The Maine have grown a tremendous amount from when they were first overseas in 2008. The then teens are now grown up and have released two albums and a short film. During one of the warmer days of the year back at the end of March, Organised-Sound caught up with John O'Callaghan and Garrett Nickelsen on The Maine's UK tour with NeverShoutNever to get an insight of how far they've come and what their goals are.

OS: How are you?
John O'Callaghan [vocals]: We're good, how are you?
OS: I'm good thanks. How are the shows here going so far?
John: Awesome!
Garrett Nickelsen [bass]: Yeah.
John: Awesome, to say the least. I know it's such a bland word, but it's really been, just baffling. I have no idea why people are showing up! It's a good thing.
OS: Of course it's a good thing! Is the atmosphere here different to the atmosphere at American shows?
Garrett: I think they are. I feel like kids really want to go to a show here, more than in the states I feel like a lot of kids there are just like "Oh...I wanna touch...the hair," or whatever.
OS: I've seen a couple of times where kids have gone totally crazy around band members.
Garrett: Maybe I'm lying then. [laughs]

OS: Do you prefer playing shows in the UK or in the States?
John: I think it's just different for us, we only get to come over here every so often and I think it's revitalising for us in a lot of aspects. It makes us work that much harder and want to put on, I don't want to say a better show, but a more memorable show for people over here because we don't know when we're gonna come back ever. We feel like it's necessary to make sure that it counts and make sure that people would like to come back to see us.

OS: Has it been as good as your last tour here and has it met your expectations?
Garrett: Yes.
John: Yeah! I mean it's different, not completely different because it's still a show, kids are still coming, but it's different in the aspect that we're closing every night as opposed to opening.
Garrett: Also, we went around the entire world before this. So last time, we just came from home and then came over here and this time we were in different places before we came here. That was a different experience as well. We got to go to Europe and see Paris and Germany and stuff.

OS: Have you been up to anything touristy?
John: Yeah but not so much over here. I know it's all Europe, but we were in Germany and France, so we tried to see a bunch of stuff over there. We did touristy things in Australia and stuff like that.
Garrett: We got to see the Eiffel tower in Paris, but once we got over to the UK we just, took it easy. I think the whole tour is kinda catching up with everyone.
John: Yeah, we saw Stonehenge last time we were over.
OS: Did you get to celebrate St Patrick's Day in Ireland?
John: We didn't! We missed it by a day, we were in Birmingham the day before. I'm sure it would have been crazy anywhere we were but we ended up having to leave Birmingham that night.
Garrett: At like, Midnight.
John: The we just had to drive.
Garrett: We kind of missed out.
John: We were bummed out
Garrett: John's parents and Pat's parents were over in Ireland when we got there.
John: Yeah! They were in Dublin, so we got to make up for it.
Garrett: And we got to hear their stories because they were in Dublin at the time.

OS: Like you said, you're headlining now as opposed to opening; how's that been for you?
John: Yeah, it's been awesome.
Garrett: Totally dumbfounding.

OS: You let out a movie not long ago, 'In Darkness and in Light'. Tell me a little about that.
John: It was initially supposed to be an idea or a concept for a music video and then somewhere along the line, I think Pat and the manager Tim, had the idea of making like, an extended version of it. That kind of evolved in to making more of a script, then getting kids to act in it and we worked with the same guys that did the 'Inside of You' video. It was cool because we didn't have to spend time getting to know them. It's just kind of like touring as well, you know a band prior as opposed to just getting to meet them on the spot it's a lot easier to have that feeling of being comfortable and being able to tell them how you're feeling and what you want.
Garrett: Plus, since we worked with them on the 'Inside of You' video, we all liked that video a lot so we didn't have in the back of our heads being like, we realised they could do some good work and so that definitely helped out the situation too, I think.

OS: You released your poetry book John, with the photos by Dirk Mai - could you tell us a bit about that?
John: That started too, I think everything that we do kind of starts as something, it's intended to start a certain way and it usually just develops in to something else. It was initially just supposed to be poems and I just wanted a way of really seeing, kind of, a different side of who I am as an artist and the thoughts that I have. Not necessarily a more honest approach but just a different avenue. Then Dirk: during the summer I'd always asked him if he'd like be interested in doing something with me and it was always "yeah, yeah, yeah"; but we never really realised what we wanted to do. So our manager, Tim, came up with the idea. It's more of a collaboration, it's not necessarily like the photos don't correlate with the poems. I wanted it to be Dirk showing himself off and his art and his craft off and you know, have that be separate from what I was doing.

