Exclusive: Last Call Interview

Hailing from Last Vegas, Last Call is a band doing things their way, the honest way. With their third EP now out in the wild, I talked with the band's drummer, Adam, about their past, present, and future. Make sure to grab Stay On The Outside, out now on Mightier Than Sword Records, and let us know what you think!

For the record, can you state your name and role in Last Call?

Adam: My name is Adam Blasco. I play drums, and do some vocals in Last Call

So the new EP, Stay On The Outside, has been out since early August - how've you felt the reception has been so far?

Adam: 
Yeah, the record came out August 2 on Mightier Than Sword, and so far, the reception has been overwhelmingly positive. We've gained a ton of new fans, and I think that the old fans have been very into Stay On The Outside, which is awesome. We've had a lot more people on our side, pushing and promoting the record, than we've ever had before, or that I think we were even expecting. Both Buddy & RJ at Mightier Than Sword and Mike at Earshot Media, and a bunch of others have been amazing! We've done one three-week tour since the record came out, which was pretty awesome. Right now, we're getting ready to embark on our first US tour, which starts in Pennsylvania. It's really awesome to see people in places that we've never even come close to hitting that are really psyched to see us this fall. Kind of surreal, actually. haha.

The lyrics on the EP seem to be very personal and heartfelt, can you tell us a little more about the EP's title and meanings behind the songs in general?

Adam: 
We've said a million times that we write our music for us, and for nobody else. I know it sounds really cliche, but everything we do, we feel is the best depiction of where we were, both individually and as a band, at that time. We signed to Mightier Than Sword in the Fall of 2010, and began writing for this EP around the same time. We wrote Disconnected, and it became one of our favorites for this record. About a month before we went into the studio, we scrapped over half of the songs we had written. This added a lot of stress to this release, but they were songs that we felt weren't a good enough depiction of Last Call. So, probably a week before the studio, I had a lyric that was ... so I'll stay on the outside... and I was just singing it over and over during a practice, and somehow it worked into what was then the pre-chorus. When we were in the studio, that line was such a memorable one, and such a perfect depiction of this bunch of songs, that we reworked the song to make Stay On The Outside the main focal point of the chorus of Disconnected as well as the title of the record.

As a whole, this record is about doing things for yourself, living life doing what makes you the happiest, and not surrounding yourself with all the shitty things that life can throw at you. Whether that's a certain individual, situation, or whatever. Do what makes you happy, or a better person, and live your own life. We didn't feel that this record could have been summed up better by anything other than Stay On The Outside.



Often you've been described as a Pop Punk band by most, while you've chosen the genre Punk Rock for yourselves. Without splitting too many hairs over terminology, what would you say sets Last Call apart from other bands?


Adam: Yeah, it's just that, terminology, and nothing more. I don't really care what people refer to Last Call as. I refer to us as a Punk Rock band because I feel like the term Pop Punk has become a really diluted, loosely thrown around term. When I hear the term Pop Punk, I highly doubt that the same bands come to my mind that would come to many people's. I think of bands that I grew up listening to, or band that influenced them. For example, just last night, I was at a show with some friends in Salt Lake City, and a kid was arguing how A Day To Remember was a Pop Punk band. I don't think that Last Call and ADTR are even remotely similar, so I'd never categorize them the same. I just think Punk Rock is much more all-inclusive. Like I said, I don't care what people call us. I suppose that it's all just a personal preference of terminology. Listen to our music, and let that speak for itself.

From where I stand, the band seems to be doing extremely well and it was quite impressive seeing you guys on Fox 5. What would you say has been your personal highlight in the band's career to date?


Adam: I think we've been on a steady upward climb, and it's really exciting for us. We love writing music, and putting it out, and it makes us feel really awesome when people enjoy and appreciate what we do... especially enough to want to see us play, or pay for a record, or a shirt. Fox 5 was interesting. We did all of that right before a show, and we we're all super awkward, so thank you for your kind words. I think that I can speak for everyone in the band when I say that seeing through the release of Stay On The Outside by Mightier Than Sword, and all of the positivity that has come from that has been our greatest highlight. It's awesome when someone believes in our band as much as we do, and wants to work just as hard as us so everyone else has the ability to hear what we're doing. I guess playing a few stops on the 2011 Vans Warped Tour was rad too. :-)

Stay On The Outside and 12:57 were both released on Mightier Than Sword Records. I understand you guys got involved with the label after you sent in an email regarding his blink vinyl order, which seems like a pretty cool story - what's it been like working with the label since then?


