Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Skyward Story

The sky’s the limit when it comes to Baltimore-based pop-rock trio Skyward Story. The band, made up of Aaron O’Connor (vocalist), Brandon Millman (drummer), and Scott Montgomery (guitarist), has been hard at work crafting their brand new album, Reborn. The record marks the next chapter in the group’s evolving career, and the introduction of a mature sound that’s distinct, yet familiar. Pop Culturalist caught up with Aaron O’Connor to chat about the new album.

PC: Introduce us to Skyward Story and how you all came up with the band’s name.
Aaron: Skyward Story is made up of Scott Montgomery (guitarist), Brandon Millman (drummer), and myself, Aaron O’Connor (vocalist). We’ve been together for a while now, and we came up with the name Skyward Story after I joined the band. It means shooting for the stars: that’s what we’re all about

PC: You guys just dropped a new album. What was the inspiration behind Reborn?
Aaron: We’ve been working on Reborn for quite some time now. The title speaks for itself. After I joined the band, we adopted a new sound that people weren’t too familiar with, and in a lot of ways, we were reborn.

PC: If you had to pick one song on the album that best embodies the band, what would it be and why?
Aaron: It probably would be “Smile”. “Smile” was the song that we spent the most time on in the album. One of the lyrics is, “Smile like nothing’s wrong because it’s darkest before the dawn.” We’re pretty positive guys, so I’d say that encapsulates our vibe.

PC: Tell us about the recording process. How did you decide what would make the album? What was the collaboration like?
Aaron: We went into the studio with about thirty songs and worked with Matt Squire. He helped pick what he thought were the best ones out of the bunch and then we really focused on those. We had demos recorded, which Matt heard, and together we made them a lot better. He did Panic! At the Disco and Ariana Grande’s first albums, so we’re very, very pleased with how this album turned out compared to the demos.

PC: What would you say is the biggest lesson that you’ve all learned being a part of the music industry?
Aaron: Don’t give up! There have been so many times when we’ve been sitting around thinking, “Damn, we don’t know if this is going to work out.” A couple of years ago, we didn’t have nearly half the buzz as we’ve had recently. You have to keep pushing towards the ultimate goal.

PC: As a band, who or what would you say has had the biggest influence on your career?
Aaron: As a band, I would say Five Seconds of Summer, Panic! At the Disco, Fall Out Boy, and bands like that.

PC: What are some of the band’s aspirations for the future? Are there milestones that you want to hit, certain goals you want to reach?
Aaron: We want to eventually do a full U.S. tour. I think that would honestly be a moment when we think, “Wow, we’re really doing this.”

PC: As you look ahead in 2019, what does the rest of the year hold for the band?
Aaron: Now that Reborn is out, we’re going to push this album as much as we possibly can and get it into as many ears as possible. Then, we’ll start writing new music. Also, we have some tour dates planned for March! Be on the lookout for those.

Who in the Band is…

PC: Most likely forget the lyrics?
Aaron: That would probably be Scott. I’ve forgotten lyrics on stage and I had to improv my way out of it, but there have been times when we were writing handwritten lyrics for our pre-order bundles and Scott was like, “What are these lyrics?” There were sections where he was just like, “I don’t remember that part.” [laughs]

PC: Most likely to be late?
Aaron: I’ll throw people under the bus, probably Brandon.

PC: Most likely to party too hard?
Aaron: Oh, definitely me.

PC: Most likely to get lost?
Aaron: Me! I am directionally challenged.

PC: Most likely to order pizza after midnight?
Aaron: I’m going to say a combination of Scott and me.

PC: Most likely to fall on stage?
Aaron: Me

PC: Best with advice?
Aaron: Brandon! He’s wise beyond his years.

Keep up with Skyward Story by following them on Twitter and Instagram, and pick up your copy of Reborn on iTunes or Amazon Music.