May 16, 2012

Hey Monday’s rise into the pop-rock consciousness may have been much slower than, say, Panic! At The Disco’s ascension, but faster than most of the bands sweating it out on a side stage on Warped Tour. Frontwoman Cassadee Pope had been singing in various West Palm Beach, Florida, bands since she was 13, but nothing ever jelled. Then in 2008, Pope was approached by a Columbia Records A&R staffer, as well as Decaydance Records founder/Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz, who heard one of her demos playing in his manager’s office. Pope and longtime friend/guitarist Mike Gentile had yet to solidify a lineup at the time: The two soon enlisted guitarist Alex Lipshaw, bassist Michael “Jersey” Moriarty and drummer Elliot James, to begin working on what would become Hey Monday’s debut album, Hold On Tight. The album’s mix of pop hooks and teen angst started to gain traction in the scene, bolstered by their single “Homecoming.” But while they were riding high on the attention, Hey Monday were slightly derailed when, during a British tour, drummer James announced he was leaving. Undaunted, Hey Monday enlisted a high school friend of Pope’s, Patrick McKenzie, to man the drum throne for a series of high-profile road campaigns including the 2009 Glamour Kills Tour (supporting All Time Low) and the Spring 2010 AP Tour. Their eight-song 2010 effort, Beneath It All, is a marked progression from their debut, highlighted by Gentile’s deft playing and Pope’s confessional lyrics. With a strong work ethic in place, Pope is keeping her eyes on the prize. The singer told AP in March 2010, “If anyone [in the band] starts getting an ego, we can pull him back down and be like, ‘You were just working at Panera Bread before this. You have no room to act like a rock star.’”