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Heads in the clouds: How The Maine’s untouchable, fierce independence has created something genuine

If you go back in the history of Tempe, Arizona’s pop-rock, lovebird band called The Maine,

you’ll eventually come to a point where the band notes struggle and strife as a result of being tied to Warner Bros. Records during the making and release of their 2010 record, Black & White. It sounds like a pretty classic case of creative stifling, but the important thing is that, when they got out, they stayed independent. Pioneer, Forever Halloween, American Candy and now, Lovely Little Lonely, as well as a smattering of support content, has all been released independently.

Lovely Little Lonely is brand-spanking new (it’s still got that new-record smell), and when it dropped, it was hard not to look back at the legacy The Maine has spent the last 10 years building. Ten years in the music industry is a remarkable amount of time to remain relevant – just look at The Maine’s tour history and see the number of former tour mates that have dissolved in the big swirl of the music scene. And like most bands that have stuck around, The Maine has shown a stark change in form, maturing from the summer’s hottest neon/emo pop band to a refined and handsome rock band.

It is 10 years, after all. They were teenagers starting out. Now they’re approaching 30. They’ve got some things under their belt. Their career and independence has coalesced under the so-called 8123 family, which they have been building up for years. In fact, their current Lovely Little Lonely tour is an 8123 venture, with fellow members Beach Weather filling the first opening slot. Between all of these factors – their lengthy career, their independence as 8123, their numerous albums – there’s something else that rises to the surface: This is a band that is greatly admired by their fan base. You only have to pay attention to the social media chatter or walk the line to get into the show to get a sense for it. There is loyalty here.

Part of this, no doubt, stems from The Maine’s total, unflinching commitment to being available to fans. During the 2016 Vans Warped Tour, the band’s merch tent had “Why would you pay money to meet a human being?” printed big and bold on it. That about sums up the band’s approach to meeting fans. In a guest post on Medium reflecting on 10 years as a band, they write,

“We had grown tired of seeing other bands charge their fans for meaningless photos or meet and greets instead of adapting to the state of the industry. These bands who have stayed behind the curve struggle to make money, and as a result end up passing those costs onto their loyal fanbase with pay-to-win schemes like VIP packages and signings.”

They put their money where their mouth is, too – after the show in Orlando, the band spent plenty of time meeting with crowds of leftover fans. This total rejection of the VIP model is rare in the scene, with bands often quietly charging for exclusive meet and greets with varying levels of unique bonuses. This isn’t to say that the issue is some clear-cut thing or that VIP meet and greets are an objectively bad approach – just that this is the way The Maine has chosen to go.

It’s just a small slice of a type of authenticity that emanates from The Maine – fan interaction, music, work ethic, staying power. When bands thrive for as long as The Maine have, and they have fans that have stuck with them through it all or new fans discovering a bounty of new and old releases, there’s a real sense of maturity that feeds directly into how they carry their live show.

Lovely Little Lonely, the new album and namesake for this tour, exists in a bubble that The Maine have been working on since Pioneer. The Maine’s independence has afforded them a certain sense of separation from the music scene as a whole – not alienation, but you get the sense they’re doing their own thing. Since their split with Warner Brothers Records, their albums have captured a vitality and vigor that is difficult to find elsewhere. American Candy (2015) was a superb example of this, but Lovely Little Lonely arguably surpasses even it. Lovely Little Lonely is cohesive, exploratory and emotional, both musically and lyrically. And that’s emotional – the full word, not the three-letter shorthand, which has different connotations.

Part of the magic of The Maine as a single unit is how tightly their music is written. Jared Monaco and Kennedy Brock (lead and rhythm guitar, respectively) bring in some really creative arrangements, often a crafted blend of traditional rock and roll and the alternate/emo/pop legacy that has been a part of The Maine’s past. So you end up with some heavy-hitting instrumentals, such as the solo in “Taxi,” the rolling fervor of “Bad Behavior” or the crunchiness of “Do You Remember? (The Other Half Of 23).”

And vocalist John O’Callaghan brings mature, confident lyrics, presented in his trademark silky suave melodies. It’s difficult not to be absorbed in the feelings of the moment when he coolly rolls off lines such as “To the lows in every high / The hellos in the goodbyes / In this moment I could die with you / Never felt like this before / Dizzy drunk and beautiful” (“Don’t Come Down”) or “In the back seat / When you asked me / ‘Is the sadness everlasting?’ / I pulled you close, looked at you, and said, ‘Love, I think it is” (“Taxi”). Lovely Little Lonely is full of phenomenally well-structured and packed songs – it never feels like you’re coming across filler content, especially since the transition tracks (“Lovely,” “Little” and “Lonely,” fittingly) give the album a good pacing.

American Candy made you wonder if the band could outdo themselves, and with Lovely Little Lonely, it seems the answer is “yes.” In Orlando, the band opened with Lovely Little Lonely’s “Black Butterflies and Déjà Vu,” a touching tune about the fever of love and not knowing how to express said love. But their set rolled through a far-reaching chunk of their whole catalog, even throwing in “The Way We Talk” from their 2007 EP The Way We Talk. Other notable picks were “Am I Pretty?,” “Another Night On Mars,” “Take What You Can Carry” and “My Heroine.”

All dressed up, with a stage décor bristling with ambiance, The Maine put on a dashing performance. O’Callaghan charms and commands the attention of the crowd with a surprising amount of ease, rounding out his role as a vocalist by being an engaging frontman. He jokes with people, talks about shirts people are wearing, comments on what’s going on and, perhaps most importantly, gives the whole room attention. As the one talking and singing the most, he breathes the personality of the band’s show into the air, and it intoxicates you. At one point, the band brought a fan on stage (as they often do) – “Ryan from New Jersey” – and encouraged him to sing the rest of “Girls Do What They Want,” all while O’Callaghan called him “his new boyfriend.”

Between their label independence and ethic when it comes to meeting fans, it’s relatively easy to see how the theatrics and cohesion of their whole show (and existence as a band) are maintainable. This band is not locked in a contract. This band is not being pushed to do something they don’t want to. This band is not being pushed to act or write a certain way.

The Maine is pure passion, guided by their own hands. It’s OK if you don’t like their music, but you should acknowledge that this is a band who has carved an entire corner out for themselves, and it’s all on them.

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Article and photos by sonder editor Andrew Friedgen. Enjoy this? Sonder is an independent music, travel and photography feature journal published at sonderlife.com. Give us a follow here or at our Twitter, Instagram or Facebook if you like in-depth talk about music, travel, photography and lots more.

Also check out:

Our past photos of The Maine

All photos from the Lovely Little Lonely tour in Orlando

We’re giving away a few signed copies of a sonder-exclusive photo of John O’Callaghan. Check the details here.

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