Shane Told- Silverstein & Lead Singer Syndrome

In this episode of Caught on the Mike, I sit down with Shane Told—frontman of Silverstein and host of Lead Singer Syndrome.

We dive into Shane’s journey from the early days of the post-hardcore scene to building one of the most consistent and enduring bands of the last two decades. He opens up about how his role as a frontman has evolved, what keeps the band creatively driven after 20+ years, and how their latest double album, Antibloom / Pink Moon, came together during a transformative stretch in Joshua Tree.

We also get into the Camp Screamo Tour with Story of the Year—why it’s taken this long to happen, what fans can expect from the setlist, and how the band is balancing nostalgia with pushing forward.

Plus, Shane breaks down what podcasting has given him through Lead Singer Syndrome that he doesn’t get from being on stage—and how those conversations have reshaped his perspective as an artist.

If you’ve followed Silverstein from the beginning or you’re just discovering them now, this episode is a deep dive into longevity, evolution, and staying passionate about your craft.

#Silverstein #ShaneTold #LeadSingerSyndrome #PostHardcore #Emo #CampScreamo #StoryOfTheYear #AlternativeMusic #MusicPodcast #CaughtOnTheMike

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Disclaimer the views and opinions. While continuing to push it forward from the early DIY tours to a massive double album and one of the most talked about tours of summer, he's really never taking his foot off the gas. And somewhere along the way, we've built one of the most respected artist-to-artist podcasts out there, giving fans a whole new window into the scene. We've got a lot to get into. James Fold of Silverstein and Lead Singer Syndrome Podcasts here. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Caught on the Mike. From the early 2000s post-hardcore explosion to becoming one of the most consistent and emotionally resonant bands in the scene, today's guest has lived every chapter of it. He's the voice behind Silverstein, the host of Lead Singer Syndrome, and someone who's still pushing forward while honoring the past. Coming off a massive pair of recent releases and one of the most anticipated tours of the summer on deck. This is going to be a fun one. Shane Told of Silverstein. Welcome to the show, my friend. Thank you. Great intro.

SPEAKER_02 1:50

That was awesome. One, he won take that too, by the way, everybody. That that was no editing on that. Good job.

SPEAKER_00 1:57

Thanks.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

Very good.

SPEAKER_00 1:59

You may notice the hoodie. I've had this thing for 23 years, man. Awesome. Yeah, man. It looks great. Still fits. That's always a win at our age. So yeah. Yeah, no kidding. Because I mean, you know, we get a little bigger, we grow beards, and uh and start hosting podcasts. That's what we do when we get older. Exactly. That's uh, yep, case in point, dude. Well, man, I am so stoked to have you on the show. I am so excited for the tour. Let's kind of rewind a little bit. Why don't you take me back? What first pulled you towards music and when did it shift from interest to identity for you?

SPEAKER_02 2:35

When I heard Metallica, that's pretty much the truth of it. You know, I have an older sister. She's seven years older than me. She's very cool, you know, and and she was always listening to music in her room. So she would always like close her door and she'd turn it up loud and she would like dance around in her room. And I was just like always kind of listening at the door like the annoying little brother. And like, you know, half the stuff she listened to was like, you know, we're talking like late 80s, you know, just I don't know, stuff like Tears for Fears or Depeche Mode, or like stuff that didn't really I I I like I liked okay, but you know, it didn't grab me in a certain way. But I'll never forget when she showed me the song One by Metallica. And the end of that song with that like that machine gun, you know, drums and guitar together, that changed me. That that was like it like I had heard it before, like I had like a deja vu moment with that music. And uh when when I'd heard that record, I heard that it was the first Metallica song I heard, but it would the black album had just come out, so this would have been like 91. So I was 10 years old, because I'm I'm 45 now. And um, and that that like like hearing that one song and then be like, I need more, and my sister being like, There's a new album. I remember listening to the black album and just every song, it was like it was like I knew what was coming. Yeah, it was like it was like it was so weird to me because at the age of 10, you know, you don't know what deja vu is or like any of that that you know kooky shit, but like I felt it. I felt that music and it meant so much to me that I immediately like said to my sister, I said, What is that? Is that drums? Is that guitar? What is that? And she goes, I don't know, I think it's I think it's guitar. So I said, I'm getting a guitar. And uh and my dad had my dad actually played plays guitar, so he had a couple acoustics kicking around the house, but that's not what I wanted. I wanted an electric guitar because I wanted to to chug, you know? All I wanted to do was chug. That was my my goals with my early musical days of being, you know, like 11 or whatever when I got my first guitar.

SPEAKER_00 4:42

You know, it's funny you mentioned Metallica's one because we're of both of the age that we can kind of remember when that came out leading into the black album, as you recalled. One was the very first music video that Metallica did, and I remember that was a huge deal because Metallica had sworn off doing music videos for all of their earlier albums, and so like very transcendent one going into the black album with Inner Sane Men and all the songs that everybody eventually knew to come and love. So I could see that being very influential at the time.

SPEAKER_02 5:20

Yeah. Well, it's funny because I they caught me right between like the the like right before the the what a lot of people want to call like the sell-out record, you know. Right. But for me, I just like I didn't, you know, I didn't know what that was. I just heard like I liked it all. I like all for the first five Metallica records. Like, you know, the first first one I heard, I guess, was Anjustice for All on the Black Album, and then I like I had this bootleg tape. It was called Metallica Ballads. It was like a it was like an actual like release tape. It wasn't a mixtape, but it was from like I don't know what country, and it was called Metallica Ballads, and it had like Fade to Black and Welcome Home and whatever else were considered, you know, ballads. And um yeah, and I like I like wore that tape out until I could finally afford, you know, uh to get the actual tapes, I guess it was at that point. So yeah, uh so yeah, man, but that that that for real, like at the beginning, you know, that was Metallica was my favorite band, and they're still like a real special thing to me, even even all these years later and all the other music I've heard, something about them still like still still does something to me, you know. And like, you know, I got tickets for the sphere show in Vegas, you know, later this year, so don't even ask me how much I paid for that. You know, so so yeah, man, it's it's still still something that that still means a lot to me.

