When it comes to modern pop-rock, few bands are doing it quite as well as Arrows In Action. The trio, formed in 2017, have been on a whirlwind ride recently. From playing on massive tours like the Vans Warped Tour and Download Festival, to headlining their own shows across the UK and Europe, Arrows In Action are definitely on the rise. (see what I did there?)
They have just released their highly-anticipated sophomore album, "I Think I've Been Here Before," which is as anthemic as it is...well, fun. There’s something about Arrows in Action that makes even their most vulnerable and therapeutic moments feel like an invitation to dance.
On the release, the band stated:
'I Think I’ve Been Here Before' explores the comfort, excitement, and inevitable pitfalls of chasing the past while what you’re really looking for is right in front of you.
We sat down with Arrows in Action recently to get the story behind their new album, life on the road, and everything in between.
MSM: How did you land on the name Arrows in Action, and what does it represent for you now versus when you started?
ARROWS IN ACTION: Arrows in Action was selected quickly and randomly because we needed a name to play our first show (which was opening for Victor’s first and previous band)! It takes on new meaning every year that goes by, and now more than ever we associate it with this community of incredibly kind people who support us, and all the memories we’ve been lucky enough to make. We like to believe all good band names once sounded weird or random, but time and context makes them cool.
How did signing with Nettwerk change, or not change, how you wrote and recorded I Think I’ve Been Here Before compared to your independent releases?
When we signed with Nettwerk, we had already nearly finished writing I Think I’ve Been Here Before. In the best way possible, they haven’t changed the way we write but instead serve as a support system to what we want to do as we grow and continue to write records.
Were there any particularly memorable moments in the studio that stood out to you?
Most of the record was written on a writing trip to Lake Arrowhead, CA. We had countless late nights and early mornings of writing, and just blasting music that we love for each other and loving every second of that creative bonding time with our friends and co-writers. We had to leave a day early however, because a snow storm was on its way. On the way back to town, a thick fog had rolled in and covered the entire mountain. We knew stopping meant getting stuck, and we had to continue even though visibility was essentially zero. Matt drove, and Jesse navigated by looking at the road on his phone and describing the turns so they could be anticipated. It was a LONG way down haha, but we made it and celebrated the second we were off those shrouded mountain roads.
The title, I Think I’ve Been Here Before, has a bit of a reflective vibe — can you share the story behind it, and were there any experiences from your journey that inspired it?
I Think I’ve Been Here Before is a lyric from "Deja Vu," a song that is meant to be a dream sequence. In it, you relive a past romance in a fantasy world where all is as it “should be.” The record in its entirety however, explores the positive and negative associations with these sorts of retroactive obsessions. We’ve all felt the sting of longing for something in the past and realizing the only way forward is forward.
What’s one lyric on I Think I’ve Been Here Before that hits you the hardest personally?
“Even if you have to lie, say you’ll never have to say goodbye.” When we were writing "Stay Awake," we were talking with our friends and co-writers about the little lies you tell your significant other, or even tell yourself, so that you can feel at ease in a chaotic world. You know nothing lasts forever, but we all pretend certain things do, and there’s something beautiful about that.
Being part of Warped Tour’s resurgence is huge! What does that legacy mean to you, and what have been some of your favorite moments on Warped so far?
Jesse and Victor both attended Warped Tour as kids and the impact on them was huge. Playing it was always part of the dream so being asked to perform in Long Beach and Orlando was absolutely a dream come true. Highlights from Long Beach would be the Mag Park boys throwing beach balls on stage with us during our intro, our pal Dev from Honey Revenge singing "Uncomfortably Numb" with us, and a massive crowd that we couldn’t see the end of that blew our minds, just to name a few.
Warped Tour 2025: @kelseyrungephoto
Your music touches on youth, love, and self-discovery. How do you make sure those themes still feel fresh and personal as you and your fans grow?
Whether sonically or lyrically, we’re always doing our best to never repeat ourselves. We find the best way to continue to grow and keep songwriting as entertaining as it is cathartic, for us, is to try new things as often as possible. The themes you mention here sort of all naturally evolve as we get older. New realizations about all of these things make their way into our writing and hopefully, keep songs fresh enough to be exciting while holding onto what makes us, us.
The alt/pop/rock scene is booming - where do you see Arrows in Action fitting in, and what makes your sound so impossible to ignore?
We see ourselves as “the boyband” of our class of artists. We like to think our version of this new sound has no rules, meaning we don’t shy away from strange new sounds or lyrical concepts. Something else that comes across in our lives shows more so is that we take our music very seriously, but not ourselves. This usually manifests into some silliness.
You’ve built an impressively loyal fanbase. Are there any fan interactions in particular that have really stuck with you over the years?
There are genuinely too many wholesome, wonderful interactions to count, let alone pick a few, for this. In an attempt to name a few; proposals at shows, story books about our adventures as space traveling Nomes, receiving incredible paintings and drawings of ourselves and pets every time we hit the road, and anyone who shares stories of how our music has impacted their life. We’re so grateful every day for the way our fans celebrate what we do with us.
Do you have any pre-show rituals or inside jokes that help ground you before hitting the stage?
Our inside jokes honestly make no sense. Like to us they make a little sense, but if you haven’t lived in a vehicle with us for months on end, anything I would describe to you now would sound like complete and utter nonsense. But yes! We are back there mocking each other and quipping until the last second, sneaking in a group hug, and then getting on stage.
Where do you see Arrows in Action heading in the next five years? Do you want to experiment with new genres, or deepen what you’ve built?
We look at trying new things as a way of deepening what we’ve already done - so both honestly. We like to learn from where we’ve been without necessarily going back there. We see ourselves playing the best shows we’ve ever played, and writing the best songs we’ve ever written.
What’s one milestone you’re still chasing that would make you feel like you’ve “made it”?
This is a great question - in a lot of ways we’ve had that “made it” moment but we keep pushing the goalpost out further and further. It’s what keeps us in a state of appreciating the present but always working towards something, I think. To pick a specific bucket list item, though, we all really want to play Red Rocks in Colorado.
Lastly, what’s one thing that you hope that fans take away from your music?
We hope they have a moment of escapism. Whether that’s from the catharsis of feeling the difficult feelings all the way through, cementing moments of joy, or screaming "Cheekbones" on the way home from work.
