round numbers. They tend to put the fear of God in some of us, give us some serious wisdom in our head, all while putting the previous decade squarely in the rear-view mirror. You’re older, wiser, and much more in tune with your life preferences. You do things differently than you did in your 20s; not necessarily better or worse — just different.
For Into It. Over It. frontman Evan Weiss, that feeling of realization on what the songwriting process should be has been the impetus behind the writing of his band’s new album, Standards.
“I think this record is more about relapsing all of the things from the last record that I don’t like about writing music,” Weiss tells Vanyaland in advance of Into It. Over It’s show tonight at Royale in Boston. “I stopped writing more about the things that I hate and more about enjoying myself. When I was writing 52 Weeks, I was really enjoying myself, and with the record I’m enjoying myself again but with a whole new skill set. I think that’s more of the confidence you get after you turn 30. You kind of don’t give a shit anymore, and do a little bit of what you want.”
Throughout the record though, that age of 30 is weaved throughout the album’s dozen tracks. Opening track “Open Casket” makes reference to Weiss’s friends being both hungover and divorced (“torched their 20s like it’s kerosene”) and lead single “No EQ” directly references hitting one’s third decade.
“We had played a show at Signal Kitchen in Burlington and at the time of the show we had been looking and thinking about where we could write the record,” Weiss says. “We were thinking about Wisconsin and Tennessee, We thought we’d maybe go to Wyoming, or somewhere really isolated. And so we had played that show at Signal Kitchen and we had never been to Burlington. Like, I had never physically been there and we just fell in love with it.”
He adds: “We were like, ‘The food’s really good, the people are all really nice, the weather’s kind of right up our alley. This is the right place.’ So, we finish the show and I talk with the promoter about where we wanted to write the record. It just seemed like kismet. Here I am just falling in love with this place, and someone asks us what we’re doing here, I tell him what we want to do, and they have the thing, like ready, for us to do it.”
After the mountainous escape of Vermont, it was off to the Golden State for Weiss and company to put Standards to tape at San Francisco’s Tiny Telephone Studios with producer John Vanderslice, who had previously worked with indie darlings like Spoon, Mountain Goats, and Death Cab For Cutie. With the album finished and in the hands and earbuds of their fans the time to tour for Into It. Over It. is at hand. The album’s bigger sound give the band some new tricks up their sleeve.
“I really love playing ‘No EQ’,” Weiss says. “We played it a lot on the last tour and it’s just really fun to play. I’m really looking forward to playing ‘Anesthetic.’ I think there’s a really cool vibe there. I’n really looking forward to playing ‘Required Reading’. That’s going to be a trip. It’s going to be fun to play most of the new record.”
Also to be expected is the great opening bands that adorn the rest of the bill tonight. The World is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid To Die are returning to the city, along with The Sidekicks and critical darlings Pinegrove. Sharing a Boston stage with The World Is A Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die isn’t a new experience for Into It. Over It., as the two bands played the Sinclair in Cambridge with A Great Big Pile of Leaves back in 2014.
Weiss even played a very small solo show at Kendall Square’s Firebrand Saints last November.
“Every time we’ve played the Sinclair has been memorable for us,” Weiss said. “I kind of still can’t believe that we’re all big enough to play a place like the Royale. I’ve done some other really cool basement shows in Allston, too.”
INTO IT. OVER IT. + THE WORLD IS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE AND I AM NO LONGER AFRAID TO DIE + THE SIDEKICKS + PINEGROVE :: Thursday, April 21 at Royale, 279 Tremont St. in Boston, MA :: 6:30 p.m., all ages $20 day of show :: Bowery event page :: Advance tickets