After a four year break from existence, pop punk veterans Orange are back in a new formation. With their comeback single ‘Late Nights and Early mornings’ just out, a comeback tour around the corner and a whole new album out next year, vocalist and guitarist Joe Dexter found some time to sit down with The Argus to talk about the band’s history, it’s comeback and their new releases.
How did Orange first come to be 15 years ago?
I was 13 and I remember sitting on my sofa with MTV in the background when I heard the first four notes of what would be Fat Lip by Sum 41. It was during those three and a half minutes that my life completely changed, before then my favourite bands were The Beatles, Tom Jones and Carol King. All of my friends were just discovering punk rock too, so one night 15 years ago, me and my best childhood friends went to see Sum 41 at the Hollywood Palladium. We walked in as friends and walked out a band. We formed Orange that very night and 15 years later I’m still carrying the flag.
Why did you guys stop releasing music?
This is hard for me to admit, but I wanted to get famous. I spent two years recording and writing material that was tailored for a modern audience and I had this collection of songs that I thought were hits but they didn’t sound like Orange. At one point I thought I had a deal with Columbia in the bag and then they pulled out. It was a big lesson for me to do what you love and what you’re passionate about.
Why did you decide to make a comeback with Orange now?
I’ve had an Orange comeback in the back of my mind for the past two years, it wasn’t until the summer of 2016 when bands like Green Day, Sum 41, Good Charlotte and Blink 182 all released new albums that I realised that if there ever was a time to jump back into the pop punk scene, it was now. I got very lucky that our new drummer James is an Orange fan from back in the day and had heard that I was looking for new members. We spent an entire year auditioning people until I felt like we had found the next version of Orange.
Why did you decide to keep going under that same name instead of starting off fresh, seeing as all members have changed?
Orange is my baby. If there’s even a small chance I can make a success out of it and keep my legacy then I have to take it. I think there’s merit to the idea of starting something brand new after such a long hiatus but there is something romantic about still flying the flag of my childhood band all these years later. I’m a nostalgic fool, but hopefully I’m a lucky nostalgic fool.
With the band members being completely different now, will the sound of the new music be very different compared to the previous releases?
In terms of the style we still have that Orange sound, but I’ve matured as a writer and I’ve come to own my pop sensibilities more. I’ve paid attention to how the pop punk climate has changed with bands now being so much more influenced by hardcore and bands like Neck Deep and Roam quickly becoming the genre’s new heroes. Our current single ‘Late Nights and Early Mornings’ sounds more like classic Orange from our Hellcat Records-days, but fans will see when the album comes out next year that perhaps Hopeless Records might suit us better now.
The ‘Orange goes Bananas’ tour will start in a couple of days now and you released your comeback single ‘Late Nights and Early Mornings’ earlier this month, how has the response to that been so far?
We’ve been flooded with messages on our social media about how happy the old fans are to have us back and ticket sales have blown my expectations. It will be fantastic to see the old crowd, it’s humbling to have them stand with us after all these years. I can’t describe how amazing it feels to finally put something new out into the world. I’ve spent four years so lost when all I really needed to do was follow my heart and do what I was born to do: rock out and melt faces. Viva La Orange!
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