Matthew Morgis

It may be happening to some people right now during Lent: You take a break from something only to be reminded just how much you actually love it. Yellowcard, a five piece pop-rock group from Los Angeles, decided take a breather for about two years — rather than 40 days — and as a result, the band is back and stronger than ever. They kick off their first U.S. tour in three years at the Kingston Armory Friday, March 18 with We the Kings. Then, the band will continue with “The Dirty Work Tour” which also features All Time Low, Hey Monday and The Summer Set.

Yellowcard will be releasing its seventh studio album, “When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes,” March 22 via Hopeless Records. The album features one ballad, and the rest of the songs are fast-paced tunes, which is a good mix of old and new Yellowcard. It has some songs in the vein of the band’s earlier material, while still capturing the alternative rock sound the group developed with its two previous releases. Violinist Sean Mackin phoned in from Scotland, while speaking over exploding fans as All Time Low just took the stage, to chat about the current state of the group.

WEEKENDER: What was the reason for the short hiatus, and why did you guys decide to get back together and record this new album?

MACKIN: The indefinite hiatus was a culmination of a few different events. We had been touring at that point for about 280 days per year for eight years. When you tour like that, you sacrifice things like personal relationships, family and friends. Our record label then went out of business, and it seemed like everywhere we looked everything became more and more difficult. So, we took a step back, focused on ourselves, and then decided to have another go after a few years.

MORGIS: How has the vibe been between the band members?

MACKIN: It’s awesome! It’s the beginning of an amazing Yellowcard chapter. We are so pumped, and I don’t want to give you a boring interview, but we are just so excited for the release of the record.

MORGIS: How have some of the new songs been received so far?

MACKIN: We released our first teaser “For You, And Your Denial,” and it ended up exploding into our first single. “Hang You Up” was then released and we are playing that one live as well. It doesn’t slow the set down, and kids are singing along and throwing their hands up in the air, which is I guess what they do these days.

MORGIS: How has the band evolved from its first release?

MACKIN: Well we have always been about good friends and good music. I think that is still very true about Yellowcard. When you start a band with friends from high school, very rarely do you talk to all of those people 15 years later. Right now this is our finest version of Yellowcard. Plus we have media outlets like Facebook and Twitter that we never had before.

WEEKENDER: What was it like not working with a major label this time around?

MACKIN: Hopeless has been an amazing partner in a label. We had a great run with Capitol; we were very close with our representatives. We had to look at the music industry right now, and be aware of the economy. Being a band that has toured as much as we have, we have the support of fans. We want to build off of it, but we aren’t going out and playing shows for people that have never heard of us before. We aren’t in a building stage. We do want to go out and get new fans, but we mostly want to go out and thank our current ones. Hopeless has been the perfect partner for that. They haven’t stepped in the way artistically like labels tend to do. Again, when I say it comes together all too good to be true, its definitely the case.

MORGIS: What can fans expect to hear at the show Friday?

MACKIN: We’ve been taking requests via Twitter, and they can send them over to @smackinyc. We are putting together different sets every night, but there is a little something for everyone. We also are playing some older tunes that we have never played live before which is cool. We will be able to do a lot with a headlining slot.