OS: Are you writing anything new just now?
John: Well, song wise we've written, we haven't stopped writing. We're playing a bunch of new live songs, stuff that we haven't even recorded yet which is cool because we're starting too realise the things we really like about the songs and things that can be changed. I think that's where we want to see ourselves as being able to go on tour and play new songs, as many new songs as we can, while still fulfilling everybody's needs in the show. I feel like, that's what the olden days of touring was; the band that you went to see wasn't playing, you know they play their singles and their tracks but they were practicing for that next record because once that tour was done they'd jump right in to the studio and I think that's a similar approach that we're trying to take, especially nowadays. We want to just release as much music as possible.
Garrett: Well, it's kind of cool because what we're doing right now is, that people are getting really excited about these songs that we're not even sure if they're going to be recorded and then there's tonnes of other songs that, y'know...nevermind...

OS: I think that 'Can't Stop, Won't Stop' and 'Black and White' took quite different approaches, is the new stuff that's going to be coming out, something completely new or something similar to one of them?
John: I feel like the approach that we're taking now is whatever we feel. I know that doesn't help with describing a sound, or anything like that, but it helps describing the emotion that we're putting in to the new songs. I just want people to be able to relate in a way that we relate to the songs, and what I mean by that is I want for as much emotion that I feel about the new stuff, the writing, I want that to be reciprocated and I hope that is. I feel like, either way I'm really proud of the new songs and they could change and whatnot, but we'll see.

OS: I heard that you're playing 'My Heroine' first tonight. It hasn't been released yet, so how are you feeling about opening with something completely new?
Garrett: Well it was one that when we first started writing for like after 'Black and White', it was the first one that kind of came out. We were so excited to play it and just record it or whatever or something and somewhere along the lines we were like "let's just fuckin' play it!" and that's kind of been the mentality.
John: We wrote it on the bus during our Summer tour around the states, and we wrote it on the bus and played it during sound check and recorded it. Then, literally all I've done lyrically, is I copied the first verse to the second verse and then wrote some words in the chorus and that's like what I was saying is, once we put it down on tape, once we go back I'll revise all the lyrics. It's just cool because the kids are posting videos or mp3s of it and putting it up online.
Garrett: Yeah we saw kids doing that just like "Yeah, let's put it online", recording videos and stuff. I'm pretty excited.

OS: The setlist on this tour is quite different to what you've played here before with a mix of all the old stuff and the newer stuff. Do you feel like it's better to play newer songs?
Garrett: I feel like kids don't really need to know the first song but as the set goes on, they get into feeling what we're feeling, I don't know, I'm just fucking going for it and as the set goes on it gets more and more exciting.
John: I feel like a lot of bands, how do I put it... a lot of the industry of music in general, I think a lot of people are afraid at this point in time, I feel like fear has eaten everybody alive, you don't stand your ground or you don't compromise the integrity of what you're trying to do and I think like, that's the biggest thing, trying to say "fuck you" to everybody and do what we really want to do while making that connection with people and trying to remain true to the people that we've been. Not necessarily the songs, the songs are that moment in time and you can't go back and rewrite that song, it's just done, you know what I mean? So I think we're trying to remain true as people first, then satisfy our needs artistically and satisfy the people that come to our shows needs too.
Garrett: Not like we're trying to alienate anyone!
John: No! Not at all.
Garrett: The way we're doing it is just, I think it's almost like people are hungry for something. They see something that's a little more like, "oh my god this is just the same thing over again" and then they're coming like "oh my god, I think I've maybe never been to a show like this": it' really making people realise that something's different now.
John:Mixing songs together is important, because even being as a fan at a show, like, I don't want to just go see a band play songs I've never heard before, that's not fun for anyone, so it's just that balance, that's a really tough, tough balance to have and also we've been playing those songs for four years from 'Can't Stop', so it's hard to especially be enthusiastic about something that seems so routine. It's just like riding a bike. It's hard to get that feeling of the first time you rode that bike without training wheels.
Garrett: And also, it's like, for us, we've grown so much, we started out when we were in our teens. Personally, so many things have happened since then, it's, I don't know!

OS: What sort of things do you like to write about?
John: It varies I guess. I'm beginning to learn that it's okay to write about things that I actually have experienced. That was super tough at the start of our band because I was new to song writing and I still don't know a fiftieth of the information I'd like to know about writing songs, but I don't think there's necessarily a technique. We're trying to write as honest and heartfelt songs as we possibly can. Not saying that those other one's weren't because that's who we were at the time. I just think it's necessary to take steps in any direction but backwards while you progress in anything whether it be writing books or cleaning floors.
OS: I know a lot of people feel you play music with quite a positive feel, is that what you're trying to portray?
John: I think if that's been what's bleeding through then I think too much of that can be overkill. I think people can start to see through that. That's also what I mean by the fear of taking risks and I feel like the new songs are a necessary risk in our bands career right now, like the next phase.

