(May 9, 2008) PCM's Kristyn got the chance to talk to Matt Wantland, guitarist for the band 10 Years. They are set for a summer tour and the buzz about their most recent album, "Division," has been positive. Matt was nice enough to share tidbits about his musical influences, crazy fans and a new addition to the 10 Years family.

Kristyn: Hi, this is Kristyn, is this Matt? How are you doing?

Matt: It is, I'm doing fine.

K: Great, where you are located right now?

M: Actually, I'm home, sitting on the patio having a beer!

K: That's nice to take a break from touring a little bit, huh?

M: Yeah, it's nice, keeps you sane.

K: I can imagine. Can you tell our site readers about the band? How did you all meet and begin playing together?

M: We were all friends that played together and we kind of pulled all the good pieces from all the local bands around and put it together.

K: Okay, so your new album, "Division," is due out on May 13th, are you looking forward to the release?

M: Yeah, it's been a long time coming! We're ready for it.

K: How's the feedback on the album been so far?

M: So far, it's been good. It's got a lot of different styles on it and everyone seems to like it. We let our influences shine on this record.

K: Who would you say are your main musical influences?

M: I listen to a lot of indi stuff, The Beatles, Nirvana, Massive Attack, it's kind of everywhere.

K: Do you have a favorite track off the new CD?

M: You know, there's a song on there called, "So Long Good-bye," it's a live take and it's probably one of my favorites, it just has a really good mood to it.

K: That's awesome! Do you have any favorites that you like to play live? Which ones seem to get the crowd going?

M: (pauses) I love to play everything live, we like the live energy and that's where we thrive. It's good to be on stage, in general.

K: That's important. You've been on the road quite a bit! You're getting ready to head out on the road in Project Revolution with Linkin Park later this summer, correct?

M: Yes, we are!

K: Can you tell us about that? Are you excited?

M: Yes, it's just a giant party and everyone gets to be great friends - the bands and the crew.

K: You're playing the Revolution, the side stage right?

M: Yea, we are playing before Atreyu, I believe.

K: They are a good band too!

M: It's kind of a diverse show, it's a lot of bands you really wouldn't think would be put together, but that's cool.

K: What's been the most memorable moment of your career thus far?

M: Oh god, I don't know. I would say when, "Wasteland," went to #1, it's one of those things you can hope for and pray for, but you never know if it'll actually happen. It's jaw-dropping.

K: I can understand why! Can you tell our readers a bit about the writing process, what comes first?

M: Usually it's the music and the melody plays off that. There's no set way though- sometimes it comes fast, sometimes it comes slowly. It takes so long to get the record done at times. Sometimes you can sit there all day and try to write something, it gets frusterating. Sometimes the best songs come when you aren't trying, that's honest.

K: If you were to describe your sound to a first time listener, how would you classify yourselves?

M: Oh man, that's a hard question. We have so many different styles. It's modern hard rock, honestly, I could sit here and try but I don't know if I could classify it.

K: Right, understandable. It's a mosaic! How did you come up with the name 10 years?

M: We put the band together and we didn't have a name. It was actually a song title and we made it a name and it fit. It stuck with us ever since.

K: Where do you see the picture of music heading and where do you see 10 years in that picture?

M: Well, hopefully we'll keep going and getting new fans. I'm not really sure where music is going, everything is so scattered now with the Internet and people are finding things out their own way. It's hard to tell, you know? Everything changes so fast. Myspace is a brilliant way to stay in touch with fans, you can connect whenever you want. It's a good thing. A good way to keep in touch and answer questions. It's much more personal now.

K: Do you guys maintain your own page?

M: Yes, we do! I spent most of my bored hours in my house on it, answering emails and adding friends. I don't want a management company doing it for us. I feel bad sometimes because it is hard to answer all the questions but we do as much as we can.

K: Any crazy fan experiences yet?

M: Yea, you know, there was one girl and she ending up tattoo'ing Jesse's {another 10 years band member} name on her arm and then she moved from California to our hometown and tried to start dating Jesse's brother, which was strange. It was borderline insanity there. Freaky.

K: What's next on the horizon for you guys?

M: We've got unfinished songs that didn't make this album, but once we get on the road, we will start writing again.

K: What do you enjoy doing in your spare time when you aren't on the road?

M: Our drummer, Brian, just had a baby last night so I'm pretty sure that's what he's going to be doing. I just bought a house so I've been pulling weeds for the last few days. I'm not used to that, I've always lived in an apartment and one day, I was like, " I have to really cut my grass."

K: Can you tell our site readers one interesting fact about the band that we may not already know?

M: Tricky question as well, I don't know what they already know. We are pretty normal guys. We play a lot of Un-O on the bus. We talk a lot of trash during it, ha! Lewis is the reigning champ right now, he's good.

K: How do you think you've grown from this release to the previous album?

M: We've grown up a lot. I was 23, I'll be 27 this year. I think the first record, we were scared to branch out. This time, we did anything we wanted to do. We've grown as people.

K: Well, we wish you guys much success with the release! Any final comment?

M: I hope everyone enjoys the album as much as we do!