SPEAKER_00 6:39

So when you eventually started kind of building with all the tools in your toolbox and started building your own, you know, musical prowess, what helped you form Silverstein and what was the initial vision for the band, if there even was one?

SPEAKER_02 6:56

Yeah, uh no, there was uh absolutely a very strong vision, I'd say, at the beginning of the band because we were trying to do something that wasn't really being done in our area, you know? Yeah. And I'm I'm fast forwarding a lot of years, like between when you're 10 and when you're 19, like that's a lot of formative years there, and a lot of like music discovery that I had, you know, of learning about Metallica and then learning about all the other metal bands like Slayer and Pantera and Cannibal Corpse and Deuside and and and Carcass and uh at the gates, like these amazing bands that all meant something to me, and then slowly kind of like getting a little sick of metal and getting really into punk rock and and hearing you know 994 when when Green Day exploded in Offspring, and then finding out about Rancid and No Effects and Bad Religion and Pennywise and and going deeper and deeper and deeper into it until at the end of that decade it was like, well, now what's next? Yeah. And hearing Lifetime and Saves the Day and the Get Up Kids and those bands, like and it's kind of just been this like trajectory of like learning about music in my in my youth that kind of brought me to you know, starting Silverstein and already playing in some other punk bands and stuff like that, but with Silverstein really wanting to do something that was like we want to be heavy, we want to take elements that we love about metal, but we also want to take this kind of like pop, poppy sensibility music and sort of combine it and be able to have like like really catchy choruses that are that are like sing alongable, but still have these like very emotional, emotional heavy parts and some metal, metal heavy parts too. And that was kind of what the goal was from the get-go. But the goal was just to have a fun band to do for the summer until we all went to college. It wasn't like let's do this and let's go on podcasts in 25 years, you know, like it was it was not there was never a plan of any grand grandness like that. It was like we figured we'd just, you know, hang out in Josh's basement and play some songs and then you know, go to school, and that would be that, you know.

SPEAKER_00 9:10

You know, having a lot of conversations with people, you think about music from the early aughts and kind of being the end result of all the influences from the 90s. The 90s, you could say, buddies and I talk about this quite frequently, how it was almost like three different generations of music all crammed into one decade because there were so many phase changes from grunge to pop punk to the post-grunge era. Like I would say that era between 97 and 2000, people were like, What the fuck are we even doing musically anymore because it was going in so many different directions that you know multi-genre-sounding bands where you would have very introspective and emotional and sing-songgy lyrics mixed with the screaming and the metal influences and stuff, it was kind of a natural course of action from all that influence, right?

SPEAKER_02 10:05

Yeah, I think so. I mean, one thing I always point out, I think it's it's really interesting, is you know, our band and Census Fail, we started at like right around the same time. And they're from a completely different part of the world than we are. We never knew each other, we never talked to each other, right? But like we came to the same conclusion, you know? Like they liked the same bands we liked. We grew up on the same music, and then it was like, you know what I mean? And our bands sound pretty similar. It's like, it's like when, you know, you you hear about like back in the day, and I mean back in the day, like in the 1600s, when like, you know, Newton was working on some shit or Galileo or whatever, like, and then like two scientists like on other opposite sides of the world, like both figured it out, you know, and it was kind of like that. Like we just independently just like figured out that like this was the way it was gonna be, and it was the way it was gonna happen next. And I think the proof is in the success a little bit there because we did it, and then people latched onto it because it was what other people, you know, maybe non-musicians, also wanted to hear. It was like the logical next direction for you know the scene. And of course, I've just used census fail, but there was like, you know, plenty of other bands also doing, you know, similar kinds of things, you know, all across the world too. You know, whether it was like somebody like Finch or someone across the pond, like funeral for a friend, you know. There's another there's another band like on the other side of the world doing doing a similar kind of thing at a similar time to our bands. So the so there was a movement there, and it was interesting because like I don't know how much we were really inspired by each other, but we were inspired by the bands that came before, and it all kind of like ended up in a in a similar place, which I think is kind of interesting.

SPEAKER_00 11:50

I agree. I uh if I were to ever like design a through line through all of the bands, one band that always comes to mind for me is Refused the Shape of Punk to come 100% because it was so prophetic, like it was prophecy in such a way because that album came out in '98 and and it was just like it was huge. And you listen to that thing front to back, and like you're thinking listening to it now, it would have fit in with everything that came out in what I call the MySpace era of 2005-2006, you know. Even the fashion, you know?

SPEAKER_02 12:27

Yes, it's funny. Even like you look the watch the new noise video, like that even, you know, paved the way for so much of the fashion that that came after it, too. And you know, they were just you know good-looking Swedish guys, you know, what do you expect? But but no, I I mean I you can't cannot take anything away from Refused and how much they meant to everybody and like what a game changer that record was. You know, I think the only thing that like was I thought was interesting was how politics seemed to go away though. Like Refused was such a political band, but it seemed like most of the bands in our our genre and our scene, we were kind of like staying away from that. Um, which is funny because I like I was quite political in like my old bands and like like uh you know Propagandi is one of my favorite bands of all time, and like you know, and I and of course like we have always been like very forward about animal rights and like things like like that in our band, but like our like musically we never really sang about it. So that was one thing that I always thought was interesting was was it was like you know, at the at the old age of 22, we were like already over the politics of it, and you know, and we just wanted to to go back into that like post-punk, like you know, we're not angry anymore, we're just kind of sad.

