Q) How would you describe the sound of Saving Abel?

A) It is Southern rock infused with contemporary rock and a lot of balls.

Q) Who are some of the band's musical influences?

A) As a band, we've all come from very different places, but we're all rooted in rock. Personally, some of my favorites would be the Southern rock sound of The Allman Brothers, but I was also raised on the Seattle sound of Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam and Nirvana. I have definitely been on a big Beatles kick lately. As far as influences, the best way to do it is not to throw yourself or immerse yourself into one band because then you start to sound too much like them. Initially, I was all about The Allman Brothers Band, but then I realized quickly that they were done and done well by The Allman Brothers. So, a cool thing to do is to go back and find the band you love the most, find out their influences and find out why they sound the way they do, etc. It's almost like tracing back your lineage as far as it can go. Basically, everybody that I listen to lists The Beatles as one of their influences. So, I had to go back and revisit their entire catalogue. I am just blown away by them.

Q) What made you choose "Stupid Girl (Only in Hollywood)" as the first single off your new album Miss America?

A) I think melodically it made a lot of sense. We wanted to come out of the gate and prove that we're a rock band and an established rock band at that, coming off of having three top five singles. We felt the last two had a ballad edge, "Eighteen Days" and "Drowning." They were still rock songs, but we wanted to prove to our rock n' roll fans, our active rock radio audience, that we still know how to rock. It has the same cohesiveness that the last three singles did with that big chorus, but it is a little edgier. We had just got back from The Grammys and since we're a Southern rock band, for us to be in L.A. is a little different. We were just taking it in and watching the way people were. People can misread the song though and assume that we think all girls in Hollywood are stupid. It's not about that at all. There is a hidden meaning to it. I won't tell you the hidden meaning, but if you read into the song you'll see that what we're talking about was how we think Marilyn Monroe was very smart in the way she kind of attacked Hollywood. We put one of her immortal quotes in there in the chorus. I think you'll be impressed.

Q) Why was Miss America chosen as the CD title?

A) We had kicked around a lot of ideas and we really liked the idea of having a song on the album be the name of the album. All five us kind of agreed unanimously on that, which never happens in a band when you have five people. There are five dominant personalities so we just went, "Ok, we agree on something. Let's move on." We were kicking around song ideas and we're over in Kuwait talking about it. Finally, someone asked, "What about Miss America?" That was the only one and everybody looked at each other like, "Wow! That's a really good idea." There is a song on the album called "Miss America." We're not sure if it is going to be a single or not, but we all decided that if we all agree on it then it was a good thing. We all talked about the meaning behind it and how it is a military themed song. After how much we have done for the military because of how much they've done for us,  we decided to just dedicate the whole thing to them. We're at war and we don't want to pick sides of the fence because that's not what we feel rock n' roll is about. We do know we really support our troops and I am sure that they would, in turn, appreciate it and feel something different every time. The song, itself, chronicles almost what a soldier is like. You can be a soldier and be eighteen years old, going off with your dad worrying about you. You can be a father, a brother, a husband or a wife. There are different age groups and different ways to look at it. We kind of chronicled different scenarios from a soldier's prospective. We just thought it was a really cool way to do it because not a lot of people can relate to what it is like to be a soldier and it seemed like the right thing to do.

Q) What was the writing process like on this album?

A) It was tricky because it was done from the road so we didn't have time to sit down in a studio and cultivate our ideas together. We just wrote from real world experience. Everybody was dealing with different things like family, girlfriends and wives, which are a good outlet for writing songs. It was tricky, but we managed to do it. We all got older, a little bit more mature, and have a few more stories to tell. I would say that definitely benefited the writing process. Music has never been a hard thing for Saving Abel to come up with because we're five songwriters. There are constantly different ideas. Some of us are more melodically gifted than others and some are more guitar gifted than others. We just sort of pay off each other's strengths instead of the weaknesses.

Q) How much hand did the band have in the production of the album?

A) We always have a lot to do with the production because we have a production deal with our producer Skid Mills. He gets the final say-so on every production on the record, but he works closely with us. If we have anything to say he'll listen. Every production note I brought to him, he listened. I am pretty sure he did that with everybody else, as well. He's always willing to sit back and listen objectively instead of the whole, "me, me, me" approach. It's not about one person. It's about the end product and the song. Skid is a genius when it comes to that, but sometimes a fresh perspective is a good thing.

Q) How fast does it take for a track to be recorded?

A) We have a really good producer. If someone has a hiccup in that particular area where they are trying to nail down a part, he has a way of articulating to where we can figure it out. Being a studio guy, I would say that my band is pretty good as far as getting in there and knocking out the parts.

Q) What can fans expect from a live Saving Abel concert?

A) We're with the Sevendust crowd since we're touring with them and they have such a diehard audience of true fans that they have cultivated over fifteen years of playing live. They're selling out these like 1,200 to 2,000 seat venues with their diehard fans who are hard to win over since they are a hard rock band. So, we've been coming out with hard rock songs. We've still got the Saving Abel stink on it because we've got Jared [Weeks] singing over the top of it. In between songs, he'll ask, "Are ya'll feeling that?" So, it's Southern by nature. We can straddle the fence. We play some of the ballads and the hard rock songs because that's what they want. We've written enough songs now to know and dipped our feet in enough waters, as far as playing with other bands, that we're able to cater to whatever audience we need to.

Q) What are some of the songs that get the best audience reaction?

A) As far as the new stuff, I would say the song "Hell of a Ride," which has a Southern rock feel to it. There is also a song called "Contagious" that is just a driving rock song. It's got a cool guitar breakdown, which almost sounds like Avenged Sevenfold. It just gets heavy for a minute and then comes back into a chorus. That one definitely always captures the crowd. I would say those two are the main ones thus far. We're not playing the whole record yet. We're just playing about five or six songs off of it.

Q) How much road traveling does the band plan on doing with this album?

A) We might not go home! It's tough, but be careful what you wish for.

Q) Why will people want to take their time to pick up your album Miss America?

A) If they liked the last album then this one is going to melt their face. I've never been more proud of any album that I've played on than this. I've been blessed to be able to play with a lot of different people, but this group and this album at this point in my life is my crowning achievement.

Q) The band recently performed a USO concert aboard the USS Carl Vinson for sailors that were returning from a three-month deployment at sea. How was the show?

A) It was wild! You fly in and then all of a sudden you're in a closed space facing backwards. You're in the air flying over water and you have no idea what is going on because you have no windows. Then, all of a sudden it's like a roller coaster and then you stop. You get out and then you see all these people (like three thousand people) that have been waiting on you. It is one of those moments you'll never forget. Getting to see the ship and getting to see how proud every person was at their duty on the ship...Everybody is so happy to be there. It was just one of those things where they wanted the rock n' roll so we brought them the rock n' roll.

Q) What has been the most memorable highlight of your career?

A) It's a toss up between getting my first gold record or going to the Grammys.

Q) What would you like to say to your fans and supporters?

A) They are the reason we're here and we'll keep on doing this as long as you let us.

ALL QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY RHYTHM GUITARIST SCOTT BARTLETT