OS: Who influences you musically and lyrically?
John: So many. We're constantly always finding new bands that we absolutely love.
Garrett: You'll see that kind of sneak in to the new songs like, definitely the new influences that we've had. We'll really like this record at this point and we wont be ripping off that band but you can definitely bring the feel of it in. so, you get a bit of what we were listening to at that time.
John: I think lyrically it always varies, there's bands that we've been listening to lately that you can't even necessarily recognise certain words that they're singing.
Garrett: Or any of them.
John: Yeah, or any of them, but the melody is really what carries it and as you keep listening you hear words and they start to make more sense, like the more you listen to the song, the better you understand and the more you feel it.
Garrett: And the more you appreciate that song, the more it's like "Oh I love it". That song and just the way it sounded and then once you've heard it twelve times, on the twelfth time you maybe pick out a couple of words and you understand the lyrics and you're like "Oh my god, this song is fucking beautiful."
John: It's awesome.
Garrett: And you're so happy you listened to it! And you find a new love for that song.

OS: Are you looking forward to your tour with Augustana in the US?
John: Oh man, so excited. We get done with this in about six days and then we go back home and have a good chunk of time off but that's all going to be a lot of preparation for the set in the summer. Because of the amount of touring that we've done, we haven't had much of a chance to do what we want, per say, as far as we see songs and adaptations of old songs like that. And I think that's the really exciting part because hopefully we can create something we really enjoy that we'll be able to bring back over here when we come back again. When we were saying we don't necessarily play a tonne of old songs it's because we haven't had a chance to give it the nurture, what am I trying to say...the love! We haven't had enough time to give it the love and the proper care that they deserve, so that's the exciting part, is that we're going to try really push ourselves and create something that we're really excited about. Hopefully something that everybody else is really excited about and we can bring it back over here when we're done.

OS: How does it feel to be touring with someone that hasn't been over in the UK before?
John: It's not strange for us at all, I mean we love those guys. We got the chance to tour with them in the States before we came over here and I think it's a little weird for them, obviously because it's only Hayden and Chris - the drummer and Chris the singer. I think it's probably a weird first experience for them but still at the same time, I think they're having a tonne of fun. They're doing really well obviously, kids love them, we wish nothing but the best for those guys. We're really fortunate to have such great people on tour with us.

OS: In the UK, where do you think is your favourite place to play?
John: We just love it, everybody was actually saying on the bus. The problem I have is that I remember all the rooms but not necessarily the crowds, like I remember places around here and the room and the way it sounds, it's really tough for me - actually, maybe it's because I have my eyes closed... but everybody was saying that here was our favourite show on the last tour. It was insane, they were just blowing smoke.

OS: Do you have plans to play over here again sometime soon?
John: We've been talking about it with our booking agent over here.
Garrett: There's some stuff we gotta do back home, we need to get worked out.
John: She's trying to get us on a lot of festivals.
Garrett: Next time we come over, hopefully we'll be doing a lot of those festivals.
John: It's a hard balance again, I guess that's the motto of the day. It's hard because so many people that work with and around us are telling us to do so many different things and at the end of the day we just want to go out and try to play for as many new audiences as possible, and see the same faces and the same places as many times as we can and that takes money which is the hard part. Our album was supposed to come out here at the end of March.
Garrett: Who knows?
John: Hopefully people enjoy it over here and it gives us the opportunity to come back as soon as possible. I'd like to do Reading and Leeds. It's something I've always dreamed about doing, I always see it on television in the States; at the huge festivals over here it seems like everybody has a great time.

OS: What is your favourite song to play live?
John: It always changes
Garrett: I've been having a good time playing 'Listen to your Heart'.
John: Yeah, that ones been fun. We've been throwing in a new song, we don't actually have a title for it, I guess we've been calling it 'Ice Cave' but it's been really fun to play.

OS: What sort of things can we expect from The Maine in 2011?
Garrett: A lot. More than we can probably handle right now.
John: Yeah, I don't think we could even explain. It's always been about a lot of different things in the past for our band and not necessarily only about music, like now more than ever that's completely what this band is about. I feel like we're still the same exact people that we were four years ago, to a tee, but our attitude and mentality and the things that we have experienced have changed and the way that we perceive things and like, I hope it's a really beneficial thing for our band. As far as specifics, I don't even know.
Garrett: I would think, a lot of music.
John: Maybe another video
Garrett: I feel like we have a lot up our sleeves and we're just ready to show it.