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Exclusive: I See Stars breaks down in New York; AP talks to Devin Oliver

AltPress.com had an impromptu chance to quickly catch up with stranded I See Stars frontman Devin Oliver while he sat in a repair shop in Albany, New York today where he and the band are suffering out a broken down tour bus.

So where are you and what happened to your tour bus? Is this causing you to miss a show date or anything bad?
Devin Oliver: The engine needed a new “water hub,” which is what helps keep the engine from overheating. Yeah, we actually missed a pretty important show called “Reckless Fest” in Baltimore. A lot of people seemed upset and even mad. All of us are really bummed. Unfortunately, when something like this happens we are six hours away and there is no way of making it. So, I would like to apologize to every single person that bought a ticket to the show to see us. I can't stress how badly we wish we could be there. Instead, we have ben stuck at an auto dealer for the past 24 hours sleeping in chairs.

Your new record, Digital.Renegade, debuted strong on the Billboard charts and has received positive reviews on top of that. Do you guys feel any sense of relief that this maturing new sound has been received so well?
Yeah, it actually made it to #39 on the Billboard charts. We are so relieved and mainly just stoked that people are stoked. We had and are continuing to have mad support and great feedback on the album. We could not be happier!

It's been almost two years since high school for you (Oliver turns 20 on April 15 ), you've been to many places your school mates have never been to and may never go. You've experienced things that it will take a lot of them 10 years or more to experience. Do you think you've grown compared to a lot of your friends back home because of being in this band and touring to the places you've been?
Actually, the sad truth about high school is that I left after sophomore year. But, I actually just finished my online school last week and will be receiving my diploma in the mail next month! I wouldn't trade my life for anything. All of my friends and family are very proud of the adventure I have been able to create for myself up to this point. The road is an intense lifestyle and kind of forces you to grow up faster than you would like. I was 15 when I started touring and had to make very adult decisions almost every day of my life while a lot of my friends were busy being 15-16 years old. It was bittersweet but definitely, in the end, it was all worth it. I can honestly say that I'm very proud of the person I am today and would be a very different person if I had chosen a different path. alt