To say we’re excited about the highly-anticipated Alkaline Trio album, Blood, Hair, And Eyeballs, the group’s first full-length since 2018’s Is This Thing Cursed?, would be a massive understatement. As of publishing, we are approximately 22 days (depending on where you’re located in the world) out until their tenth studio album officially drops via Rise Records on January 26. The album has already given fans a taste of its brilliance and what to expect from the full collection through the titular track and their latest emotionally charged anthem, “Bad Time.”
While we’re eagerly awaiting the arrival of their new collection, AK3 vocalist Matt Skiba joined Ted Stryker on the Tuna On Toast podcast to discuss the band’s forthcoming release, Skiba’s experiences working with blink-182 and his ongoing friendships with Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker, recording with Jerry Finn, as well as his least favorite Alkaline Trio album and why he can’t listen to it.
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“I can’t listen to—actually, I’ve gotten okay with it now because it is what it is—but our record Good Mourning,” Skiba shares of the band’s 2003 full-length. “I was so shredded, I was seeing Dr. Sugarman, the singer-doctor guy—great guy. Him and his brother, rest his soul, they’re beautiful people. His brother was like an addiction guru/recovery guru, and that was my intro into recovery…I was going through a hard time emotionally and just treating [and] self-medicating with beer. I had acid reflux, and it was shredding my throat.”
“I was in such a torn-up place [and] I don’t know who that guy is anymore,” Skiba continues. “But Good Mourning is still a rough listen for me. If you hear it, it’s like I can’t sing. Blegh. There’s notes, there’s things that…and Jerry was bummed. I was unhealthy. We did what we could. I stayed in Los Angeles for a month, which was also difficult because the relationship I was in at the time was what was amiss in my life…So yeah, Good Mourning is the one that I’m like, ‘Ehh, not so much.’ People love it, so I’m grateful for that.”
Interestingly, in a 2015 interview with co-vocalist/bassist Dan Andriano for Vice’s Rank Your Records segment, Andriano shares that Good Mourning evolved into his favorite Alkaline Trio record because of their “anthology shows.” He also goes on to share it it is a “weird record,” and it was “really hard to make” because of Skiba’s “crazy throat problems.” Despite the arduous creative process, the end result is undeniably impressive.
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While we’re definitely huge fans of Good Mourning, we’d 100% recommend the band’s forthcoming full-length release to any new AK3 listeners—it is that good. In the meantime, check out the full interview between Skiba and Stryker below.
Following the release of AK3’s tenth album, the group is scheduled to embark on an extensive, 28-date tour with Drug Church as support. You can check out the band’s full 2024 touring schedule below, and tickets can be purchased here.
Tour Dates:
- Feb. 22—Anaheim, CA @ HOB Anaheim
- Feb. 23—San Diego, CA @ SOMA
- Feb. 24—Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
- Feb. 26—Dallas, TX @ HOB Dallas
- Feb. 27—Austin, TX @ Stubbs
- Feb. 28—Houston, TX @ HOB Houston
- March 1—Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
- March 2—Orlando, FL @ HOB Orlando
- March 3—Charlotte, NC @ Fillmore Charlotte
- March 5—Washington, DC @ Fillmore Silver Spring
- March 6—Philadelphia, PA @ Fillmore Philadelphia
- March 8—Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theater and Ballroom
- March 9—Queens, NY @ Knockdown Center
- March 10—Boston, MA @ HOB Boston
- March 12—Toronto, ON @ History
- March 13—Montreal, QC @ Beanfield
- March 15—Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
- March 16—Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
- March 17—St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
- March 18—Minneapolis, MN @ Fillmore Minneapolis
- March 20—Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium
- March 21—Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
- March 23—Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
- March 24—Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre
- March 25—Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
- March 27—San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic
- March 29—Los Angeles, CA @ Novo
- March 30—Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas