Homesick (A Day To Remember Album) - Background, Music and Lyrics

Background, Music and Lyrics

Half of the album's material had previously been written while the band was on tour, with producer Chad Gilbert of New Found Glory, although "nothing that was finished", as Jeremy McKinnon said in an interview with Altpress. The songs had been finished while the band were on the Easycore Tour. The band "had to structure the songs and stuff like that", which was helped by Gilbert. McKinnon said of Gilbert as aiding "us when it came to making our songs flow in terms of structure and stuff." Gilbert also assisted the band with composing "a few really catchy parts". McKinnon said that by having Andrew Wade, who had previously worked on the band's other albums, on production duties, was a way that "helped us keep that same A Day To Remember-type feel", which "helped us keep it “us,”". Wade also recorded the band's demos for the album. Demos for the album were recorded in the back of a bus. The album's lyrics were similar to their previous efforts, "which is to keep it as personal and open at the same time" as McKinnon commented. McKinnon himself likes "to write really open-style lyrics, so you can kind of relate to 'em yourself." The band had "wrote about what we were going through at that time", referring to being home sick.

Speaking of the album's sound, McKinnon said that the band "wanted to make sure it was heavier and poppier at the same time" while at the same time trying "to take it to the next level", which had "came kinda naturally". The title "I'm Made of Wax, Larry, What Are You Made Of?" was a quote that McKinnon "thought was cool", from the movie Night at the Museum. The song is McKinnon's favorite from the album. The title for "Mr. Highway's Thinking About the End" also comes from a movie, The Good Son. The title track, "Homesick", was written as one piece, before being split into two songs, which the band thought didn't work well and changed it back to one song. "You Already Know What You Are"'s title was a saying from a friend of the band. Drummer Alex Shelnuttt said "Another Song About the Weekend" was his favorite. Having "If It Means a Lot to You" as the album closer, McKinnon said it "was a great way to end" the album. The song had been written over the course of a year, which McKinnon said he wrote it about himself. He went on to say "If It Means a Lot to You" is "one of the biggest songs we play."