Cute Is What We Aim For Change

Buffalo, N.Y. band Cute Is What We Aim For established themselves as teenage emo heartthrobs on their first album, The Same Old Blood Rush With A New Touch. But things have changed on their sophomore album, Rotation.

"Change" was even briefly considered for the title, but it became more like a running theme to vocalist Shaant Hacikyan and new bassist Dave Melillo. They realized when writing the record that they wanted to stray from "the scene" music, turn to classics (for them, this meant Tom Petty, Weezer and Kanye West) and look at what was going on around them.

"[The album is about] internal change, external change, global change, political change, any change, really," Hacikyan said before a recent Toronto show. "I tried to touch on a different variety of change on every single song.

"Change is such a huge word, and it's difficult, considering I'm being so open-ended and broad. Everything's changing now. Think about it. What's staying the same? Nothing. It's constantly changing."

Melillo agrees.

"Technology is driving the world," he says. "It's changing all the time. I feel like we're caught in a time where everything is just a rotating door. What's the next thing?"

"It's almost like everyone's growing up to be the best, but not the best as in the actual meaning of the word, but the latest and greatest," Hacikyan adds.

Cute Is What We Aim For recently faced their own change. Melillo officially joined the band alongside Hacikyan, guitarist Jeff Czum and drummer Tom Falcone after replacing outgoing bassist Fred Cimato. The music has also changed.

"I think we opened it up, as far as music goes," says Melillo. "I think the first time around, it was like, 'Let's get this down how we know to get it down.'

"But the second time it was like, 'We've listened to all this music now. We have all these influences, classical and modern, and let's try to make it the best we can.' A lot more thought was put into it."

"How many bands are doing the same damn thing?" asks Hacikyan. "There's a reason why we threw in a Spanish solo in 'Hollywood' — because we wanted to.

"We're given this amazing opportunity to really create something we can be proud of, hopefully for the rest of our lives. We took some chances being in a band. Why wouldn't we keep taking chances? Why would you stop?"

The new record still has similarities to the first one, mostly around lyrical themes of sex, scandal and stories. Two of Rotation's songs are even based on events that took place in Toronto.

"Marriage To Millions" includes the line "a box fit for a king on Queen Street."

"I was on Bloor Street and a homeless guy tried to wipe my windshield," explains Hackiyan. "I said, 'Dude, I don't have anything,' and he said, 'Whatever you put into my hand is my life savings, my main man.' So I used that line."

Lead single "Practice Makes Perfect" is about a one-night stand in Toronto "that lasted too many nights," says Hackiyan.

Cute Is What We Aim For will headline a bill featuring Ace Enders And A Million Different People, Powerspace and Danger Radio at Vancouver's Plaza Club on July 29. They'll join Metro Station and Faber Drive in opening Simple Plan's Canadian tour. Here are the dates:

• Aug. 19 St. John's, NL @ Mile One Stadium
• Aug. 21 Halifax, NS @ Metro Centre
• Aug. 22 Moncton, NB @ Coliseum
• Aug. 23 Saint John, NB @ Harbour Station
• Aug. 25 Chicoutimi, QC @ Centre Georges Vezina
• Aug. 26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
• Aug. 28 Ottawa, ON @ Scotiabank Place
• Aug. 29 Toronto, ON @ Molson Amphitheatre
• Aug. 30 London, ON @ John Labatt Centre
• Sept. 3 Vancouver, BC @ Pacific Coliseum
• Sept. 5 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place
• Sept. 6 Calgary, AB @ Pengrowth Saddledome
• Sept. 8 Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre
• Sept. 9 Winnipeg, MB @ MTS Centre
• Sept. 13 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre