A BRIEF INTERVIEW WITH YURI FROM...

I heard that you guys recently signed to A&M records.
Yes, we did a joint thing with A&M and Tooth & Nail. So we’re just not on Tooth & Nail now. We’re on Tooth & Nail and A&M for Life In General and the next two albums. After that we’re just on A&M.

So it’s like a distribution thing for the new albums?
Yeah, A&M is going to help Tooth & Nail with an extra boost in marketing and promotion and stuff like that.

Does that have anything to do with you recent tour with Face To Face, because I know their on A&M?
No, Face To Face just wanted to go on the road with us. It wasn’t really a label thing.

I heard that you guys have been opening for a lot of really big main stream punk bands recently, like No Doubt.
We did a week with No Doubt up in the NorthEast. That was cool, it was an interesting experience. We played for 4000 people a night. When they played there was more of course, but for us there was 4000.

I heard you guys are playing with Social Distortion.
For one date in Santa Barbara. Hey! I use to have that watch (noticing the Yuri watch that my sister got me in France).

Have you noticed a difference in the type of crowds you’ve been drawing since when you started?
When we first started it was just the kids from our town and most of them didn’t like us. We put out Pockinatcha and then we started gaining fans. Our only distribution was through Christian bookstores, so our audience was primarily Christian kids. We always have had a mix of Christians and non-Christians buying our music. Although recently it seems to have taken a shift to more non-Christians buying our music then Christians since the last record. It wasn’t a plan or anything, it just happened.

Speaking of which, I’ve kind of noticed that your lyrics have taken a bit of a change in subject matter (from God to girls).
First of all I don’t write any of the songs, although I am the subject matter of some of the songs (rumor has it that Mike wrote the song Chick Magnet about Yuri). Mike seems to write a lot of songs about relationships with others.

Have you guys been getting a bit of flak from Christian media about that?
Yeah, because people see a change in lyrics and they think we’re selling out.

Is the band something you see yourself doing for the rest of your life?
No, not for the rest of my life. As far as my own personal life, I want to trust God and go where he wants me to go. If He wants me to quit this tomorrow then that is what is going to happen. If He wants me to do this until I’m old and gray then that’s what I’ll do.