October 29, 2009 — No matter how many records they sign or tattoos of their band logo they see, the guys from A.F.I. never seem to grow tired of the never-ending admiration from their loyal fans.  In fact, they admire them right back. They even went so far as to ask fans to submit videos of themselves in a contest last year, simply so they could get to know them – and Davey and company watched every last one. It’s that kind of passion that’s kept A.F.I. going for over 18 years. Below, guitarist Jade Puget talks about the making of their new album, Crash Love (out now) and the things that have inspired him along the way.

You guys are on the road with Gallows right now playing smaller cities. How’s the tour been so far?
It’s been great. We’re in Hartford, Connecticut today; I don’t think we’ve ever actually played here before. It’s cool to start out in the smaller clubs right in front of the fans; it’s not like you’re up on some stage 50 feet away which has been our experience in the past year. Most of the shows we played while we were making Crash Love were festival shows. It’s not the same experience.

Do you like that intimacy better?
Not better, it’s a totally different thing, you know? If you’re on a big stage, there’s some perks. You get to move around a lot which is nice ‘cause we like to do that. You get better lights, better sound usually, it’s a trade-off.

What’s your favorite song off of Crash Love?
I would probably say “Beautiful Thieves” is my favorite so far off the record. It’s the first song I wrote for the record. It’s a great song, I enjoy playing it and I enjoyed writing it.

Would you call Crash Love a departure from Decemberunderground?

Every record is a departure from the one previous to it. The one hallmark of this band is that we depart from what we were, so it certainly is a departure from our last record without a doubt.

How would you say you’ve grown as a musician in the past few years?
I’m sure I’m probably a better musician and a better songwriter, but I think what really forms the styles and changes in your music is what you’re influenced by. The things that I was listening to and the things I was into six years ago are different from what I’m into now. So that is a big factor in shaping what kind of songs you’re gonna write.

Davey Havok called Crash Love A.F.I.’s first timeless record. Would you agree?
He was sort of saying that it doesn’t sound necessarily from right now, like if we would have released this record five years ago, 10 years ago or 10 years from now, it wouldn’t sound dated. It’s timeless in that way. I think I agree with that.

You guys worked with Joe McGrath and Jackknife Lee, how did they help shape this record?
We jealously guard the writing process and we do all the writing before we go into the studio. So when we go to the producer’s stage, they bring their expertise in getting the sound that we need whether it is a great drum sound, a great guitar sound, a great vocal sound, that’s where we really utilize their knowledge. Both of those guys in different ways are geniuses when it comes to sound.

Would you say there’s a theme running through Crash Love?
There’s certainly cohesiveness to the record musically, the songs sound like they should be on the same record. There’s a lyrical theme running through a lot of the songs about a culture crash we’re experiencing, a kind of crash of art and culture and music and movies and actual art and literature. That’s something that Davey touches on in some of the songs.

Many fans speculate that your albums are concept albums. Is there any truth to that?
Stylistically and artistically, if you look at the packaging and you look at the touring, there is obviously a theme, whether it’s the wintery theme of our last record, or this one with the lyrical themes or the gold and black. There are all kinds of smaller themes running through them, but maybe they are concepts subconsciously because each record is a time capsule in our lives.

Davey has also said that some of the lyrics discuss the fact that today’s media has made everything about our lives far too accessible. Do you agree?
Yeah, I mean I probably have embraced it even though I’m wary of it. But you can’t move back time, you have to just move forward and deal with what you’re given.

You’ve done remixes for bands like Tokio Hotel and Marilyn Manson. Are there any other artists you’d like to work with in the future?
I love remixing, the last one I did was Weezer and I also did The Cure. Talking to Robert Smith about remixing one of his songs was cool because I’ve listened to The Cure my whole life. There’s an electronic band called VNV Nation and I’m about to remix a song of theirs which is very exciting because they were an influence on me and my electronic music. Taking something else’s work and filtering it through your own psyche; there’s something really cool about it.

I was reading your blog and saw that you’re a fan of House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. Has this book or any other book influenced your songwriting?
You know it’s funny; I do get inspiration from literature, especially on a record like Sing the Sorrow. I don’t really know how it translates, but it does. It really inspires me to at least sit down and write. I was reading a lot of Sartre and Celine and French writers from the early part of the 20^th century and for some reason, they just inspired me to write music. Inspiration can really strike you in the strangest places.

What inspired you when you were working on Crash Love?
Every record changes musically and directionally. Davey and I both do the writing together, sitting together in a room. We tried to go off-the-cuff and tried to do whatever came naturally rather than planning it out. This one was really just pulling things out of the air, which is kind of a neat way to write a record.

Do you both set aside a time to write, or is it an ongoing process with you and Davey?
We used to live in the same city so I’d just drive over to his house, but now we live in different cities so he has to fly down to where I live. We wrote most of this record in a hotel room, so that part was way different as well.

Are you and Davey still recording electronic songs as Blaq Audio?
Yeah, in fact we have a new record called Bright Black Heaven which is completely done. It’ll be a while before we release it ‘cause we’re out here touring for Crash Love. We might add a few songs to what we already have, but yeah, that’s very much alive.

As a band that changes your look and sound every so often, do you find yourself getting criticism from people who aren’t happy with what you’re doing?
The way one looks isn’t important to one’s music. From the very beginning of this band, there have been people that have wanted us to stay the same or go back to some earlier time or do something different. It’s the nature of being in a band. There are always gonna people who are unsatisfied with what you’re doing, but there are people who are satisfied so you have to do what you think is right.

You have a very intense relationship with your fans. Can you recall the coolest thing a fan has done for you?
People have done cool things on a daily basis for us. One of the most extreme things is getting our artwork, our band’s name or even our signatures tattooed on them. That’s obviously a big commitment, so it’s very flattering.

Is it weird seeing your signature tattooed on people’s bodies?
It is. We were playing in Pittsburgh and a woman wanted me to sign her hand because she was gonna get it tattooed on her. It’s a lot of pressure to write legibly.

You guys did a contest called Begin Transmission where you asked fans to submit videos so you could get to know them. How did you come up with that idea?
We were about to record the album and we were throwing around the idea of doing a video of us recording in the studio. Then we immediately realized that every band does do that, which is boring. So we said, let’s find out what the fans are up to. There’s been plenty about what we’re up to. Let’s get a glimpse into their lives and see what they’re about.

You sat down and watched all the videos?
Oh yeah, for sure. There were lot of videos to watch but they took the time to make them. The least we could do was take the time to watch them.

You’re on tour for a while. Have you been thinking about writing new material for a future album?
A little bit. I do a lot of programming on the bus, and somebody was sitting in my seat. There’s only one place you can sit to actually be on your computer on our bus, so it forced me to go into the back lounge and pick up my guitar the other day, so I started writing some new A.F.I. material.