SPEAKER_00 13:45

So were there any early hurdles whenever you guys were kind of discovering who you were as a band?

SPEAKER_02 13:52

I mean, a big a huge hurdle was that we're from Canada. I think that that's overlooked a lot, you know, like post-9-11, which is when we were, you know, a band and and touring and stuff, trying to tour. It was like a nightmare to cross the border. And, you know, we were limited to just to really just playing shows in like the local area and Toronto and and you know, some of the stuff uh, you know, a few hours outside of you know, Toronto area. We did one tour like out to eastern Canada. But like, you know, touring Canada is such a nightmare because everything is so far away and the cities aren't that big. So, like, you know, I think i i even though we're right by the border, like we grew up like like an hour from the border or not even, um, it was like very, very difficult for us to just get in the van and go and play a show in Buffalo, New York, or or play a show in Detroit, or or drive to New York City or whatever. We couldn't just do that. So that was a big hurdle, and like, and I think you know, until we got signed to victory and we were able to get a little bit of money and we were able to get somebody to to book us and do our visas to get across the border, that was that was really big. But that was definitely um a huge issue, I think, and and still an issue for a lot of Canadian artists.

SPEAKER_00 15:13

Yeah, yeah. Although I gotta say, man, as somebody that's lived in the States my entire life, specifically in the Midwest, there was nothing like much music to this day. There's still nothing like much music. I can't tell you how much discovery I had from watching that videos and artists that weren't being shown in the lower 48 of artists that I found, you know, like Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:40

Well, you know, uh it's funny because uh yeah, they had they had a few specialized shows that um you know would play like punk rock and stuff. But what was really interesting though was a lot of times, you know, we're talking about the 90s when songs were longer, right? Yes. So like a lot of songs were like four or five minutes, like easily, right? So the video blocks, like you know, for TV, they'd have certain ones, but then what would happen sometimes is you'd be at the end of a block and they'd have to squeeze something in, and then you'd have a place where they could throw in something. And um, that's where I heard No Effects stick it in my eye for the first time was on Much Music, like which you know, Canadian MTV, and literally because it's like a two-minute song, and they were able to stick it at the end of a block. And there was another uh band from Vancouver called Gob, and they made like a whole career out of it because they had a song that was like a minute and a half, really fun, like little video called Soda, and they would just play it at the end of blocks, and you know, because they had to fit something in there. What else did they just don't want to load it up with commercials? So they would do that, and and um, and that was like a really interesting thing that would happen, and there was a plenty of those like really short songs that got airtime and were you know punk rock songs that like I found out about No Effects from that. I remember going to the record store and being like, I want to buy the CD, and I like went and it was like an import and it was like $27.99, you know, and this is in 1994 or something, and I was like, fuck, I can't buy it. I can't and I waited until I had my punch card, like it was like buy 10, get one free, and you and you could get anyone. So I when I finally got to 10, I was like, okay, I'm gonna get this like expensive ass CD.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

That's ridiculous. What was crazy for me when I was I was singing in bands at the time in the late 90s, and I was in a ska band, and you know, there's I I've brought this up a million times on the show. Uh the guys in the Mad Caddies made this appearance on this uh great documentary called Pick It Up Ska in the 90s, and they talk about this six-month window of time where ska was at the top of the world, and then six months later, New Metal took over, and everybody everybody that used to be in the ska was like, oh fuck that ska sucks, new metal rules, but all of the ska guys were like, What the hell just happened? Much music was still playing ska videos when we were like still trying to fight the good fight. And to this day, ska is still big in Canada.

SPEAKER_02 18:11

Like Mustard Plug, Street Light Manifesto, the slackers, like they kill it up here, man. I'm telling you, it's it's uh yeah, it's it's still a thing, especially Quebec. And uh, yeah, I love ska. Did you know our guitar player Josh used to be in a ska band? Did not know that. They were called questionable sushi. Love the name. Is that a great name? Great name for ska band. They were a cool band, actually. That's how I met Josh. When I met Josh, he was playing uh guitar in that ska band.

SPEAKER_00 18:38

Amazing. We had so every ska band's name comes from an inside joke, I think. And ours was 40 Sunday because we used to sit around and drink 40s on Sunday afternoons. Sounds right. Kids kids, I don't think kids are drinking 40s anymore, dude. 40s were the best. You know, you know, it's it's all good. You know, as a parent of teenagers now, I'm kind of comforted by that fact.

SPEAKER_01 19:03

The kids aren't drinking. Yeah, it's probably good.

SPEAKER_02 19:05

That's cool, no, man. And I know what you're talking about with the whole ska movement. And you know what I think was the even the weirdest one was around the same time was the swing movement. Yes. Like it was like, I swear, one summer where there was like uh of cherry popping daddies and squirrel nut zippers and uh big bad voodoo daddy. They were like the big three of swing. Yes, that was like the funniest era to me. And I like actually was because my um my girlfriend is like she's only 32, so um, you know, so we we like grew up in some different eras. So there's stuff stuff she just won't know. So I'm like, we have to listen to this era. You're like, I had so I had to teach her a little bit about it, so I listened to it.

