Ever After, out now via Pure Noise Records, is a hard-fought second record by the Chicago five-piece, Action/Adventure. Consisting of vocalist Blake Evaristo, vocalist/guitarist Brompton Jackson, drummer Adrian Brown, bassist Manny Avila, and guitarist Oren Trace, this album wrestles with the messy reality of what it actually means to live the ‘rockstar’ dream every band is chasing.
“I feel like we’re at this point where we do kind of want to be judged by the body of work,” says Evaristo on navigating the scene as a BIPOC band has always been both a point of pride and an ongoing challenge. “But we are who we are. You can’t really change that part of you, so it’s always going to play a role.”
Growing up going to shows in Chicago, Jackson remembers how stark the lack of representation was. “Me and Adrian were two of like six Black people in a room of 1,200… you literally play ‘count-the-Black-people’ (at shows).” Even now, assumptions linger. “We’ve been mistaken for rappers on tour,” Evaristo laughs. “No one ever thinks we’re a band—it’s never the first thing that crosses their mind.” Those moments only reinforce their commitment to representation. “It’s a weird identity thing,” he adds. “But it’s also powerful. It’s cool to show up and be visible in spaces where people like us haven’t always been.”
A big part of the heavier vibes this record brings came from teaming up with Alan Day of Four Year Strong, a band whose melodic aggression and dynamic songwriting have shaped Action/Adventure since the beginning. “It was awesome…being able to work with Allen and kind of pick his brain was a really unique experience for us,” Jackson explains. “He really was able to extract really cool, outside-the-box ideas out of us… We were really hyper-aware…to not just make it sound like a Four Year Strong record…he wanted us to keep our own identity.”
The recording sessions themselves were grueling — weeks of 10 to 12-hour days stacked on top of day jobs and everyday responsibilities. “We were all working… away from home for like a month,” Jackson says. For vocalist Blake Evaristo, the deeper collaboration was as rewarding as it was disorienting: “The stakes felt higher for this one for sure… Imposter Syndrome (their debut LP) was like, ‘Oh, it’s our first one.’ But coming off that, there were just so many more challenges.” Rather than shy away from the notorious “sophomore slump,” Action/Adventure leaned into the pressure, using it as fuel to push themselves harder and prove they could rise to the moment.
This is evident when you listen to Ever After’s more aggressive energy, as if the band is pushing through every obstacle and coming out stronger on the other side. “That means we did our job,” Jackson laughs when told the songs brim with bounce, heaviness, and pure fun. Evaristo agrees: “It wouldn’t have sounded like that if it were easy,” he says, a sentiment that reflects their belief that Ever After not only survived the struggle but ultimately surpasses what came before.
Favorite tracks off the record? Evaristo doesn’t hesitate: “I think ‘Floortime’ is my favorite song,” he says, though the setlist is shifting: “We’ve been playing ‘Spiral’ a lot as well…” Jackson’s pick is the title stand out, “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime AMV”. The heart Ever After remains the same for the band with its catchy (easycore-like) riffs, anthemic top-of-the-lungs sang hooks, and an underdog determination that refuses to fade. The record is heavier and more technically demanding—so much so that Jackson had to change how he performs. “I’m literally yelling 80% of the time,” he says. “I started working with a vocal coach, hydrating more, doing warm-ups—all preventative measures.”
But despite the physical demands, the band is eager to bring these songs to the stage, knowing their intensity will be appreciated by the fans. For all its highs and hurdles, Ever After is honest about the band coming into terms with wanting to make music together for a long time. “We often ask ourselves, ‘Is this what I should be doing? Is this, after all this time, what I want or need to be doing?” says Jackson. “And then you come to terms with it. Because I don’t really want to do any other things.
Ever After is out now and you can order it from Pure Noise Records. Follow Action/Adventure on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok for future updates.
