“I gave up on this incredibly formal aesthetic that I’d gotten into on Gemstones and Jacket Full Of Danger. There were a lot of rules I’d put on myself.” – Adam Green

“We don’t have time to sit back and not pay attention.” – Tommy Rogers

“We aren’t just another band, tritely speaking of our own personal struggle and how fucking hardcore we are. I’m done with that.” – Jay Maas

“We knew we were never going to be the same band that we tried to be between 1998 to 2004. Back then, we could dedicate everything to being in a band, being poor…” – Tom Reno

“I think repetition has the potential to hypnotize and envelop. That is something we are very interested in; we are always looking for the perfect loop.” – Andrew Hung

“We don’t want you to only like [our music] because you’re supposed to like it or you like it because it’s cool. I don’t want you to scratch your fucking head. It should be immediate… I think [the new album] just makes our music more effective.” – John Famiglietti

“A lot of the record is about growing apart from the person you love. Time changes people, especially when you fall in love at an early age and you both are still growing and changing.” – Robert Francis

The Satanic Satanist is a heart-warming pop effort that also relies on one’s ability to connect with the softness and imagery of Gourley’s lyrics. Interspersed also are more “nerdy” things — covert as they may be — that are inspired by otherworldly stories Gourley was told or things he saw with his own eyes growing up in Alaska.

“I think the only time I feel completely comfortable with who I am and with what I have to say is when I’m playing music.” – Tomo Nakayama

“I just want to treat the audience for my music like I’d like to be treated.” – Scott Hutchinson

“A vanity label is just a logo. You have to look at what’s behind that. Who are the players on that team who are pushing the product?” – Joe McAffrey

“What I want to have is different people to come together — [to have] different styles and fashions to come together and feel the music itself… That’s my ultimate happiness.” – Richard Spitzer

“We’re not up there trying to come to your city to have church… We’re trying to be a band and are expressing ourselves as artists. That’s what every band does.” - Mike Weiss, mewithoutYou

“Sometimes there’s a stigma against a band trying to be a political band… but those are usually bands like Anti-Flag… who are stating the obvious. Maybe their hearts are in the right place, but they could say it a little more intelligently.” – Scott Freeman

“A lot of the new record is our reflectance on the kid’s dream of rock n’ roll versus the reality of it, in the experiences that we had.” – Warren Woodward

“We have a responsibility like this when people look up to you. The person you are bleeds into the music you make.” – Zach Gehring