SPEAKER_00 19:48

Some of it shit's pretty good, right? I know, and like and I I think that's just kind of comes with age, though. As we go back and listen to the things that we may have shit on when we were younger, and we're like now it's like, you know what? I have a new newfound appreciation for all of that. I kind of liked it. I liked it back then too.

SPEAKER_02 20:08

There was like a little bit of a cheesiness to it, and there I mean that's but that's that's part of what it is. But I uh yeah, but no, I I totally know what you mean about the ska uh yeah, the summer of ska. It was around the same time.

SPEAKER_00 20:20

I love it. So you've been a front man for over two decades. How has your relationship with that role evolved?

SPEAKER_02 20:28

Good question, man. I think I think I never considered myself a lead singer. And you know, doing the podcast that I do where I lead singer syndrome where I talk to other lead singers, it is like such a common theme. Like no lead singers really consider themselves lead singers. Because no, because almost every lead singer, it's like I was a drummer, but then we couldn't find anybody that could sing, so like I just did it, you know, or like I was a guitar player, but then like we had we auditioned guys, but everybody sucked, and the band was just like, you just do it. And uh, and that was like kind of how I was too. Like I always thought I was just you know a guitar player, songwriter, and then you know, I kind of fell into this. With Silverstein, I was the always the singer. I I you know, and and but but I think like yeah, I think that relationship has always been like you f you feel a little bit like a fraud when you're doing it because you know you don't you look at like some other other people that like you know, you know, those guys that just have it, you know, and you're like, oh I'm not I'm not like that. I'm and you you feel like a bit of a you get the imposter syndrome going. And I think that you know, over time I've developed more confidence and I've believed in myself that like I can pull the show off and like no matter what it is, like I'm gonna find the way to to win over the crowd and I'm gonna, you know and and that that's been something that like I think took a long time, but is something that probably in the last maybe five years I've started to feel a lot more confident about, and I think. Doing this 25-year tour that we did all through last year all over the world, our most our most successful tour ever. I think that that like finally, I think, cemented it for me that I'm like, hey, I'm okay at this, you know. Like I maybe I maybe I am a lead singer after all.

SPEAKER_00 22:18

Are there any elements of it that still feel really challenging to you?

SPEAKER_02 22:22

I think I think you know, the hardest thing about being a lead singer is the singing part. I mean, it's it's like especially like it's very demanding what I do vocally, you know, because of the singing and the screaming, you know, our songs don't have a lot of instrumental breaks. So like it's kind of like I'm going the whole song, and you know, it can be very taxing when you're talking about, you know, doing a six-week tour where you're playing shows five to six days a week. You know, it's it's like you're not a lot of days off, and the travel and the climate change and all that. It can be really hard. So I think that that part is is the most difficult in um, yeah, just maintaining your health and and your voice health, I think are those are the hardest part. I mean, I think I've learned now how to do the crowd thing, you know, how to work that out, how to like differentiate. Okay, I'm in this kind of venue, or like I'm playing a festival today. It's like this kind of a banter or this kind of a like vibe, or we're playing somewhere you know more intimate. This is what you do. And I think that stuff comes natural to me. But like, there's nothing worse than when you wake up after like five shows in a row and you're like, oh my god, am I gonna do am I gonna be able to do good, like do this tonight? And of course you try, and you know, most of the time it's there, but when you get on stage and you're like, I I don't have a hundred percent, I don't even have fifty percent, you know, those are the those are the challenges, and I think that you know, almost every lead singer goes through that, and that's that's the that's the that's the stress and the anxiety rolled into one there.

SPEAKER_00 24:01

I can confirm this 110% because in my later bands I was doing the screaming and the singing mix, and you have to almost train yourself to be able to switch back and forth between the two, and there's nothing worse than picking up a show after roaching your voice a couple of days before and going, Can I do this?

SPEAKER_02 24:24

Yeah, and and I think, yeah, I mean, now like now I'm a little more used to it. So like I'll like I'm I'm recording this from my little home studio area here, and like I'll just I I have it like set up right here. I plug this microphone in, you know, and I put on my in-ears, and I like freaking do the whole show right here, you know, and I'll do that like I'll do that, you know, probably three, four, five times a week leading up to the tour now. And I've just learned that that is the way to kind of get into, you know, like as a sports guy would say, like, you know, mid-season form for week one. And it's never the same. Like, no matter how much you you, you know, I can jump around this room and yell and like do lame shit that's like no one will luckily no one will ever hear except my girlfriend in the next room, probably laughing her ass off. But like, you know, it's never it's still no matter how much you do that, it's not the same as like being on stage and doing the show, you know. But hey, you do you do what you can, you know, to try to prepare.

SPEAKER_00 25:25

Yes, yes. You know, you mentioned your podcast, Lead Singer Syndrome. You're still storytelling, but in a totally different format. What does podcasting give you that performing in Silverstein doesn't? Oh, that's such a good question.

SPEAKER_02 25:41

Well, it's a lot less money, I'll say that. I agreed. There's a lot less money in it. You know, I don't know. It's it's um it's different. You know, I think I I I get a different kind of high from it, but it but it's still a real good high. And and I really enjoy it. I think, you know, picking people's brains and also just seeing people I'm interviewing like excited about what they're talking about, and like, you know, finishing, you know, we stop rolling, and someone being like, you know what, that was a really great interview. Like, I really enjoyed that. Like, thank you for you know, like letting me tell my story and like and like you know, helping me convey the message of like what I'm trying to say, and and you know, I think that that's like a really good, a really good feeling. And I think, you know, there are so many great podcasts and and you know, long form discussions now, but a long time ago, like I I want to say, you know, definitely before podcasts existed, but even at the beginning of podcasts, most interviews sucked. Like they were short, you didn't nothing really happened, um, they weren't very good, like the people asking questions weren't very good, and and it like that's part of why I started mine, because I was sick of doing so many terrible interviews, and I knew that I could do a better job than than a lot of the people that were doing it, no offense. Um because there some of them were really good, but there were a lot of terrible ones. So that's part of why I wanted to jump in and do it, and then you know, I've I've gotten a lot of uh I've had I've had a great time with it, and I've met a lot of friends too, you know. I think that's that's been really awesome, is how many people I know, you know, from from doing it like for over 10 years.

