Why White Lung Aren’t Afraid of Pop
"The thing is, you can't keep writing the same record over and over again."

This month will see the release of Paradise, the fourth full-length from White Lung and the follow-up to the near-universally lauded Deep Fantasy. Though labeled a punk band, the Canadian trio has made a reliable counterpoint to such confinements. Since their debut with 2010’s It’s the Evil, the group has followed up like clockwork with a release every two years, and while each has seen a slight change in dynamic for the music, it’s on Paradise that White Lung have taken their most significant musical turn yet. Pop sensibilities are nothing new to punk. Hell, if anything, pop and punk are like siblings close in age who are either kicking each other’s ass or hugging it out.
Hooks and brevity are the name of the game, and White Lung’s instinct for both are given full reign on Paradise. It’s an album that, even with its distinct differences to the band’s prior releases, still holds the group’s characteristic in-and-out songwriting that feels like a cross between a punch and a high five. For Mish Way (vocals) and Kenneth “Kenny” William (guitars), the change in creative direction wasn’t some arbitrary move in the hopes that their appeal would reach a wider audience. We caught up with Way and William recently to talk about why the change was necessary for White Lung.
Paste: Paradise is a pretty significant shift for White Lung’s sound. Was there something specific that led you guys to that change?
Mish Way: Well, we knew that we had to make a record that still sounded like us but pushed the boundaries of what we could do. We didn’t want to be afraid of pop and melody, and I wanted to prove that I could sing as well as create the best hooks that I possibly could. We put a lot of value and a lot of time into production. Kenny spent a lot of time on his guitar work and making it sound like it wasn’t a guitar half the time. The thing is, you can’t keep writing the same record over and over again. We could, but that’s not the kind of people we are, or the kind of band we want to be. It’s hard because you want to improve and grow as a band without completely alienating the loyal fans you already have. I think we struck that balance with this record.
Kenneth William: I think a lot of at least what I heard about our previous records was that all our songs sound the same, and while I respectfully disagree, I think we put a lot more work into making each song sound a lot different with the sound design and the way the guitars are, the tempo, and the little fluctuations in genre with this record, and I think we pretty much succeeded in doing that. We didn’t want to make the same record again.
Way: We took into account our personal goals as well as, like Kenny said, the criticism that all of our songs sound the same, and tried to make something that accomplished those personal goals as well as taking into account the general consensus. Plus we worked with a new producer, so that’s a whole new perspective being put into the songwriting process, because we ended up writing about 60 percent of our material in the studio. Every song we wrote came to life in the studio. Nothing was completely done, at least not on my end. Every single vocal line that I even had as an idea was changed once we got into the studio, and I think that happened maybe a little bit on Deep Fantasy but not quite as much as it did on this record. I really took my time in the studio and worked very heavily with Lars [Stalfors], who was our producer, to make the best melodies that I could.
William: There’s really only one way we can go. We have to become better songwriters and learn how to play our instruments better and make more interesting sounds, because it’s kind of the only way we can go on a new record. It would kind of be insane if we just put out a hardcore record that we recorded on a trashcan as our fourth album. [laughs]