The BOUNCING SOULS, a melodic punk rock band from New Jersey who have been active for many years, have revealed that they will be releasing their 11th studio album, “Ten Stories High” on March 24th via Pure Noise Records. This album marks their first release of new music in seven years.
The album was produced by Will Yip, and the lead singles, “Ten Stories High” and “Higher Ground” are representative of the band’s classic sound. Both tracks highlight the band in their anthemic element, with sharp production courtesy of Will Yip (The Menzingers, Title Fight, Tigers Jaw). The new songs bookend the record with massive choruses that are sure to inspire singalongs at upcoming shows.
The band will be going on a tour throughout the year to promote their album Ten Stories High, and will be joined by Anti-Flag, Samiam, Swinginโ Utters, A Wilhelm Scream and other musicians. You can find the tour schedule here.
Ten Stories High finds The Bouncing Soulsโvocalist Greg Attonito, guitarist Pete Steinkopf, bassist Bryan Kienlen, and drummer George Rebeloโmaking the best of the chaotic past couple of years. With touring on pause during the pandemic, the group turned to Patreon connect with their listener community, including a tier where fans could have a custom song written for them. The process would begin with the band having Zoom conversations with fans. โIt was so refreshing to be like โOh cool weโre going to get to know someoneโ,โ Attonito explains.
โWeโve written so many songs from our own experiences but this time we really stepped outside of that.” The Souls would learn about their fans’ lives, and then dive into tightly regimented writing sessions to turn the things they’d heard into the makings of songs. Eventually the group decamped with Will Yip in Philadelphia to hone their demos, write more, and record Ten Stories High. The result is an album that draws directly from stories of lifeโs ups and downs, the moments of joy, sadness, and excitement that end up bonding us together. “Weโve been writing songs together for 30 years and thatโs been amazing,โ Attonito says, โbut this felt like something new: a way to tell someone elseโs story and have a whole new journey.”
“Ten Stories High” was one of the songs written after The Bouncing Souls‘ entered the studio. Attonito explains: “During the studio sessions we realized we wanted a song to summarize the process and tell the story of the project. One afternoon during the session we came up with the title ‘Ten Stories High‘ and matched it up with a melody that Pete and Bryan had recorded earlier on their phones. We really liked how the title added imagery of ten people in a ten story building living out their own external and internal experiences. It was a perfect summary to the project. After a few hours of tinkering with the music and words we had our title track for the record!”
The Bouncing Souls have also announced a lengthy run of North American tour dates for the rest of 2023. The shows include dates with Anti-Flag, A Wilhelm Scream, Samiam, Swingin’ Utters, and more. See full itinerary below.
Upcoming Shows:
04/07 Minneapolis, MN @ The Varsity Theater * +
04/08 Milwaukee, WI @ The Eagles Club +
04/09 Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue +
04/10 Cincinnati, OH @ Bogarts * +
04/12 Buffalo, NY @ The Town Ballroom * +
04/13 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop * +
04/14 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop * +
04/15 Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix Concert Theatre * +
04/16 Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall * +
05/11 Chicago, IL @ Metro ^ #
05/12 St. Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall ^ #
05/13 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade ^ #
05/15 Orlando, FL @ The Social ^ #
05/16 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room ^ #
05/17 Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum^ #
05/19 Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall ^ #
05/20 Austin, TX @ Empire Control Room ^ #
05/21 Dallas, TX @ Amplified Live ^ #
10/12 San Diego, CA @ Observatory Northpark * ~
10/13 Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco * ~
10/14 Santa Ana, CA @ Observatory * ~
10/15 San Francisco, CA @ Regency Ballroom * ~
10/17 Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall * ~
10/18 Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile * ~
10/19 Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw * ~
10/21 Edmonton, AB @ Union Hall * ~
10/22 Calgary, AB @ Palace Theater * ~
12/07 Baltimore, MD @ Rams Head Live * %
12/09 Charlotte, NC @ The Underground * %
12/10 Nashville, TN @ The Brooklyn Bowl %
12/11 Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel %
12/13 Boston, MA @ The Royale %
* w/ Anti-Flag
^ w/ Samiam
# w/ Swingin’ Utters, Pet Needs
+ w/ A Wilhelm Scream, The Venomous Pinks
~ w/ Catbite, Urethane
% w/ Catbite, Blind Adam and The Federal League
Over the course of their 30-plus-year career, The Bouncing Souls have built and maintained an uncommonly close bond with their listeners.