SPEAKER_00 27:23

Yeah, and I full transparency, I write this question out very frequently when I have somebody that does dabble in both worlds. Like I just recently had Krista makes from less than two.

SPEAKER_02 27:37

He's so good. He is so good, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:39

Dude, right? Right. Yeah, he's great, and and and it's very common answer too, because you're absolutely right. The social currency of not only being the listener, but participating in an active conversation like this is so much different than a stock like A, B, C, D interview that comes across as stuff.

SPEAKER_02 28:02

Yeah, I mean, and you know, you know what always kills me when I'm being interviewed? Because, like, you know, when I when I do an interview, like I prepare shit. Right. Like I spend, like you spent time on this. I did not spend on time this time on this because I don't know what you're gonna ask me. So I don't I can't spend any time on this, right? But there'll be times when like someone will ask me a question and I'll be like, all right, I'm gonna give them this gold right now, and then I'm like, okay, now you know what to ask me next, right? So we go down this like road and I'm telling you this really great story or or something you know interesting, and they just don't do it. And you're like, come on, man. Like, you're just like, okay, and then you they just switch to the next question. It's like you don't have a follow-up, like you don't have we're we're having a conversation, aren't we? You're just you're just reading off the page, it like almost doesn't matter what I say, you're just gonna ask the next question, and that is like the worst way you can interview somebody.

SPEAKER_00 28:57

For sure, for sure. Now, has talking to other artists changed the way that you see your own journey and then how you like have that crossover between both the podcast and the way you create music?

SPEAKER_02 29:14

Yeah, because I think that it's showed it's showed me how many of us that do this job are the same. Like the same, have the same, you know, um, what's the word, uh, you know, um uh you know issues and and all that stuff. It's like it's like we're we're really are. And I think that that's it helped me interview people because I I always know where people are coming from now. And um and also helped me too, as just as, you know, for my job and being like, okay, like we all have these, you know, these tough days at the office, so to speak. And you know, yeah, I think that that's that's been been uh a really a really helpful thing for me.

SPEAKER_00 29:57

I agree. It's almost like a vulnerability trap when you're talking with somebody and you start sharing experiences so much, you I, at least me personally, I find myself going, okay, gotta find the resistance to say to keep from making this about myself, right? Because it's like that happened to me too.

SPEAKER_02 30:17

And then it's Yeah, but it's all I mean, it's your show though, too, right? So, you know, like this is this is caught in the mic, not caught on the shane. So, you know, but but I I mean there's there's always an element of that too. Like, I mean, you know, I think it's your job as the interviewer to like steer the conversation where it's supposed to go, like curate the conversation. And like, you know, you'll always have guests that'll that'll go on too long and hijack the conversation and like start to say boring shit and going on and on and on, and you and you're like, I got gold on this page, I know where I'm where I'm bringing this conversation, like I know what my narrative is. So it's your it's sometimes it's your job. Well, it's always your job to do that, to make this as interesting as it can be for the listener. Maybe this part of the interview right now is not that interesting to the listener, talking about what's interesting to the listener, but like this is entertainment too, up to a point, right? So like you have to do what you have to do to like to make this work for you. And um, if you want to edit all that last uh five minutes out, you can. Because at the end of the day, it's your show.

SPEAKER_00 31:19

Was there a specific conversation in your history of doing your show that really changed your perspective?

SPEAKER_02 31:26

Man, it's it's tough to pick just one, I think. Um I think there has been I think there's been some people that I that I thought would have their shit more figured out than they did. And I don't want to name names, but like, you know, there's people when you like you hear their records, right? And their songs, and you see them and you hear the things they say, and everything just seems so put together and perfect and like curated and and and like you're like they must have everything, everything together. And then like you ask them a question about something, and they go, huh. Never really thought about that. And I'll be like, You've never thought you just like crazy, it's crazy like some of that stuff's like crazy to me. It's like you've never thought about that. It's just like that just naturally happened, and like you know, it make it sometimes it makes me feel like like both like amazed and also like disgusted at the same time when I'm like, you're just that good, you know. Or some people like are are the opposite. Some people are so you know tuned into it. Like I th I'll I'll mention one one guy that really uh really blew my mind was the the guy from the band Fiddlar. And that band, you know, their first record, it kind of sounds like shit, but like it's supposed to. Like they did that on purpose. And I like and he and he he talked to me about like you know, the vocal takes and like kind of getting like the perfect bad take, and you know, and like hearing that kind of those kind of stuff, it's like I I just love that people think about that stuff sometimes. Like all the times I've listened to Rancid and Outcome the Wolves and hear Tim Armstrong singing on that record, I'm like, okay, Jerry Finn produced this record. There's no way that that's just like what it was, and that's the one take. Like, that was probably so many takes to get that perfect you know, bad take. It's it's like that stuff always is like so interesting to me.

SPEAKER_00 33:23

Yeah, same, same, same. You know, you and I have shared a guest, and I I'm sure your experience was just as good as mine was. But if I think about the inflection point of my own show, Steven Christian and Berlin.

