From being on Warped Tour and opening for Good Charlotte and Sleeping With Sirens, the band Waterparks is really making an impact on the pop-punk music scene.
They recently just released their first a studio album, Double Dare, and are now currently traveling the country on their first headlining tour. Fans are loving the young band, selling out almost every date on the tour.
We got a chance to talk with the blue-haired lead singer, Awsten Knight, and chat about the album and touring.
You guys started out as a small band from Texas, and you toured with some of the biggest bands. How does it feel?
It’s a relief! We worked for some years burning CDs/printing flyers and passing them out at every show that would roll through, and after doing that as well as self-managing/booking/etc so heavily for so long, it makes you start to question if what you’re doing is actually good enough. Now that stuff has picked up for us, it’s reassuring that we’re doing something right. It’s also fun because my parents don’t ask me when I’m going back to school anymore!
You guys toured with Good Charlotte, Sleeping With Sirens, and were on Warped Tour. What did you learn from the experiences? How did it help you prepare for your own tour?
As far as attendance, those tours feel like we have training wheels on because we knew people would be there. When they pitched a headliner to us, I was like, “oh god what??” because it felt like our mama bird just pushed us out on our own. It was like, “WELP, I HOPE SOMEONE SHOWS UP OR WE’RE GONNA RUN OUT OF GAS AND DIE POOR IN THE STREETS.”
Who do you look to influence wise when you write music?
Musically, pop for the most part. Writing pop songs and then applying them to a band is my favorite thing to do. Lyrically, I never want us to be too low brow or anything, and I like how rappers can get way specific and shit on people or make things very specific and uncomfortable, and I’m way about that. As long as it makes you feel the way The Beach Boys do.
What’s your favorite part about being a touring musician?
Honestly, the only thing I really love about touring is the shows. Playing shows, especially on this tour, is easily the best part of going out because we get to watch packed rooms of people going off to what we’re doing. The more active the crowd is, the more fun the shows are for me; a lot of nights I care about how they’re being more than my own actual performance haha.
Do you have a standout memory from tour? (any tour, just a memory that sticks out in your mind)
I played a set on the Sleeping with Sirens tour with a foot and a half long dildo in my skinny jeans against my left leg.
Have fans started giving you gifts yet? If so, what’s the most memorable one?
They’ve been bringing us stuff since they first tour! Seriously, they rule so much. There’s always a lot of sick art and stuff. Also people bring us gift cards all the time, which is way way, way, way, way helpful on the road. My favorite thing someone ever brought us was the gift of life.
How has fan reception been since releasing your debut album, Double Dare?
Best album. Best band. Best singles. Best hair. Best band. Buy our album.
Double Dare is out now!