Adam: The story of how MTS heard Last Call is pretty rad, and I'm super appreciative for that, because I doubt it's something that happens very often. I touched base with RJ shortly after we self-released 12:57 as a 7". RJ was super into those songs, so the first thing we did, I think less than 30 days after announcing our signing, was re-release 12:57 digitally, and worldwide. It was something that we previously had no way of doing, so it was amazing right off the bat. When we started talking about a new release, we were psyched because we had more options that we'd ever had before. From the studio time, to the media formats, to the artwork & distribution, we couldn't have asked for, or even imagined more. Overall, our experience with MTS has been amazingly positive. They want us to continue making the music that WE make, keeping it meaningful, and they support us 100%. We're even more psyched that they'll be releasing our debut full-length next Spring.

The new EP is also the third to be released, with this in mind, would you say a full-length is in the cards for the band down the line? Were there any songs that didn't make the cut on SOTO?

Adam: 
Absolutely. As I mentioned in the last answer, a full-length is next in line for releases, and other than the touring that we'll be doing throughout the end of 2011, is our main focus and priority. We scrapped a bunch of material for SOTO, most of which will never see the light of day. There are a few songs, however, that we've been toying with lately, in addition to brand new songs that will be recorded, if not end up on the full-length. We're really excited for this record. It's already shaping up to be the best release we've ever put out, the most us that we've ever been, and quite a bit more eclectic than our previous releases. We really couldn't be more psyched.

Since the EP release you guys have been busy spreading the word out on tour - have any particularly memorable moments arisen that you'd like to share?

Adam: We have been touring quite a bit since the EP came out, and our touring schedule is only getting crazier. A lot of things happen on our tours that are pretty memorable... Earlier this year, we were playing out in California at a house show. The show was awesome, as they always are in the 805. After the show, there was a fight between some girls, it got broken up, and it was THEN that things got out of control. It escalated, and ultimately, a teenage girl punked our TM Chris, his glasses got broken, shit escalated quickly, tons of cops came, then we got In-N-Out.

A nation-wide tour for October and November was also recently announced, including multiple Fest dates in Gainesville, accompanied by a handful of different bands. Are you anticipating any shows in particular?


Adan: We're really excited to kick off our Fall tour with our good friends in Such Gold. We're really appreciative that they wanted to take us out, especially for shows on the east coast. Every single band that we're sharing some dates with rules. Everyone's amazing musicians, and we all bring something a little different, so it's a great mix. As a whole, we're really excited for the entire tour because these are all places that we have never even played close to. I'm really excited to see who's already heard about us, and to keep spreading the word about Last Call.

What kind of essential items would we find in the Last Call tour van?

Adam: 
Hand sanitizer: This has so many uses - not just sanitizing your hands. I bought a blowdart gun on our last tour, and it has gone ever where with us since. It's amazingly entertaining, as well as a great motivator. Everyone needs to make sure they have their headphones... Whoever is driving gets to ply DJ.... sometimes, depending on who's driving, that doesn't go over too well. Our sword...... and Agua.

What're your favourite songs to play at shows, and do you guys ever play any covers?

Adam: 
My personal favorites are Glassell St., Long Distance and This Place. I have the most fun playing those songs, and I love when I get to sing and play. The end of This Place is one of my favorite things we've ever recorded, and I love how we do it live. We've been known to play covers every now and then. One tour, we played a song called Face Or Kneecaps by a band called The Movielife. The other day at practice, we played a Starting Line song, and a Saves The Day song. We're going to be doing some cool things, in terms of cover songs, in the near future. It'll have nothing to do with any of the aforementioned, but it's going to be awesome and a lot of fun for us, and we're really excited.

Having already accomplished so much, what kind of goals would you like to set for the band for the foreseeable future?

Adam: 
We've got a lot of goals, and every so often, we sit down and set a timeline for said goals. First and foremost, we want to get our first full-length under our belts. We're going to be able to cross of another goal this fall when we tour the entire United States. We all really want to go tour in the UK, or internationally in general.

Thanks for your time, is there anything else you'd like to add?

Adam: Support touring bands, and the people/record labels that work so hard to get their music out. If you haven't yet, pick up Stay On The Outside in some form, and come check us out on this tour.

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