SPEAKER_02 33:38

I've had him on twice, I think.

SPEAKER_00 33:40

Yes, he is such a great interview, and he is like I get messages after I had after I had him on my show, I would get texts from people randomly, even months later, like, man, that was such a great episode, and he like speaks so inspirationally, you know?

SPEAKER_02 33:58

Yeah, yeah, it's real it is really interesting. Like I had him on when the band like broke up for the first time, and he seemed like those, I think it was in the first 10 episodes I did, and yeah, and he was like so over it. It's like I don't even know why he did it. Like, you know, the band was over, you know. But um, it was it was uh yeah, he he's he's a great interview, great speaker, and and you know, knowing him as long as I have, he is just a genuinely nice person. Absolutely. He just he's just a nice guy. There is no way around it. And like, especially now when you've seen what's happened with Amberlynn with Maddie Mullins taking over and him being like, cool, you know, go ahead. And like, I think that that's a really, really big of him to understand that like the band is not just about all about him, you know. It's there's is there all the rest of the guys, they want to keep doing it. He doesn't want to, so hey, you know, um, uh he's still supportive, like he's still I think he's even still like was there for when they made some like recordings, he was like still involved in some ways. It's like that's really cool to me, I think, that that he's like you know, signed off on it, and I think that just speaks to him as a guy because um, yeah. I'm I met him, I met him at Furnace Fest in 2003. It was the first time I met him, and uh yeah, absolute sweetheart then and and still a sweetheart now.

SPEAKER_00 35:23

Twenty-three Jesus man. You know, first time I met him was 2005, playing with Story of the Year in Kansas City, and what's crazy is he came to Omaha like six months later. We had a great conversation in Kansas City that night, and he came to Omaha six months later. He identified me, like just kind of in the venue, and had this great conversation. He goes, Yeah, I remember you from Kansas City. And I'm like, who has had that happen with somebody that's had some level of celebrity? Like, I was beside myself. I was like, Oh shit, you remembered me. I would have never expected that. It's because he doesn't drink every day like most of us. Well, you know, you make a good point about the project kind of being bigger than one person. And Silverstein released a big project, big undertaking in 2025, February 2025, September 2025, anti-bloom and pink moon. Did that feel like one album cycle, or did it feel like two separate album cycles?

SPEAKER_02 36:24

It's been kind of one big long day, uh, really. Yeah, it's you know, when we met when we went in to make that record, um, and I say record because it was done as one record. Like we we went into the studio, we had a lot of songs, but we were only going to make one record. Like the idea was just I think we called it LP uh 11. Actually, here I'll show you something real quick.

SPEAKER_01 36:50

One second.

SPEAKER_02 36:51

This is uh this is the this is the board from uh from the studio. So this is all the songs that we recorded, and you can see it's a lot of songs, and then you can see the ones that didn't make the cut. And yeah, and see we had it was just Silverstein LP11. That's what we called it. So we went in and uh these were the songs, and and we ended up we had a bit of a predic predicament because we had so many songs that we liked. And you know, as you know, like when you do a record, typically it's like you know, 12 songs, you know, not really longer than that. So when we had uh like 25, it was like we realized that we were gonna have to cut more than half the songs, and then these were like these songs were like done. Like they weren't like like we had already scrapped the ones that we didn't like. These were like 25 songs that we like liked. So that's that's when we kind of went through them and we had a lot of arguments, you know, about like songs, and there was a few that like I just I just could not see us cutting. Like I just could not see it. So our drummer had the idea to make two records. So we did. I love it. And I mean it did work out nicely because it kind of you know kept kept the focus on us, you know, on the on 2025, 25th anniversary. We were touring all year headlining. It was like this is the perfect way to like you know, put out songs, release a record, put out more songs, release another record, and kind of just keep the singles going, you know, the whole year rather than like so many so much of the time it's like you release three, four singles, a record, and then it's like over. And this was a this was a great way to not have that happen. And I think both records came out awesome too. So yeah, really happy. And like you saw, we still have some songs that we who knows, maybe they'll see the light of day. Some of them are really good.

SPEAKER_00 38:33

So yes. Well, the thing is, is like recording that many songs in one stroke, you know, the album still flows with a real emotional intention, like they were intended to all flow together. Like, and like was that deliberate? Was there some some thread of storytelling going throughout the whole thing?

SPEAKER_02 38:54

I'd I'd say like like the the the thread of storytelling, I think if you really wanted to look for it, you could find something there. And and I think that that there's a couple of sort of themes that kind of come and go in the record, but it's it's difficult for me to say something like that because I've done like high concept albums where like I've written a whole story, like I've storyboarded the whole thing and I have it all here, or I have like a concept where the songs are paired together and like you know, and it's like everything's a what if, or I have you know, this the that one album where each song is related to a city, each song is about a different city. So when you have like those kind of like more real concept albums, it's difficult to say that this is anything like that because it's not really like that. But I think when you talk about the flow of the records and how that was gonna go, that was extremely important to me. It always is, but like the you know, the sequencing of records, like like, and I'll be honest, part of the part of the reason why we ended up doing two records was because we had two closers and like I could not part with either one of them. I was like, these both have to be on the record, and like maybe we were like, well, maybe we could put one at the end of side A and one at the end of side B, but I was like, I don't know. So so we're just like we gotta put two records on so we can have one one record end with Cherry Coke and one record end with dying game, and and uh that was a big part of I think of where the idea really uh stemmed from. But yeah, it's I knew how I wanted the record, I knew I wanted the record record one to start with Mercy Mercy. I knew that I wanted the last record to end with Dying Game, and I knew that I wanted I love you, but I have to let you go into negative space to be the start of LP2. Like I I had all that mapped out, and then it was like figuring out where the other pieces went, both for like for the flow and and and everything. And I also didn't want didn't want to like front load all the good songs on the first one.

