PropertyOfZack met up with The Lonely Forest in New York City not too long ago at their show with Death Cab For Cutie for a brief interview. John, Tony, Eric and I discussed the band’s new album, working with Chris Walla, recent touring, and the future. Read up below!

For the record, could you state your name and role in The Lonely Forest?
John: Hey I’m John, I sing and play guitar and piano.
Tony: I’m Tony, and I play guitar.
Eric: I’m Eric, and I play bass. We are The Lonely Forest.

The band released its brand new record titled Arrows in late-March. How has the reception been since the release?
John: It’s been good. Nobody outright hates it, which is nice. And if they do, they haven’t let us know.
Tony: They’ve been nice enough not to post it on the internet.
John: There’s always somebody who’s not totally stoked on it, but there’s usually a couple songs that they like. So I feel good knowing that even the people that aren’t truly in love with it like a few of the songs at least.

For fans who have yet to hear it, how would you compare it to prior material in terms of its progression?
Eric: It’s more straightforward and to the point, I think. It’s also the most diverse. It runs the gamut of styles and songs. More than in the past at least.
John: I think it sounds better too.

How did the band and Chris Walla originally get introduced?
Eric: Chris found us, which was kind of weird. He read about us in the local newspaper and decided to buy our last record when it came out. Then in interviews he said he was listening to us, and I had his email address because I almost bought an amp from him once, so I sent him a thank you. Then he asked us to hang out, then we made a record.

When did the idea of him producing the record finally become a reality?
Eric: Before we even signed to Trans he said he wanted to record our record. He just wanted us to end up at a label that we’re happy with.

The Lonely Forest is for all intents and purposes on a major label now with the Trans imprint. How has it been?
John: It’s cool. It’s definitely a different world.
Eric: It’s a way different world. It’s something that we’ve never experienced.
POZ: And is it great to just have a larger team behind you?
Eric: For sure. I feel like it puts us in places that we would have never been. We’re a lot more accessible now.

Was the writing process for Arrows similar to previous records?
John: Songs usually start off on acoustic guitars and piano and kind of develop into rock songs. It’s pretty basic. We’re just a band that practices in a garage, and I kind of hope it always stays that way. I was reading about a big band and the lead singer wasn’t even there when the other guys are tracking, and that’s trouble. If everyone’s there at different points and no one likes each other, you need to quit.

Before this run the band was out with The Joy Formidable. How were those dates?
Eric: Incredible.
Tony: Fantastic live band. They were busy as well because they’ve had a lot of recent success. So on off-dates they were driving to radio stuff. So we didn’t get to hang out a ton, but I will say that they are definitely some of the sweetest individuals, as was their crew on the road. It was a huge pleasure.
 
Were fans pretty receptive to your set?
Tony: Yeah, I think so. They’re a full on rock band. We make some noise too.
Eric: It was the first time we toured with a band that’s louder than us. Live we’re a lot louder than on the record. It was cool to be put in our place.
POZ: Did you guys play many new songs on that tour?
John: We’ve been sticking to the record. We had a bad habit in the past of playing new music that we hadn’t released yet, so on this record the goal has been to just play what’s on the record so they purchase the album.
Eric: We used to always play songs and people wanted to buy it, but they were never released.
Tony: It’s a bad habit of being openly ambitious.
Eric: Part of being on a real label is having to tour on this record, which is good.

Has the new material been fun to play live?
Tony: Absolutely. As we’ve toured more and done better I’ve had more fun. It’s funny because you’d think the more you play the songs the less fun you’d have, but I actually really enjoy it.
Eric: I find new ways to approach the song.
Tony: The focus shifts to jumping around and having a good time.

The band is also on tour with Death Cab For Cutie right how. How have the first dates been?
John: It’s definitely the most exciting thing that I think has ever happened to us.

It’s quite an intimate tour in terms of venue sizes for Death Cab. Has that made it a lot of fun?
Eric: It’s weird because it could be arenas or giant theatres. Instead we’re playing 500-cap venues, and that’s insane. This show sold out in 30 seconds.

Should we expect more touring to be announced sometime soon?
Eric: We have a pretty cool fall tour booked with Two Door Cinema Club and Bombay Bicycle Club as well. We’re playing some solo shows on the way home too. I’m getting married and our drummer is too, so we have some personal time. It’s awesome because we’ve been touring since March 5^th or 6^th. It’s time to recharge the old batteries.
John: Once September starts we’re kicking it into overdrive.

Are there any bonus tracks that have yet to be released?
Eric: There are a few b-sides.
John: We might actually go into the studio and do some more songs.