When Shaun Cooper was invited to play bass for a burgeoning New York band called Taking Back Sunday, he had no expectation they would one day celebrate their 20th anniversary, let alone build a global emo legacy.
“We thought we'd put out a demo CD and maybe some of our friends would like it and they'd come out to the shows and sing-along,” Shaun says.
“Then somewhere along the way we got a record deal and the thing blew up from there; the next thing we know we've been touring and releasing records for 20 years. So the fact we get to take this worldwide, literally all over the place, it's such a wonderful thing.”
Taking Back Sunday mark their 20-year milestone as a band with a massive global tour that kicks off in Australia in January and includes a performance at UNIFY Gathering.
Joining the band in time to be part of the recording of their 2001 demo, Shaun also helped record their 2002 debut album 'Tell All Your Friends'.
But by 2003, he and guitarist John Nolan had departed citing irreconcilable differences – it would be seven years until Shaun or John returned to the fold. “When I left Taking Back Sunday it wasn't something that I took lightly – I was heartbroken by it but I felt like I really had to,” Shaun explains.
“There was so much chaos within the band and there was so much pushing and pulling. Like I said, I hadn't really thought past releasing that first record, and then the next thing I know I've spent two years of my life on the road, and as a young kid you really don't know how to process that.
“So I was sad but I knew for my own self-preservation I had to take some time away and figure it out, and if I never got back to the band I was okay with that because I knew it wasn't right for me at the time.
“Then when the opportunity came for me to come back in 2010 everything just seemed to be right – the stars aligned, and we had grown apart as people for a little bit but then we kind of came back together and now the bond has never been stronger.
“We've been through so much, there's been so many ups and downs within the band and now things are the best they've really ever been, and I'm just so grateful for the whole experience and I hope we get at least another 20 years out of it.”
After 20 years, Shaun says any past grievances that existed within the group dynamic of the band have been well and truly forgotten in the annals of time. “I mean, I can't even remember what they were,” he laughs.
“We've done so much since and we've come back, and we've put out records and the response hasn't been better than with the 'Tidal Wave' [2016] record, so we're enjoying this.
“When John and I came back to the band, the style of music we played was seen as very lame and then for some reason it started to come back around. People here in the States, and it seems worldwide, are getting back into more guitar-based rock music, which is really nice to see.”
“So there's been this shift in that people are having emo nights all over where people are celebrating our style of music, and we can't believe it. We never thought we'd get to this point where not only is there a new life and a great energy within the band, but it seems like there's a resurgence that we get to this worldwide; it's really unbelievable.”
Taking Back Sunday release their 20-year anniversary compilation, 'Twenty', 11 January 2019. The 21-song collection spans all 7 of their full-length albums as well as two new studio recordings: 'All Ready To Go' and 'A Song For Dan'.
Taking Back Sunday Australia Tour 2019
Wed 9 Jan - HQ Complex (Adelaide)Fri 11 Jan - 170 Russell (Melbourne)
Sat 12 Jan - UNIFY Gathering (Tarwin Meadows, VIC)
14-15 Jan - Metro Theatre (Sydney)
16-17 Jan - The Triffid (Brisbane)