SPEAKER_00 40:57

That makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 40:58

And I think the second one actually might be better. So, but but you know, there's there's there's great songs on both records, and that that was important.

SPEAKER_00 41:05

It's like the strategy of writing a live set list.

SPEAKER_02 41:08

Yeah, kind of kind of is. It is. And you you know, it's typically that's not how you write, you don't really write a set list anything like you write an album. Right. Because like when you talk about sequencing, because you know, albums are almost always front loaded and they have certain like you know, you you you always people expect a certain song to be kind of at the end, you know. I think that's that's typical of of uh of records, at least in our genre. But yeah, but it it is it is different when you're when you're doing two records like this and um they're coming out at different times and everything, and you're releasing signal singles as well.

SPEAKER_00 41:45

Makes a lot of sense. And now speaking about set lists, the part where everybody's excited for is summer twenty twenty-six. Yeah. Camp Screamo Tour with Story of the Year feels like a perfect match. Yeah, it is. Why was now the right time?

SPEAKER_02 42:03

Well, it could have been five, ten, fifteen, twenty years ago. We could have done it, but we never did. And it's so weird because uh I have known we have known those guys for about 20 years, I think. We did um we did a very short European run with them. I want to say like like we did like seven shows or something in Europe with them. I want to say it was like 2006, maybe. And right away, me and Dan hit it off, and we have been really good friends ever since. Like I love that guy. We've um we've done kind of one-off festival shows like all over the world, and it's always like every time we like we just find each other, and you know, and it's like it's like no time has passed. We're just you know, Shane and Dan, we're back. It's it's pretty cool, and uh, and I you know the way that the way this tour shook out was kind of interesting too, because you know, we finished our tour in December, and we were trying to we didn't want to headline again like so soon, so we were trying to find another band that would take us out, which can be difficult, you know, to find the right tour uh to support. And um, I guess story of the year was kind of in the same boat, so I just hit up Dan and was like, Hey, what do you think? Should we just go out together this summer? And he's like, dude, I think it makes a lot of sense. It's about time. I think our fans would love it. Like, let's let's coordinate.

SPEAKER_00 43:27

And that was like two months ago, and here we are. Great, dude. You know, I was just recently I was just talking with Josh, and and I think there's kind of a similar sentiment with you guys as well. More recent material clicking with audiences almost like your OG material did. Like I, you know, story of the year in particular, you know, it's talking about the Falling to Pieces album. All of a sudden, people are kind of finding a similar relationship with that as they did with Paige Avenue. And I feel like you guys are kind of having a similar renaissance in the same way with your more recent material versus the older material. Do you find that?

SPEAKER_02 44:09

100%, man. And I think that that's, you know, when you when you ask the question about like, oh, you know, how do you know it's like the right time or whatever? I think like maybe it really is the right time because we've got all the people, you know, that have been with our bands, you know, since the beginning, or, you know, or they know until the day I die, or smile in your sleep. But like also we have a lot of new fans that are getting into this scene. Like, we're seeing the younger people coming out, and a lot of those people are are finding out about the about our band and story of the year through the new stuff. Our new stuff has performed really well. Really, like, really, we haven't we've been doing pretty well the whole time, really. Um uh and you know, story, story has had a bit of a hiatus, but like now they're back, and I think that their new music is like some of their best, and like their numbers are through the freaking roof right now with some of this stuff too. So it's really, really great to see. And uh yeah, I uh I couldn't be happier for them. Like they're just they've always been they've always been one of the best bands, period. But like I think live, like they're just they're there's no one like them. Like they just are incredible live, they always have been. I remember doing those European shows, like watching them play and be like, fuck, we gotta go on after them. Oh my god. That's gonna happen half this tour, you know. We're gonna have to go on right after them. But you know, I think that um that we're all we're all confident in in what we do, and I think that I think that, you know, given given all the all the I was gonna say kids, I think you're supposed to say fans now, but um, because you know it's weird calling a kid to like 38 years old and you call them a kid, but um but uh uh but I think the fan the fans coming out, you know, they're kind of getting two for one here, you know, two for the price of one, and and it's gonna be like it's gonna be awesome. Um and yeah, and we and we got origami angel on the tour too, which is like one of my favorite uh you know newer bands too. So I I'm I'm pumped.

SPEAKER_00 46:11

Dude, I'm pumped as well, and don't sell yourself short in any way, shape, or form. Silverstein puts on quite a show themselves, ladies and gentlemen. I tell you, Shane, there is a clip that I want you to watch on YouTube if you can find it. It's Henry Rollins talking about Iggy Pop and how he used to have to train because he would find out that Iggy Pop was going to open for him, and he's like, dude, he's gonna it is just it's a hilarious bit, dude. You should check it out. It's on the list.

SPEAKER_02 46:42

I will check it out. I mean, yeah, no, I both our bands are good at what we do.

SPEAKER_00 46:46

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 46:47

And I I'm not uh there's no there's it's not a competition, you know. Never, never but I mean I know that they're gonna kill it every night, and that's that just I'm just excited to watch them.

SPEAKER_00 46:57

Dude, that's awesome. So if somebody were to come out to the camp Screamo tour this summer, what's one moment that they absolutely can't miss from your set? Oof, that's a tough question.

