HTF hit up The Peel in Kingston last month to chat with a couple of guys from Boston MA’s five piece Transit. We chat to guitarist Tim and front man Joe about 2011 as a whole. We talk about their recent album release ‘Listen & Forgive’, which was released on Rise Records back in October 2011. We also speak about their amazing collaboration with Fall Out Boy legend Patrick Stump and much more!
Read our exclusive interview with the band here below.
HTF: So I’m sat with a couple of the boys from Transit at The Peel in Kingston-upon-Thames a couple of hours before they’re due onstage.
If you guys to just introduce yourself please..
J: My name is Joe and I sing for Transit.
T: My name is Tim and I play guitar and sing for Transit
HTF: Ok cool, so it’s been about a year since I last caught you guys on the Man Overboard tour where you played the Fight Cocks (venue) just down the road…
Tim: Yeah it was exactly a year to the day…
HTF: It’s like fate! So apart from the new album, what’s changed this time around for you guys personally?
Tim: Um, It’s a very similar scenario because last time we got to come with very close friends in Man Overboard, and this time we get to come with another group of friends in Balance and Composure and Title Fight, and it’s the exact same time of year. I guess other than the new album its kind of the same thing. We have a…
Joe: We have a different guitar player…
HTF: So was he an addition or did he replace another member?
Tim: He did replace someone, yes.
HTF: How did that gel? Did it take long for him to settle in or did you know him previously…?
Tim: We were acquaintances previously… He fell into the mix very easily, so it was a very smooth transition.
Joe: He’s been playing shows in local bands since, like forever pretty much – about 9 years I think, so he’s been in bands for a long, long time. We just made friends with him recently and just added.
HTF: So when did he join in the year?
Tim: In the summer, well end of spring/early summer.
HTF: On your tour you’ve been posting photos of all the different cities you’ve visited etc, what has been your favourite and for what reason, and where do you think you were best received (from a crowd point of view?
Tim: My two favourite cities, which were also my favourite shows too, were Antwerp in Belgium and London, just because just through getting to explore the cities I thought they were amazing and those were two of the best shows on tour – London was one of the coolest shows we’ve ever played.
Joe: Yeah, I loved those cities a lot – I really loved London. When we played in Italy I really liked it too because it’s the first time I’ve been to Italy and that’s where my family’s from, so I got to see a lot of people, I got to see a lot of people that could’ve been relatives or linked somehow. There were a lot of kids at the shows that looked like they could be my cousins and that was really eye opening and a really cool experience.
HTF: What is it you guys liked most about your trip to England? Anything cultural or the people etc?
Joe: It’s like a more intense version of home. Being from New England and being around Boston it’s very similar, like the architecture, the accents are slightly similar… Just the way people act, the way people talk and communicate with each other it’s very close and almost feels like home. I remember when we’ve been overseas I always feel like the UK feels most like home. If you were to compare it, being home is like a less exaggerated version of the UK. What makes the UK the UK, and Boston is like 50% of what you would get here. That’s the best way I can describe it.
HTF: So playing the new album must feel good after being in the studio for a while, how do you find it’s being received both on and off the stage?
Tim: I think it’s awesome. I think the reaction that we have been getting to a lot of the new songs is really cool. In a lot of cities we’ve noticed kids singing along to newer songs more than anything else which is a cool feeling because that’s obviously..
Joe: That’s what every band wants…
HTF: I guess it feels like you’re doing something right?
Joe: It doesn’t always happen though, so it’s cool.
Tim: It’s our freshest and newest material so it’s what we want to be playing so it’s nice for that to be received well.
HTF: It’s a bit of a softer album from the previous, was there influence behind it? Or was it more ‘writing what you feel’? And did you notice that it was different?
Tim: I guess you could say that. It was absolutely writing what we felt. We didn’t really notice that it was as drastic as some people make it out to be until some people started saying that I guess.
Joe: Yeah, but you know, it was the direction we were going in and the only way for us to really put our best foot forward was to go naturally in that direction. It we were to fight against it, it probably would have just sounded forced and pointless. Who knows what the next album could sound like! We try and make every album sound unique and it’s own thing. We always want to surprise people – we feel like if we give people what they expect all the time then what’s the point?
HTF: It was said you were to record it with Brian McTernan (Set Your Goals, We Are The Ocean), how was that?
Joe: Nooo.
Tim: No we didn’t.
Joe: We did it with Torre’s brother, Gary Cioffi in Massachusetts.
Tim: We initially had plans to do it with Brian McTernon… (that’s awkward.. sorry man) No that’s fine, it’s not the first time that’s happened! It’s funny, I was actually talking to a friend about it the other day and he was like, “So how was recording with McTernan?” and I said we didn’t record with him, and was like, “OH it totally sounds like you did..?”
HTF: Moving swiftly on then… On the song ‘All Your Heart’ Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy) did guest vocals – how did that come about?
Tim: Well, I think that if someone told me that when we agreed to have him sing on the record that in every interview we were going to have to explain how it happened we might have said no… Haha I’m just kidding. What happened was he was looking for a band to open up for his solo show in Boston, and loads of kids tweeted at him like “check out Transit” and so we sent something to him and told him to check it out. He got back to us and was like, I don’t think that it would make sense for you to play my shows because obviously our styles of music don’t match, but he said that he really like our band and we chatted some more and he offered to sing on a track. So we said, “well we are doing a record…”
Joe: His music has been a huge influence of ours so it’s cool to have someone that you look up to be a part of what you’re doing.
Tim: And we were like, “Here’s the part” and said do your thing, so that’s exactly what he did. He sent it back and we were like “woah, there it is”.
HTF: You toured earlier in the year with Senses Fail, how did that go? Did you go down well on the tour? Were they a band you listened to growing up?
Joe: They were cool as hell.
Tim: Yeah it was very fun to tour with them. They were all really great to us and when I was younger I had the first Senses Fail record and definitely used to love that so it was cool to be able to play with them.
HTF: Are there any bands coming out of America that you think we should look out for, maybe some that might not be so well known?
Tim: I’d say Seahaven. Seahaven is an awesome band you should definitely check out. The Story So Far, have you heard of them? Hostage Calm.
Joe: Do you know Algernon Cadwallader? They’re one of the best, I don’t know what you’d called it but ‘underground’ bands. They’re named after a character in a famous book I can’t remember the name of. They’re a powerhouse band and they’re unbelievable. The Agent from Long Island are a punk band, they’re really good and playing shows like Crime in Stereo. Capital is another good punk band. Most of the really good punk bands in the state I feel are from Long Island. The Long Island scene is insanely strong so check out that.
HTF: So you have a couple more shows to go. You’re off to Ireland after the show then a couple more shows between Christmas and New Year. Are you just looking forward to getting home and seeing family and friends, because you’ve obviously been away for some time.
Tim: Yeah, it’s sad that tour is almost over, especially after the last few tours we did were so amazing with amazing people but I mean it’s been a good while since we’ve been home for more than 8 days so it’s definitely going to be a really relaxing and rewarding thing. I think we have 2 months off for whoever knows how long so it’s going to be a nice thing.
Joe: Yeah I can’t wait
HTF: Have you got anything planned for 2012 after the break?
Tim: After our break we’ll be doing some more touring in the U.S in the spring/early spring and will probably come back over here, do some more things and travel as far as we can – hopefully hit Australia, Japan and back to the U.S in the summer and just keep at it.
HTF: Finally, are there any UK bands that you either listen to or hear about?
Tim: I really like the band Sharks.
Joe: Yeah, Sharks are awesome.
Tim: Basement is another awesome band and great dudes as well. The band Starters from Ireland is a good band too.
HTF: Thanks for chatting to us guys! Have a good show!
Interviewer: Ross Williams
