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Chicago "diet punk" band Guardrail, comprised of lead singer Kevin Andrew, guitarists Ken Ugel and Xack Brame, drummer Doug Brand, and bassist Alyssa Laessig, make their exciting return with the release of their debut album, Content. Featuring recent singles "Silhouette" and "Joke's On Me," the LP shows the band's sound and writing style evolution, with the twelve-track body of work being the most dialed-in project the band has ever crafted with their unique sound.

"We spent the last EP and singles dialing in our sound," shared the band, "so with this album, we had the breathing room to dive into our style, fine-tune, and explore further. While there's plenty of "classic Guardrail" songs, we also have a lot of firsts. Our first acoustic song, our first song with Alyssa taking over lead vocal duty, our first love song, and our first release, where every member heavily contributed to the writing process. It's super eclectic, but it all sounds like Guardrail."

The Noise had the chance to chat with the band about the record, taking a deeper dive into its themes, subject matter, and what they hope for the future.

First of all, congrats on the release! How are you feeling knowing people are listening to Content? Which unreleased song were you most excited for people to hear?

Kevin Andrew: Thank you! It's been such a long journey, and it feels great to finally have the record out there for everyone to hear. My favorite song changes daily, honestly, and I know the other members feel the same way. I think my favorite one at this very moment is "Here Again." Such a different change of pace for us sonically.

Tell me about the beginning stages of Content. Did you set out to make an album, or did you realize that's what you were creating as things started to come together?

When we signed with Open Your Ears in 2020 and put out the Yikes EP, we knew that a full-length was the next step per the contract. So we got to work during the pandemic times onward, writing songs that we knew would end up being a record. We ended up with around 30 different song ideas (whether it was a fully-written song, just a chorus or half a song). We took a trip up to our friend Nick Diener's home studio in Michigan in late 2021 to do some writing with him. Some of the demos ended up pretty much how they are now, others got complete makeovers. We worked with Nick to narrow them down to the 12 that ended up being the final tracklist. 

What does the album's title mean to you, and how does that meaning carry over into the record? (unless you thought it sounded cool, which is also fine!)

We took a second trip up to Nick's place at the end of the recording process to lay down all the vocals for the album with him. The last night there, we were all sitting around the fire pit in our Air BnB, trying to figure out the final song titles and album title. We got in a conversation about how musicians these days need to also be "content creators" to help build a following. We joked that we should just call our album "Content", then realized we actually liked that for the title. We're constantly throwing around puns and tongue-in-cheek jokes, so it really fit our vibe.

You've described yourselves as a "diet punk" in the past. Can you share more of what that exactly means? 

Speaking of throwing around puns and tongue-in-cheek jokes, that's exactly what happened here too. Years ago, I was making an Instagram post (content creators, am I right?) and when putting the hashtags, I put #localmusic, then #lowcalmusic (as in low-calorie) as a joke. Our then-guitarist Mike tagged "yeah because we're diet punk, fewer calories." And it just stuck from there. It's basically our own way of saying pop-punk.

What was the most challenging aspect of making the LP? Did you encounter any writer's block? Was there one song that was hard to nail down in production? How did you go about working through it?

I think the hardest thing was that we were writing most of this during the pandemic lockdown period. We tend to come up with song ideas on our own, lay down a rough demo, and send it to the other members for feedback. There were times where I felt super inspired and would knock out a couple songs in a row, then weeks where just nothing would come into my brain. The other members definitely also felt this as well. Another hurdle for me personally was the fact that since this is our first full-length album, I've never had to write so many lyrics at once. Finding over a dozen different topics to write about was definitely a challenge. It all worked out in the end, and luckily Alyssa took lyric duties on 2 of the songs, which helped.

What is your favorite music moment on this record? That can mean anything it means to you, like your favorite guitar part, breakdown, or your favorite lyric on the album.

There are a few lyrics that I'm definitely most proud of, and can list a bunch of those. However, I think my favorite moment on the album is the ending of "Hail Jupiter." When I was writing that song and structuring it out, I had the idea that this would be the ending track on the album (if it made the cut), and after that last chorus, I'd give every member a chance to shine. Alyssa nailed her bass solo, Doug smacked the hell out of the drums, I belt out those last woah's, and the dueling guitar solos between Ken & Xack are absolutely killer. Everyone crushed it, and when I heard the final thing, I felt so proud of all of us.

What is the band's songwriting process right now? Has it changed at all, or has it been more of a tried and true method?

Up until recently, Ken and I have been the primary songwriters. We've been playing in bands together since high school, so we definitely work well together. But this time around, every member contributed a lot to the writing process. For example, the first single, "Down At The Bottom," was one that Doug had brought to the table. "Guilt Trip" stemmed from an idea that Alyssa sent me that was just a verse and chorus. "Silhouette" came from a riff that Xack did at a practice one day. It's much more fully collaborative these days, and I love it. It's made us stronger as a unit.

What would be your favorite track on the record if you had to pick?

I mentioned in the first answer that my current favorite is "Here Again." But if I had to pick a favorite that I feel best represents the album, I'd have to say "Hail Jupiter." It's got everything I love about our band in one song.

Which song is your favorite to play live right now?

We've been playing "Guilt Trip" live for quite some time now, and that one is probably my favorite. Alyssa and I totally switch places. She takes the mic, I take the bass. I'm primarily a bassist, so it's nice to give my voice a break for a few minutes and play my favorite instrument.

What would you like to experiment more with in the future?

Honestly, I'm not sure. This record has a lot of firsts for us. Our first acoustic song, first song that I don't sing in at all, first song with a trumpet, first song with a lot of electronic elements. So I'm looking forward to seeing what we come up with next, expanding on our sound for the next album. We've been floating the idea around of doing a horror-themed EP next, so we'll see.

If you could give a piece of advice to your past self from the beginning of your journey as an artist, what would you say?

Do what makes you happiest. I'm a punk rock kid at heart, but Guardrail is the first punk rock band I've ever actually played in. As a bassist, I always kind of went where I was needed, which was typically hard rock or metal bands. Those are a blast to play in, but this band and this music is the most true to me, and I've never felt happier as a musician.