SPEAKER_02 47:08

You know, I I think to be honest, we have not planned the set list yet. We've still got a couple months to work on it, you know. So I think like maybe TBA. I know it's not a very sexy answer, but I think, you know, we're going to curate a super great show. I mean, we've got like, you know, it's gonna be both both her bands co-headlining, both playing good long, long shows where we're gonna be able to pull out all the stops, you know. And I think it's I don't think you know, you just want to pop your head in for one song. I think this is gonna be something you're gonna wanna, you know, come early and stay late for. I think uh all the artists on this is are gonna be very, very, very good.

SPEAKER_00 47:49

So after a huge anniversary run, heading into a major tour, where do you feel Silverstein is at right now?

SPEAKER_02 47:56

Well, we're in a great position. I mean, we we you know, we really are as big as we've ever been. And that's like kind of crazy to say that after all these years, uh yeah, it's kind of shocking. But yeah, you know, we we came off like you know, our massive, massive headline tour. Our last show in New York is the biggest show we've ever headlined in the United States. It's pretty crazy. So, you know, uh it just feels good to be able to go out with our with some friends and have a little bit of fun this summer and not, you know, sure, there's a little bit of pressure as there always is when you you know you want to do a good job, you want to put it on a good show, but also like I know touring with Dan and the boys, like it's gonna be a good time. We're gonna be able to let loose, we're gonna have fun. So I think that that's just feels good that this is kind of a bit of a reward, maybe, for for working so hard last year and putting out two albums, and maybe I'll even uh pick up some of these guitars and write a song or two coming up, you know. Maybe I'll start working on that too. So yeah, we just we feel really great about where we are, and I really couldn't be more stoked.

SPEAKER_00 48:53

Dude, I am stoked. I have been so stoked to have this conversation with you. My closing question that I ask every guest that I have on the show, I love everybody's unique answer. From your personal experience, what's your advice for making the world a better place tomorrow than what it is today?

SPEAKER_02 49:11

Hmm. Man. Where to start? Where to start? I mean, you know, I guess you could start with holding the door for the old ladies at the bank and, you know, make sure you put your shopping cart back. You know, um, if you see someone drop money on the ground, you know, let them know. I think the common common courtesy goes a long way. I think, you know, a lot of people have a tremendous amount of anxiety and stress going on in their lives. And, you know, when you see somebody out in public, uh, you know, whether it's at the like the bank or the grocery store or the gym or whatever, like I think if you extend a little bit of courtesy and a little bit of kindness, I really do think that some for some people that that's all it takes to make their day. And I think that that showing people a little bit of courtesy in that way really does does make a make a difference. Doing the opposite also makes a difference, a very bad difference that can, I think, you know, do the opposite. So I don't know if it's a great answer, but that's my answer.

SPEAKER_00 50:12

No, that's perfect. Random acts of kindness, little little things you can do every day. I don't think big changes come without small movements, right?

SPEAKER_02 50:20

No, and I I think that so many people are just in their own damn heads now, you know, all the time. And like, you know, we we dream scroll on our phones and we see all this shit happening, what you know, whatever it is, if it's you know, the fact that we don't have any money or that like there's you know bombs going off in the Middle East, whatever it is, like this stuff is stressful. And you know, I think I think anything you can show do to show the world that like you know there's there's more going on than just that, and and you know, and you know, we gotta do what we can.

SPEAKER_00 50:51

So I love it. I love it. Ladies and gentlemen, check out the Camp Screamo tour when it comes to your market. We get a special stop in my market. That's when Camp Screamo meets up with Papa Roach on July 21st, I believe it is. Yes, July 21st at Council Bluffs, Iowa at Stir Concert Cove. I'm gonna be there. I'm hoping for some high fives and some hugs with my friends in Silver Steam.

SPEAKER_02 51:20

Those are gonna be some very, very sweaty hugs. That's what those are gonna be on July 21st.

SPEAKER_00 51:24

That's gonna be a hot one. I know, dude. It's it's gonna be crazy. I'm gonna bring this hoodie. I want to get a photo together and I want a signature on it, and it's going up on my wall. I won't be wearing it anymore after wearing it for 23 years. So no, I love it.

SPEAKER_02 51:40

We we can absolutely do that. Yeah, and if it gets too hot, we could just like duck in the casino, play some craps, and uh get cold, get cold again. Dude, I I like I like that Council Bluff's place, man.

SPEAKER_00 51:51

It's uh it's a good time. It's pretty dope. Shane, thank you so much for doing the show, man. I I loved having this conversation with you, and and I definitely want to have more in the future if we can make that absolutely, man.

SPEAKER_02 52:02

I I uh I owe you one for waiting for me. So anytime you want to have me back, I'd love to do it. But you're you're great at what you do, man. So thanks.

SPEAKER_00 52:09

Thank you. That means the world to me. Shane told everybody, the world's a much better place if you and it, my friend. Thanks a lot. Once again, I'd like to thank my friend Shane Told for joining me on the podcast today. That was awesome. One of my more favorite episodes, no doubt. Make sure you're following Shane at Shane Told, following Silverstein at Silverstein, and following his podcast, Leedsinger Syndrome at Leadstinger Syndrome, on Instagram. While you're being generous with the follows, make sure you're following Cot on the Mike at CotonTheMike on all social media platforms. Go to my YouTube channel, subscribe to the channel, and if I have anything to ask of you, please share an episode you enjoy with one of your friends. You can also visit the www.cotonthemic.com. That's my website. And email me at cotonhe at gmail.com for all booking inquiries or if you just want to say hi. That has been Caught on the Mic with Michael Clark. I'm Michael Clark. Until next time, thank you.