Finger Eleven – Five Crooked Lines

By: Jamie Steinberg

Q) Talk about the title of your new album Five Crooked Lines.

A) There is a song on the record with that same title. So, that’s where we sort of stole it from. What the song is about is referring to a star that is made up of five crooked lines. It’s this glorious thing that is made up of independent pieces that on their own don’t really mean anything until they are connected. It’s really deep. It’s about a star that exists and at any time could sort of fall out of the sky and crash to the Earth. It’s sort of a metaphor for how volatile a successful career can be. Success is great, but any time it can disappear. It makes sense for the song, but it also makes sense for the band because we had taken so long to write this record. We had this understanding that it could be there one day and then go away really quickly.

Q) “Wolves and Doors” is the premiere song off the record. What made you choose to release it as the first single?

A) When we made the record, the word “single” wasn’t ever really brought up until the record was over. Once the record was over, it was one of those things. I’m very proud of it because most days the word “single” is the first thing that is brought up when you are making a record and the album is shaped around one or two songs. We made this record the way we used to where we decided to make all of the songs with the same amount of energy and love and then after we’d choose one to be our radio single. “Wolves and Doors” was the one that everybody seemed to like. It has a similar sound to what we have done in the past. I think the next single is going to be the song “Not Going To Be Afraid” and that’s my favorite song on the record.

Q) What is it about the song that fans are connecting to?

A) I think the song has a combination of all the sounds we have had over the years and is a familiar sound. I think the whole thing of “Wolves and Doors” is a familiar idea that people can get behind.

Q) What is your writing process like for your music? Do you need lyrics or music to begin?

A) It’s always music first with us. That’s just the way it’s always been with us. Our singer, Scott [Anderson], is a lyricist and a vocalist, but he doesn’t play an instrument. So, myself and James [Black] are constantly writing music and stockpiling it in his Dropbox folder so he can always have a place to go when he is inspired or sometimes the music inspires him to write a song. The process is definitely music first and vocals second. Then, we go back and re-approach the song once there is a whole melody. We go back and make it the best version of the song.

Q) The video is out now for “Wolves and Doors.” How does the message of the video play into the song?

A) The director’s vision for the video was that he wanted it to be visual. There really isn’t a storyline there. We didn’t want to make a typical video where there is a girl running down the street. Alon Isocianu, the director, was just the first person to say, “Let’s just make a cool looking video.” He had a vision and all of these images he wanted to cut into video of us performing.

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music?

A) A lot. This record we produced with Dave Cobb and he came in and made a lot of the harder decisions. He had a vision for the end product of what it would look like, but we are definitely a hands on band. Some of the tracks that made it on to the record were ones we recorded at home and did all ourselves. We would go to Dave and he would help us get the song in order and he would take away non-necessary tracks and add more important tracks. We are very involved with our band. That’s always been sort of the goal and the reason why we do this. It’s part of our journey.

Q) What can fans expect from a live Finger Eleven concert?

A) Lots of energy! Lots of energy! The stage is where we shine the most. It’s a place we all feel very comfortable and look forward to every night, regardless if there are two people in the audience or two thousand people. We just live for that moment of getting up there and playing our  music really loud.

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

A) I just think it is an important way to connect with the world these days, regardless if you are in a band or just a person or business. It’s such an immediate way to reach other people. We’ve always been the band that appreciates our fans and we make ourselves assessable to the fans. Social media allows us to keep in contact with people all over the world when we aren’t in that actual place. The most fun part of social media is that it allows us to build a fanbase that existed, but we can’t physically go to where they are. We can use social media to collect them all in one place and connect with them all at once.

Q) Your song “Paralyzer” is still such a fan favorite. How does that make you feel?

A) It feels incredible! It feels like a dream come true. That’s the kind of thing that when we started as teenagers that we could only dream about that would maybe possibly outlive us as human beings. That song has taken on a life of its own and we feel grateful for that. It’s an incredible feeling! Every night when we play that song the reaction to it is really special and we are lucky because it is just a fun song to play live. It sort of works out for everybody!

Q) What else would you like to be sure we share with fans?

A) Get ready for July 31st because that is when our record comes out and it is going to be awesome! Honestly, we haven’t made a record in five years and the reason for that was because we took this one really seriously. We went home and back to the drawing board. We took time to make sure we created a quality record with great songs and great production. It was a reinvention for sorts. Maybe not even a reinvention, but going back to our roots with songs that are nice and heavy and also back to the big fat thick guitars.

All questions answered by guitarist Rick Jackett