Now on their latest full-length, Ten Stories High, the beloved New Jersey punks have taken that connection even further with an album of songs directly inspired by their fansโ very own stories.
Like most musicians, The Bouncing Soulsโvocalist Greg Attonito, guitarist Pete Steinkopf, bassist Bryan Kienlen, and drummer George Rebeloโhad their work put on pause in the midst of the pandemic. Looking for a creative outlet and a way to stay in touch with one another and their fans, the group began using the Patreon platform. โWe sort of grumbled about the idea of doing the Patreon at first,โ laughs Attonito. โWeโre just four old punkers! But we realized that different life situations are what helps and pushes you creatively into doing things you might not normally do.โ In addition to a weekly podcast and other content, the group offered a special tier where fans could have a custom song written for them. โThe technical side of doing the songwriting was pretty strict,โ Attonito continues. โWeโd do these 30-to-40-minute Zoom calls with the person and just try to get to know them. They were all massive Souls fans, but they were all so different. Weโd just try to have a conversation and I would take notesโฆsomething would usually pop out and I could see it as something to focus on in a song, whether it was more literally or even just a kernel that would spin off into something totally different.โ
After the initial conversations, the band members would set to work: Kienlen and Steinkopf, the only members living in the same city (The Soulsโ longtime homebase of Asbury Park, NJ), would get together at Steinkopfโs studio to cobble together ideas and then send them to Rebelo and Attonito for feedback. โWeโd have these very tight 40-minute Zoom meetings where weโd talk about the song ideas and structures. It was really focused, but also fun because we really just love talking to each other and it was a way to hang out during the pandemic.โ The Zooms kept coming and the songs kept forming, and what began as a fun exercise soon blossomed unexpectedly into the next Bouncing Souls album.
The band convened with producer/engineer Will Yip at Studio 4 and began honing the tracks, as well as writing two new songs from scratch. โPete had the idea to write a song that sort of encapsulated the project,โ Attonito says, โThat was โTen Stories Highโ and it came together really quickly in the room together.โ
That title track kicks off the album with a burst of classic Bouncing Souls energy, blazing by in less than two minutes of crunchy guitars, up-front bass, and soaring vocals that are sure to put a smile on the face of any punk fan. Itโs the perfect introduction to an album that draws directly from stories of lifeโs ups and downs, the moments of joy, sadness, and excitement that end up bonding us together. โIt was so refreshing to be like โOh cool weโre going to get to know someoneโ,โ says Attonito. โWeโve written so many songs from our own experiences but this time we really stepped outside of that.โ
Songs like โTrue Believer Radioโ or โMagnus Air Organโ take specific personal fan tales and weave them into the kind of universally relatable sentiments that go perfectly with The Bouncing Soulsโ driving melodic punk. Elsewhere, tracks like โShannonโs Songโ or โAnother Day In Denverโ are the result of small details that the band unfolded into different narratives. On โVin and Casey,โ the band pairs one of the recordโs most hard-hitting instrumentals with its most poignant story. โWe got to talking to this person and they were telling us about their two friends, Vin and Casey, who pretty much introduced them to punk,โ Attonito explains. โThey took them to their first show, which we were playing, but shortly after that both of them actually passed away. And ever since then theyโve been going to Bouncing Souls shows to sort of keep that connection. It was just this really tragic but also beautiful story.โ The song features guest vocals from 7 Seconds vocalist Kevin Secondsโa fitting link to one of the bands most influential to The Bouncing Souls themselves.
Ten Stories High closes with the first song the band wrote for the project, โHigher Ground.โ Itโs the kind of song that The Bouncing Souls have excelled at for over three decades and still do better than anyone: big choruses and even bigger feelings, all perfect for a night of singalongs and stage dives. Itโs music that you make memories to, the kind that you never forgetโjust like the people with which you share it. โWeโve been writing songs together for 30 years and thatโs been amazing,โ Attonito says, โbut this felt like something new: a way to tell someone elseโs story and have a whole new journey.โ
