Plain White T's

MEMBERS:

Tom Higgenson (guitar/lead vocals),
Dave Tirio (guitar),
Maike Retondo (bass/vocals),
De'Mar Hamilton (drums),
Tim Lopez (guitar/vocals).

Album:

Every Second Counts.

Release Date:

In stores now.

You'll Like 'Em If You Like:

Sugarcult, Simple Plan, Fall Out Boy, Jimmy Eat World.

Plain White T's on Plain White T's in Five Words or Less:

Dedicated, friendly, ridiculous, nerdy, talented (they told us to put a question mark, but we're giving them an exclamation point)!

Are you a video game fan?
[When I was a kid,] I was obsessed, for sure. I love video games. I get the most excited when I run into old games, especially arcade games. If we're walking and I see a Ms. Pacman/Galaga games, I always put a couple of quarters in there. I can't escape that to save my life!

Enough about video games -- tell me about the band. What's it like now that Chicago is becoming such an important place for music
It's the first time in a long time where labels can look to Chicago as a fertile ground to scout. Back when we started, the scene was just starting up in the suburbs as far as we knew it. Obviously, before us there were some great bands -- Smashing Pumpkins blew up to crazy heights through the Chicago scene. There were kind of more mid-level bands, too. Everything was clicking, and those bands had their shot [but they] didn’t click the way they were supposed to. Then Fall Out Boy and The Academy Is… came out three or four years ago. And that’s when everything started to upswing. We're like them in sound [and] what we wanted to accomplish, that alternative/indie sound with melodies and hooks. Once we found Fall Out Boy and Academy, when we felt like, OK -- this is our scene and this is what's coming up. Everyone has been taking those steps up and up every year in their own little way. We're very proud. It's a wonderful thing to have respect for your hometown.

Aww. So while we're being cheesy, tell us your favorite part of being in Plain White Ts.
The obvious thing is camaraderie. [We've] stuck together through hard times, pulled together, and relied on each other. I've had a lot of friends who tried to act, and I always thought I was so lucky because trying to make it in a band and trying to make it as an actor is kind of similar. Basically every show is like an audition -- you have to prove yourself to everyone and prove to people that you're worth their time. But the difference [is] that we have five guys we can have as support group, but as an actor, you're out doing it alone -- it's gotta be so hard. The best part is trying to succeed in something, having your friends to do it with you, and accomplishing something with people that mean a lot to you. And hopefully, [we] make a bunch of kids happy by playing music.

THE OOHLAS