PropertyOfZack had the chance to interview Taylor from The Pretty Reckless not too long into the band’s first US headlining tour. Taylor and I discussed the band’s debut record, Light Me Up, the past year for the band, touring, and more. Read up below!

The Pretty Reckless has been in the works for about three years at this point, but everything really started to takeoff in 2010 with an EP and record release, major touring, and overall support from fans. How would you describe last year for the band on top of all your other commitments?
It’s been great. Unbelievable fans with an unbelievable response. I couldn’t ask for anything more. It’s been busy [Laughs]. No complaints. It’s just been amazing.
 
You worked very hard for a long time for the writing process portion of Light Me Up with producer Kato Khandwala. What was it like working with him, and what did you learn in terms of writing after the record was finished?
Kato is one of my really great friends. He’s amazing. He’s so talented. I don’t even know how to describe working with him because we’re like family at this point. He’s so great. It was a long process. It was interesting because most of it was written at night because I was working during the day. So the whole record was actually written and recorded at nighttime. I didn’t sleep for around a year. It’s a torturous process, but you hope that you can write something good in those two seconds where you can.
 
It really seems that you and he had been working on the record for a very long time prior to its release date. Was there frustration at all on your behalf that you couldn’t release it sometime sooner?
I’m glad we took the time we did with it. I didn’t want to release anything prematurely. It was meticulously worked on. I’m super excited it’s finally out in America now. It was a long time coming. It came out in the UK first and it’s finally out here. I’m really excited for April 12^th, on it’s physical release date, to go into a record store and see my record there.
 
Light Me Up was officially released in the UK in late August and it was met with incredible reviews and large support. How has the reception from fans been over there in your eyes since its release?
Unbelievable. The last tour we did there was great. We sold out 3,000 seat venues. To hear 3,000 people screaming your words back at you is one of the most amazing feelings in the entire planet. It’s unbelievable.
 
Was it insane for you to see the record stay at the top of the UK charts for six consecutive weeks?
Yes [Laughs]. I was trying to avoid it everyday. It was amazing. We weren’t expecting any of that, even in America. It opened number two on the overall charts and number one on the rock charts. We were number two behind The Beatles. I’ll take the backseat to The Beatles. It was awesome.
 
The band seems to have an incredible following, but is there a particular reason why Light Me Up wasn’t released in the US until a few weeks ago?
I’m not the one in control of the releases. There are so many people behind the scenes. I just make the music. No particular reason. A lot of bands do that with releases. It’s one format.
How has the reception from fans over here been to it?
It’s been great. This is our first US headlining tour and I’m so happy that the music is finally out. We’re actually seeing fans coming out who know the record and are psyched to hear us play. There was nothing out besides the EP on Warped Tour last year and people were just coming to check it out, but now we have fans coming who are really into it. Crowds can make or break a show, and it’s just been an amazing tour.
 
“Make We Wanna Die” has been being pushed for nearly a year at this point along with its music video. Have you been happy with the success has the single has had?
It was awesome. It’s one of my favorite songs on the record and it was the first song written for the record. I think it’s cool that it was the first thing people heard because it was the song on the record that set the bar for us in terms of writing. We had to beat or equal that.
 
The Pretty Reckless are signed to Interscope Records. How is your relationship with the label at this point?
They’re an amazing label. There are so many cool artists. It’s a pleasure and an honor to be a part of the label.
 
The band really kicked off touring in a pretty major way last year with appearances at Bamboozle and Warped Tour as well as multiple UK runs. How much would you say that you’ve grown in terms of stage presence from the beginning of 2010 to now?
I don’t know how to exactly describe that, but the more you get into a routine than the better it’s going to be, hypothetically. I’m just happy to be out there doing it. It’s definitely evolved.
 
And how was Warped Tour in a whole as an experience? That’s one of the most difficult tours to do, especially if you’re set to play every date.
Yeah, it was great. We all had a fucking great time on the tour. It is very much a rock n’ roll boot camp. You don’t find out what time your set is until the morning of the show. So there were multiple days of me getting woken up to being told I had to be on the stage in 45 minutes. I enjoyed it because we got to play every day. Warped had like six days off for the entire tour or something like that. You play every single day and that’s great.
 
The band is currently out on tour with Runner Runner in the States. How is the beginning of the tour to this point?
It’s been amazing and it’s been so much fun. We played New York last night, which was a great show. We had a lot of fun. I’m currently in a car on the way to the airport to Boston for a show tonight. I’m meeting the bus there. I had to finish some stuff up in New York. The shows have been a lot of fun. It’s still the beginning, but so far nothing has gone wrong.
 
For fans who have yet to come out, what’s the set like?
Yeah, it’s stuff off of the record and we do some covers as well. We switch them out. We do an Oasis/Muse mashup and a song by Audioslave. It depends on the night.
 
There is nothing on the books in terms of touring after this US run. Will more dates nationally, or internationally, be announced sometime soon?
We’re going to Japan and I think we’re going back to France and the UK again. Hopefully Australia. I’d love to go to Brazil. I’m getting tweets from Brazilian fans all the time and I just can’t wait to go. Then back to the US hopefully for some more. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to say what we’re doing or not. We’re going to do some festivals.
 
Thanks so much for your time, is there anything else that you’d like to add or that that we should be on the lookout for?
Physical copies come out April 12^th, so everyone go get it.