Photo By Nasty Little Man

Alkaline Trio cut back (somewhat) on their excesses and recorded their latest album, Crimson, hangover-free.

A few years ago, in an interview with this writer, Alkaline Trio singer/guitarist Matt Skiba suggested that even if he became considerably happier with his life, his songs would continue to have the dark themes that have become his trademark.

"There are things that I have in me that aren't going to go away any time soon," Skiba said in 2003. "So there's always something to write about. There are things in my life that I'm really happy about. There are things in my life that I'll never be happy about. So I think it's necessary, and I'm thankful for all these experiences I have. I think they make somebody who they are. Luckily, I'm never too short on material for dark subject matter."

Skiba obviously knew what he was talking about. The new Alkaline Trio album, Crimson, comes at a point where the singer/guitarist has more reasons than ever to be content. But one wouldn't know it by listening to its songs.

"There are stories on this record that are coming directly from my experiences, but (also) how other experiences have affected me," says Skiba, in a recent phone interview. "Before we were kind of writing a lot about make-believe horror. On this record we're writing more about real-life horror. I think it's the darkest record we've ever written. I think, at least for us, because we know what we're talking about; it's the saddest and darkest record. I like it."

As Skiba hinted, a sense of turmoil, harm and doom pervades many of the songs on Crimson, including "Burn" ("This impending doom is left deep inside/And it's haunting you each and every night"); "I Was A Prayer" ("Had a nice grip on life 'til you twisted my arm."); and "Dethbed" ("Calling all cars all coroners we've got a dead one here").

Real life, however, seems to be treating Skiba and his bandmates (bassist/singer Dan Andriano and drummer Derek Grant) well. The three are all experiencing romantic stability, with Andriano having gotten married and Skiba and Grant having steady girlfriends. Skiba says he is also leading a less destructive life.

"I've just been taking better care of myself," he says. "I've kind of cut back on the drinking and the drugging. I just kind of pick my battles these days. We still like to have a good time, but the older you get, the harder it gets to maintain that lifestyle, and I just kind of took a step away from it and realized it was a smart move. Making a record when you're not hung over is awesome."

Crimson is arguably Alkaline Trio's most consistently potent record and is considerably brighter than the dark lyrics might suggest. On "Time To Waste," an elegant piano intro gives way to a hard-driving rocker. The echoed guitars that open "Burn" set the stage for a dynamic, simmering rocker. The concise "The Poison," "Dethbed" and "Your Neck" are among the hookiest songs the band has ever crafted.

If there is any contrast between Crimson and the band's previous work, it would be that the group's talent for crafting straight-ahead Pop melodies is even more apparent. Still, the album seems like a natural progression from 2003's Good Mourning. But Skiba sees little difference in the band's music on Crimson, noting that the band's mix of Punk energy and Pop melody is still very much intact.

"I think it's just a better Alkaline Trio record," he says. "I like to think of it as a progression," he says. "I think we are still influenced by a lot of the same things from when we first started the band. Hopefully we've just gotten better. I've heard people say it's more of a Rock record than a Punk record, and that's fine with me."

The band began developing their sound in 1997 when Andriano joined Skiba and drummer Glenn Porter in the original version of the Chicago-based band. The group quickly landed a deal with Asian Man Records and released two well-received CDs for that label before stepping up to the larger indie, Vagrant Records, for their first-rate 2000 album From Here To Infirmary.

By that time, Porter had departed and had been replaced by former Smoking Popes drummer Mike Felumlee. A pair of tours with blink-182, along with Vagrant's burgeoning profile, helped raise Alkaline Trio's visibility.

But all was not smooth within the band, and before work began on Good Mourning, Felumlee quit and was replaced by Derek Grant. Even though Grant doesn't write the songs, he has become a key contributor, both as a co-producer (with Jerry Finn) and in providing his input with song arrangements.

"Definitely it feels like equal parts of each of us in all those songs," Skiba says. "I know Derek feels the same way. Yeah, it's great. He has a lot to do with the way those songs sound now."

In fact, Alkaline Trio sounds more cohesive than ever on Crimson. In the past, it's been fairly easy to see a contrast in the songwriting, with Skiba's songs being notably darker than those written by Andriano. On Crimson, that distinction has blurred, and the result is a more unified sound.

"That was ... one of the few things we did that was really conscious," Skiba says. "I think this album, the songs breathe a bit more and I think Dan and I are singing on each other's songs more than ever, and we really tried to make them fit together and kind of flow -- make the whole record one piece, although the songs are each about something different."

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