Interview - All Systems Go

All Systems Go are a band from New Jersey, USA. We spoke to them regarding finally playing a show after a long time out, what their latest music brings and what the future holds for them. 

1. Back in September you released your latest single “The Lowdown” and some would
argue that is your best track yet. What inspired this new track both lyrically & instrumentally?
Matt: Lyrically the song is about harsh truths to people you care about. Without going into too much detail, the main scenario that inspired the song involved telling a friend to stop complaining to me about all their problems and focus on fixing their substance abuse habits first so they could then make better decisions (and not have easily avoidable problems in the first place). This is the kind of thing where I feel like it’s being a bad friend if you let it go on for too long. The song also acknowledges that sometimes these words will go in one ear and out the other, which has happened before as well and can be frustrating. Instrumentally, the song was written around a riff I had that Dean, our late bassist, had dubbed “The Van Halen Riff”, which is what the demo was titled.

2. You recently played a show after a (fairly) long time out. What was that like getting
back up there?
Matt: I’ll be honest, during the day leading up to the show I was nervous, but by the time we plugged in, tuned, and started playing, it felt like it always has. Our show was in Philly and very close to our hometown so the entire set we had the whole crowd singing the words back to us and moving around. It felt like we picked up right where we left off as far as performance goes.
Dick: Honestly, it was electric. It was my first time playing with ASG and honestly, I felt right at home. I definitely have stuff I need to work on, but it's great to play with some of my closest friends and musicians. It was also weird being in the center of the stage, not going to lie.
Joe: It was fun and emotional. It was hard leading up to the day knowing we were going to play our first show since losing Dean. But once we played the first note we fell right back into our routine. The crowd was so supportive and it was a great night!

3. We know that you gave “The Lowdown” a first spin out. What was the live debut like?
Matt: Live the song sounds way more raw, heavy, and punchy than the studio track does. When we got the first mix back of the studio track I remember thinking it was our poppiest sounding song to date - live it sounded exactly like an All Systems Go song does, very hard-hitting.
Dick: Honestly, of the songs I've learned it's probably one of my favorites. For a pop punk tune, it's infectiously groovy. It's really easy to feel tight in the pocket, and there's a lot of cool stuff musically going on in the song.
Joe: It was great! We are so happy with the song, and now we know how much fun it is to perform live. The song has such a great energy and vibe, I really enjoyed playing the drum part live for the first time.

4. Was there any unreleased music that made its live debut?

Matt: Not yet, we have a few demos in the works but our only newly finished track as of late has been The Lowdown.
Joe: Not at this gig, but maybe at a future one!

5. Our best friends in Cheer Up Dusty played with you guys too. Is there a chance of any
collaboration between you guys? Either tour wise or musically?

Matt: From what I understand they’re taking a break for a bit, but we’ve played a handful of shows with them in the past few years. I got to know Justin over the course of the pandemic and his efforts with Dusty actually encouraged my band to keep pushing through the shutdown and keep promoting ourselves as best as we could. We hang out every now and then outside of
music, usually to watch Philly sports games with our friends at a bar.
Dick: Man I wish! I love Justin like a brother and have gotten to know the other guys along the way as well. I would always welcome an opportunity to play with friends, but like Matt said, I'm pretty sure they're taking a break and looking to play a little less often.

6. The Lowdown has been out for a couple of months now. What can we expect from new
music, and when can we expect that?
Matt: You can definitely expect new music within the next year. We’re going to begin focusing on writing again soon and we have several ideas all in the works that we haven’t touched in a bit. We always try to make our records very diverse; I would say The Lowdown (which won’t be on our next record, it’s its own thing) is very middle-ground for what our other demos sound like; there’s lighter stuff and there’s heavier stuff.
Dick: I think you can definitely expect new music! Matt is definitely the dates guy, so whatever he says is probably the closest estimate. As far as what to expect, I'm thinking at least for bass that it'll be a little different. Dean is and was a wonderful bass player, and the way I approach the instrument is a lot different. The guys and I only have a handful of bands in common that we like, so I definitely think that at minimum bass will sound a little different.

7. What is the plan for the next 12 months of ASG?
Matt: We’d like to get back into the studio to record our next EP at some point in the spring or summer. We had a great time recording The Lowdown at Sound Acres with Gary Cioni, who plays guitar in Crime in Stereo and has worked with bands like Hot Mulligan and Free Throw. I think we’re also going to be doing a few tours and show swaps throughout the year. That’s
basically how we kicked off 2023 and we had a lot of fun planning our show schedule that way.
Joe: We’re looking to build on the momentum of The Lowdown, continue to develop our sound, and get back to a full performing schedule!