California’s Unwritten Law have stayed at the forefront of punk since forming in 1990. AMH’s Luke Bunworth caught up with frontman Scott Russo about their impending visit for Soundwave 2012,  latest album ‘Swan’ and much more.

So what has been happening in the Unwritten Law camp lately?

We got off doing the American Warped tour followed by an American headline tour. Right now, we’re just gearing up and getting ready to come down to Australia for Soundwave.

You last released ‘Swan.’  Tell us about it.
Yeah, it was going to be called ‘Swan Song,’ but when we finished the record, we all liked it so much that we decided that we didn’t want it to be an end all and be all. So we decided to call it ‘Swan’ as a kind of rebirth. It’s kind of how the whole story about the title of the record came about.

How would you compare it to previous offerings?
I think that every album in Unwritten Law’s discography has been a bit different. We don’t put out a record every year – we put out a record every three or four, two to three years. During that time, you can be influenced by different sounds and different new bands. I just think with ‘Swan’ – I never want to paint the same picture twice, so with anything I am creating, I’m trying to make it as next level as I personally can. I think ‘Swan’ is a good example of what we do, and how we’ve evolved through each record.

How did you find the reception for the record?
Everyone I have talked to has loved the record. Every review we’ve gotten in general has been amazing. We’ve had a couple, obviously as you do, you find haters here and there. Overall, the response has been amazing.

Unwritten Law toured Australia early last year with fellow Soundwave 2012 stars Heroes for Hire. How was that tour?
It went really well. Australia’s always been really good to us. When we come down there, those shows are generally the best shows we have in the world. Australian kids go off, Australian shows go off. For us, when we come to Australia, it is the most amazing experience. That tour, along with every time we come to Australia, was definitely amazing. Last time was definitely amazing as we had not been out for a while, and the guys in Heroes for Hire were great. There were a whole bunch of good bands on there – Drawcard and a whole bunch of other bands.

You’ll be returning for Soundwave in 2012. How excited are you for the shows?
I’m really fucking excited. I can’t wait to be down there. To be on a bill with so many amazing acts, and so many acts of different rock genres with quite a few historical bands… It’s a pinnacle point in any band’s career when you get to share the stage, get to travel and play with these bands. It really is an honour to play on the festival so everyone is extremely excited to get down there. We can’t wait.

The lineup is pretty huge, who are you most excited to tour alongside?
We have a lot of friends in bands. We recently did the Warped tour as I said, so it’ll be cool to see Black Veil Brides and Relient K. We also are friends with Bad Religion – Greg Graffin worked on our second record. It’ll be amazing to catch up with Bad Religion. I am a fan of System of a Down, so with them reuniting, it’ll be pretty amazing. They put it on pretty hard. There are so many bands on the bill – Angels and Airwaves and The Used. The list goes on and on.

You are no strangers to Soundwave stages. What keeps bringing you back?
We did the first Soundwave ever [back in 2004]. [Then in 2005,] We did it with Grinspoon, and that was grouse. We’re friends with Grinspoon and we love those guys. We’ve known those guys for a very long time. But yeah, it’s really cool to be invited back about ten years later. We’re all looking forward to it. It’s obviously grown. I mean, from 10,000 tickets sold to 200-300 thousand or whatever tickets are sold. I was talking to AJ [Maddah, Soundwave promoter] about it too. Next year will end up trumping this year too, so it’s really amazing. I think the kids in Australia are really lucky to witness such an amazing lineup every year.

You’re playing two headline shows with Zebrahead and Royal Republic. What can we expect from these shows, perhaps in comparison to the festival set?
In the festival, obviously the set is going to be a lot shorter –anywhere from probably 30 to 40 mins, I’m not sure. With that many bands, and the limited number of stages, I can only imagine the sets will be pretty short. That being said, during those festival shows, we’ll be playing a majority of the singles and a few fan favourites. We’ll be in and out. While on the headlining shows will be an extended set of about an hour and a half from our whole discography – fan favourites, singles, alongside quite a bit from the new record ‘Swan.’

Are you excited to play with Zebrahead and Royal Republic?
Yeah, definitely. We have toured the United States with Zebrahead and became friends with those guys. It’ll be nice to catch up with them. They’re great guys and a great band. Royal Republic are a cool band too so it’ll be great to play with them.

In the last few years, punk and pop punk hasn’t been so much in the forefront of the whole alternative scene. Lately, however, there seems to have been resurgence with another new wave of bands getting popular, accompanied by a large number of reunions. What’s your opinion?
The revival of punk again? Well, fuck, it worked the first four times. [laughs]  I think that with any kind of music that you create, you have to feel it, you have to own it and you have to make it your own. So if you are making punk rock, you have to make it your own. If someone comes out with a dope new punk band, then I’m super hyped. If it revitalises the whole scene, then that’s amazing. I am more into music no matter what genre it is.

Despite these new bands starting and the reunions, Unwritten Law have been a constant the entire time. Do you feel that you have managed to keep up with the changing industry?
I guess Unwritten Law has always gone against the grain. We have never done things the way we were supposed to. That’s probably led to us being at fault in a lot of points in our career, but it’s allowed us to keep it fresh. It’s kept us under the radar enough that we’re not overdoing it to anyone, but enough to keep us going. Our band has been pretty fortunate to avoid the pitfalls – genres dropping out, this and that. We have always kind of changed shape and morphed before the drop offs will happen.

How would you say the internet has assisted in the industry changing?
The internet has definitely made music free with file sharing and piracy. What it has really done to the music industry has taken the emphasis off selling records. You now want to make a record so you can go tour. It’s really oversaturated the market for touring bands as everyone now has to tour to do what they love, as with music being free, there’s no kind of income coming from that. Other than that, it has done amazing things. You don’t need a major label push to get something out there. You can make a video, put it on the internet, come back a month later to a million hits and be an instant success. The record company didn’t have to do that. A band can nowadays create the music in your house, a video on your iPhone, put it on the internet and you could be the next big thing. The purpose of the major label is no longer a necessity to make it.

What advice do you have for budding young bands out there?
Play music from your heart. Do what you feel is right and eat all your vegetables [laughs]

Have Unwritten Law begun thinking about the next record yet?
No, not yet. We’re still on the touring cycle for ‘Swan.’ We are coming out with a new single in February ‘Nevermind.’

What else can we expect from Unwritten Law in 2012?
In 2012, we’ll be making laps of Australia and Japan, the United States and that’s about it – possible putting out an acoustic record by the end of the year.

Anything else you would like to add?
Thanks for the love and support from all out fans, and can’t wait to come for Soundwave.

Catch Unwritten Law at Soundwave.

Saturday 25 February – Brisbane, RNA Showgrounds *SOLD OUT*
Sunday 26 February – Sydney, Showground *SOLD OUT*
Friday 2 March – Melbourne, Showgrounds * SOLD OUT*
Saturday 3 March – Adelaide, Bonython Park
Monday 5 March – Perth, Claremont Showgrounds

Catch Unwritten Law at their sidewaves with Zebrahead and Royal Republic.