Happy New Year! We hope you guys rested up in 2010, because 2011 is going to be bananas! To kick the new year off right, check out the interview we did with Pierce The Veil front-man Vic Fuentes. We were lucky enough to grab some time from him while the band is hard at work rehearsing for the Winterizer Tour, which kicks off January 7, 2011 in Clifton Park, NY and features Silverstein, Miss May I, The Chariot, and Bullet for a Pretty Boy

You’re going to be heading out on the road with Silverstein, Miss May I, The Chariot, and Bullet for a Pretty Boy. Do you have a favorite song or album from each band?

Honestly, I am unfamiliar with their music. I like to see the band live a few times before I get into their albums. I have heard great things about all of the bands though and I’m stoked to check them all out!

This fall you went on tour with Attack Attack!. How was that tour different from tours that you’ve done in the past?

I have never been on a tour where all of the bands were friends already, before the tour even started. We did Warped Tour with all of the bands so it was like a big family reunion. Another random cool thing about that tour was we did two nights in Philly and two nights in NYC. Usually we have to play and leave so quickly. It was incredible to finally have more time to explore and hang out.

This past summer, you put out your second album Selfish Machines, which debuted at number one on the Billboard Heat Seekers Chart. What was the reaction to that personally and as a band?

I was just glad that our fans had stuck with us through the long writing and recording process. We took a lot of time off the road, so we weren’t sure if people would still remember us after the break. It was a nice reassurance when we saw that we had hit number one on the charts.

Can fans expect to hear a lot from Selfish Machines on the Silverstein tour?

Yes of course! We have been slowly incorporating more and more new songs into our sets. We’ve also been talking to fans a lot and asking them what their favorite songs are so that we can give ‘em what they want to hear.

Vic, you actually got to step behind the board and do some producing and mixing on Selfish Machines and on A Flair for the Dramatic. What is it like to step out from the booth and into the role of “producer?”

I always play a strong and commanding role in the creative process of the songs. When I hear something in my head, I do the best I can to get it out and record it with the help of the producer I am working with. I am a perfectionist and I won’t stop until the record is exactly the way I want it to sound. This is one of the reasons why Selfish Machines took so long to make. There were a lot of revisions and tweaks before it made it to mastering to be completed.

What was the most challenging part of writing the new record?

I think the most challenging part was when we ran out of studio time towards the end of the process before the vocals were even recorded. I ended up having to stay in LA for an extra month, coming in at night to try and finish the album. It was very stressful and without the help of some friends I would not have been able to get through it.

While it’s not on the official record, but was sold on iTunes as a bonus song, “She Makes Dirty Words Sound Pretty” was recorded back in 2007 with Jonny Craig. What made you want to put the song out officially now?

We just wanted the album to have as much material and special surprises as possible. That song has made it a long way just through word of mouth and on the Internet, so we thought it would be a good idea to finally release it.

Continuing with guest vocals on the record, you recorded “Caraphernelia” with Jeremy McKinnon of A Day To Remember, who you’ll be touring with this spring. Can we expect the song to be played live or are we keeping that a mystery?

We will be performing that song together every night on the A Day To Remember tour.

If you could choose one song off of Selfish Machines that means the most to you, what song would that be?

There is a song called “Million Dollar Houses (The Painter)” that means so much to my brother Mike and me. The lyrics are about our parents and how they lost their house due to financial problems. It describes how they have never let money tear them apart even though they have struggled over the years to try and support us. I wrote it as a gift to them.

What can we expect from Pierce The Veil this coming year?

Lots of amazing tours! We already have a lot of 2011 lined up with more to come.