Whether you’ve seen Stars in Stereo on tour with Bullet for My Valentine, Halestorm, P.O.D. or Flyleaf, it’s likely that the band has come through your town at least once. This California rock outfit has toured from coast to coast on their first record and now they are gearing up for the release of their follow up disc. We recently had the chance to speak with guitarist Jordan McGraw who revealed the title of their new album, the aptly monikered ‘Leave Your Mark.’

In addition to revealing the album title, McGraw also spoke about the 'Leave Your Mark' recording sessions, the significance of the title and their upcoming trek with You Me At Six. He also dished on why purple Gatorade and Jack Daniels are so important on the road and much more. Check out our interview with Jordan McGraw of Stars in Stereo below:

How has progress on the new material been going?

We just finished recording like a week ago and we’re on to mixing now. It sounds awesome, it’s exactly what we wanted to do so we’re happy with it.

How did you want your sound to evolve on this record?

Well we sat down and talked about it. The one thing we noticed between the last album and where we are now is a lot of people would come up to us on the road and say, “Your album was awesome but you guys are so much better live.” It’s a compliment for sure but we’d like people to say, “Your album sounds awesome and you guys pull it off.” We want for them to be equal. We really wanted to capture the energy we put on live and keep some of that raw element that comes through in our live performance. It’s a little heavier and more live sounding I guess.

You mentioned that you guys finished recording. How was the process for you?

It was awesome, every song came together really quick. We don’t write a hundred songs and then pick ten. We decide early on in the songwriting process if we’re going to continue with a song or not. So we wrote about 15 songs, completely finished them and then picked 12 from there.

What’s the name of the new record? What does this title mean to you personally?

It is called ‘Leave Your Mark.’ The first single is called ‘Leave Your Mark,’ but we picked the title for different reasons. We wanted to make an album that reflected how we are live, how we play and the energy that the music gives us and we literally wanted to leave our mark with this new sound and with this new album. We wanted to instill this idea in our fans and new fans to come. We wanted to just say, “No matter what it is when you leave this world you want to have something of yourself that remains, something that you’re proud of and that is important.” That’s what we’re trying to do with this album, to start a whole new chapter and continue the growth of this band.

The title track, ‘Leave Your Mark,’ will be the new single. Can you talk about where it comes from?

I’m not exactly sure when we’re going to put out the new single but it’s a song we got to play live. We wrote it probably six months ago and we’ve played it live over the last two tours so people have heard it. It’s a song that’s kind of freeing, I won’t give away too much but it’s a song about being open about who you are and being liberated in that way. There’s another theme to it that I’ll leave out there until it comes out.

When can we expect the album to be released?

It will come out this summer for sure, early summer. We’re ready to put it out, we’re not wasting any time.

What about who you guys are as artists and people today can we hear on the new album?

Oh man, I think what we all did going into this was challenge ourselves and do things that we hadn’t really done yet. I think the new music really reflects that because we all spent twice as long getting out parts right on this album and making sure we were putting the right thing, not just what fit. I think you can hear that attention to detail to the music and how connected to these songs we are. They’re not just random rock songs that we threw together that had catchy hooks or whatever. As cheesy as it sounds, the songs are little pieces of us, it’s something that we really put a lot of time into and our heart and soul into.

You guys toured like crazy on the last record and you’re gearing up to go out with You Me At Six. What are you looking forward to most about this experience?

I have some friends who have toured with them and they said that they’re absolutely amazing people. We always try and make friends with who we’re on tour with and watch them every night and try and learn from them. I’m excited about that, I like their music and I’ve heard good things about them. Who wouldn’t be excited?

You’ve toured with numerous bands, everyone from Bullet to My Valentine and Halestorm to P.O.D. and Flyleaf. What is one band you’d love to tour with that you haven’t hit the road with yet?

Oh wow, like a dream band to tour with? It’d probably be Foo Fighters or Thirty Seconds to Mars, I would love to do that.

Stars In Stereo are truly road dogs at heart, so with all of this touring coming up what is one thing you must have on tour with you. No electronics.

For me, it’s either purple Gatorade or Jack Daniels. Not together, I have put them together and it’s disgusting so don’t try it. I need Jack Daniels at night and purple Gatorade when I wake up.

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