All Time Low-min
[Photo via Spotify]

All Time Low return to the ‘Last Young Renegade’ world in new comic book

Back in 2017, All Time Low introduced fans to a whole new world within their album Last Young Renegade. The release explored new depths, complex concepts and experimentative songwriting never heard in their music before. Although All Time Low have since closed the Last Young Renegade chapter and gone on to release 2020’s Wake Up, Sunshine, All Time Low are returning to the Last Young Renegade world for the new graphic novel All Time Low Presents: Young Renegades.

As a continuation of the 2017 album, Young Renegades introduces new stories and themes from within the Last Young Renegade world. To help bring the graphic novel to life, All Time Low teamed up with Z2 Comics, writer Tres Dean, Heartthrob co-creator Robert Wilson IV, publisher Josh Frankel and artist Megan Huang.

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Young Renegades centers around an interesting twist of events in the lives of main characters Connor and Becca. On the very same night as their 10-year high school reunion, the two classmates find themselves on a scavenger hunt for clues that will lead them to a top-secret All Time Low gig. However, they soon notice they are gravitating towards each other in ways they weren’t expecting.

“Who needs a high school reunion when your favorite band is playing a secret show the
same night? That’s what Connor and Becca, two classmates who never crossed paths
until their ten-year reunion, decide when they hear about a secret All Time Low show in
town. As they follow the clues to the secret location, they begin to realize that larger
forces are pushing them together and learn the power of hearing the right song in the
right place at the right time.”

All Time Low cover-min
[Photo via Z2 Comics
Alex Gaskarth shares that Young Renegades allowed All Time Low to explore new stories and concepts they weren’t able to when initially creating Last Young Renegade years ago. For him, telling this new narrative through a medium they’ve never done before was a massive undertaking, but ultimately very rewarding.

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“When we wrote our album Last Young Renegade, we imagined an entire world
separate of our own, almost a ‘what if’ version of All Time Low, both with our musical sound and with the visual narrative we put together around it,” Gaskarth says. “Creating Young Renegades the graphic novel allows us to tell more stories in the universe we imagined. And delve deeper into the mythos and thematic ideas that were at play when we were celebrating that era. Young Renegades is another branch, another thread and another look into the LYR continuity through an incredible medium we’ve never collaborated in before. Working with the story-tellers and artists on this project has been an incredible new undertaking and we can’t wait for everyone to enjoy it with us.”

Young Renegades is slated to arrive through Z2 Comics this June. To help celebrate the graphic novel’s debut, All Time Low are releasing a limited edition vinyl of the 2017 album which comes in a brand new colorway. The exclusive vinyl, which is only available with the deluxe graphic novel package, also features the deluxe edition Young Renegades artwork on the sleeve. Pre-orders for the package are available here.

[Photos via Z2 Comics]

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As an Alternative Press exclusive, fans are getting the first look at the graphic novel’s vibrant slipcase and t-shirt. The slipcase’s sleek design features hues of yellow, pink and black with All Time Low’s signature font and logo splayed across the cover. Meanwhile, the minimalistic black shirt includes the same design seen on the deluxe edition cover.

[Photos via Z2 Comics]

To help make All Time Low’s Young Renegades vision a reality, they teamed up with writer Tres Dean, artists Robert Wilson IV and Megan Huang and publisher Josh Frankel. For Dean, collaborating with All Time Low on this new graphic novel was an unforgettable experience.

“As a lifelong Warped Tour kid, All Time Low was a big part of growing up for me,” Dean says. “Throughout high school, I was at almost every show they played in Virginia. Having the chance to work with them all these years later – and getting to do so through a story that (hopefully!) captures everything their music meant to me and so many other hopeless pop-punk romantics back then – has been an incredible experience.”

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Frankel further shares that Young Renegades is more than just a captivating story. It also pays homage to the generation of kids who grew up going to Warped Tour.

Young Renegades is a super fun story inspired both by the album and the best comic book mysteries. It’s an authentic love letter to the Warped Tour generation from a creative team made up of fans themselves.”

The standard softcover edition of All Time Low Presents: Young Renegades arrives in comic book stores and bookshops this June. However, the deluxe edition of the graphic novel is available to pre-order here.

Z2 Comics has collaborated with various artists over the years including My Chemical Romance‘s Mikey Way for the new Electric Century graphic novel. As well, Poppy debuted her second graphic novel Inferno through Z2 Comics following the release of Music To Scream To last year. More recently, Oliver Tree revealed that his new graphic novel Oliver Tree Vs. Little Ricky: Alien Boys! is among the releases in Z2 Comics’ 2021 lineup.

What are your reactions to All Time Low’s new graphic novel Young Renegades? Let us know in the comments below.