New Found Glory opens for Jimmy Eat World and The Offspring at Isleta
New Found Glory are currently on tour with Jimmy Eat World and The Offspring. The band plans to release its 13th studio album within the next year.
Pop punk fans have three reasons to get excited Tuesday, Aug. 26, when New Found Glory and Jimmy Eat World open for The Offspring at Isleta Amphitheater.
鈥淲e鈥檝e known the Jimmy Eat World guys since we were kids,鈥 Jordan Pundik, New Found Glory frontman, said. 鈥淲e would drive up and down the coast of Florida and go see them play in front of, like, 10 people.鈥
Nearly three decades and innumerable concerts later, the bands are touring together for the first time.
鈥淭he Offspring guys, we met here and there. We used to know their old drummer (Pete Parada). And then Todd (Morse), their bass player, used to be in H2O, who, of course, we toured with many times,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淎nd Noodles (Kevin John Wasserman, The Offspring鈥檚 lead guitarist), we met a couple times, playing beer pong at random festivals.鈥
The bands haven鈥檛 been playing beer pong on this tour, though. With age, Pundik said he鈥檚 acquired healthier habits.
鈥淲e鈥檙e kind of on a health kick this tour,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 great when you鈥檙e on these kind of tours, because there鈥檚 good catering. So, it鈥檚 a lot easier to eat better.鈥
New Found Glory toured as headliners last summer to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their album 鈥淐atalyst,鈥 which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart when it was released in 2004.
Pundik said he鈥檚 enjoying the relatively lower pressure of being an opening band this time around.
鈥淲e have so much less responsibility on this tour,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so fun. The bands are great overall, and it鈥檚 just a good hang.鈥
Although many people associate punk with teenage rebellion, Pundik said he was a fairly well-behaved teenager.
鈥淚 was a responsible mama鈥檚 boy,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f my mom wanted me home by midnight, I would be sure to be home by midnight. My friends would get so mad, because they鈥檇 have to leave early to drop me off.鈥
But as long as he obeyed his parents鈥 curfews, they would let him see the bands he liked.
鈥淚 have kids now, too, and I try to instill that same sort of mentality in them,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淟ike, if you鈥檙e just truthful, and you go by the rules and what our values are, then you鈥檒l have more freedom to do what you want.鈥
The 45-year-old singer has two sons.
鈥淢y younger one, my 11-year-old, is super into music and super into my band,鈥 Pundik said.
His other son is 14 and doesn鈥檛 always think his dad鈥檚 music is cool.
鈥淗e鈥檚 like half and half,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淏ut my younger one is super enthralled with what I do.鈥
Pundik attended his first big concert with his own dad when he was 14. It was Nirvana.
鈥淩emember the multi-level marketing company, Amway? My dad worked for them, and his boss had tickets,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淢y dad didn鈥檛 know anything about them (Nirvana), but we went.鈥
Pundik never thought he would become a father himself.
鈥淣ot in the slightest,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 just wasn鈥檛 super into thinking that I would have kids, or 鈥 doing what I do 鈥 that I would have time to have kids.鈥
鈥淏ut when I met my then-girlfriend, now wife, she had always wanted kids. So then, it was one of those conversations of, like, we want to make this work,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淪o, I was like, you know what, let鈥檚 just try. So, we did. And it鈥檚 been a challenge, and it鈥檚 been up and down, but I love having them around. It鈥檚 been good.鈥
Having children has given the singer a different perspective on life.
鈥淚t comes down to gratitude,鈥 Pundik said.
Still, it hasn鈥檛 always been easy to balance fatherhood with the demands of New Found Glory鈥檚 often hectic touring schedule.
鈥淢y 14-year-old has some neurological stuff. He鈥檚 on the spectrum, and he鈥檚 got Tourette鈥檚 and (obsessive-compulsive disorder), but he鈥檚 really high-masking,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always been hard, because I鈥檝e been on tour and missing out on a lot of things.鈥
But in recent years, Pundik has prioritized spending time with his sons, even bringing the 14-year-old along for a few days of the current tour.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been really fun just to have that one-on-one time with him,鈥 Pundik said, 鈥渂ecause he鈥檚 starting his first day of high school next week.鈥
Many of New Found Glory鈥檚 earliest fans are parents now, too.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been crazy to see over the years, people who grew up with us, they鈥檙e having their own kids. So now, we have intergenerational fans,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淲hile all the older people 鈥 the millennials 鈥 are chilling in the back with their beers, all their kids are down in the (mosh) pit.鈥
New Found Glory recorded a new album earlier this year, which they plan to release on the indie label Pure Noise Records in the coming months. Fellow founding member Chad Gilbert (lead guitar, backing vocals) was heavily involved in the album, despite the ongoing health challenges he has faced since being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in 2021.
鈥淗e鈥檚 doing alright. I mean, it鈥檚 up and down,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淓very day is different. There鈥檚 some days when he鈥檚 tired and everything hurts.鈥
Other days, Gilbert feels well enough to perform onstage with the band.
鈥淗e鈥檚 trying to get to a couple shows on this tour,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淗e played in Cincinnati with us, which was great. And we had a Nashville headlining show on one of the days off, and he played that. And that was great.鈥
鈥淗e can鈥檛 really jump around much, but he鈥檚 still out there, getting in people鈥檚 faces, pointing at everybody and yelling into the mic,鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 a beast.鈥
Gilbert鈥檚 fighting spirit is reflected in the lyrics of 鈥100%,鈥 the band鈥檚 first single from the forthcoming album.
鈥淲hether I鈥檓 at the top, or whether I鈥檓 broken down, my word is cement,鈥 they sing. 鈥淚鈥檓 gonna give you 100%.鈥
鈥淲e wanted to put that out first, because it was one of the first songs we wrote (for the album),鈥 Pundik said. 鈥淏ut there鈥檚 definitely songs on there that I love way, way more.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 got some of the cooler songs we鈥檝e written in a long time,鈥 he continued. 鈥淚 think people are going to be hyped on it.鈥
In the meantime, Pundik said he鈥檚 excited to visit New Mexico. As it turns out, he has a personal connection to the state.
鈥淚 love the desert states,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd my auntie has an Earthship in Taos. So, it鈥檚 always really cool to go see that area. It鈥檚 super fun.鈥