Fitz and the Tantrums Talks New Self-Titled Album

(Radio.com) Fitz and the Tantrums have returned with their third album. The self-titled album marks as much of a departure from 2013's More Than Just a Dream as that album was from their debut LP, 2010's Pickin' Up the Pieces. Singer Michael "Fitz" Fitzpatrick tells Radio.com that that's by design.

"The evolution from record one to record two and now--our third, self-titled record--it has been all about an evolution and taking chances."

They started with a Motown-influenced mod sound on their debut, but were more influenced by '80s new wave on the follow up. This time, they seem to be listening to contemporary hit radio. But the stylistic changes made some band members a bit nervous: "There were people from our own camp that, from record one to record two, were like, 'Wow! It's really different sounding, this is a little scary.' And people were definitely cautious about it."

"But luckily I had other musician friends, and they really gave me the courage to keep going. They said, 'Listen: screw everybody else. Do what you believe in. If you're excited by it, your fans will follow.' And that's been our guiding principal and our mantra."

What "musician friend" gave that advice? "One specifically was my good friend from Airbourne Toxic Event, Mikel Jollett. We live right near each other, we were both making records, he was working on his third, I was working on my second record, and that sophomore record is always so stressful. Many a band have failed on their sophomore record. And I was so paranoid to fail on the second record, that I didn't stop until we had the best batch of songs. And he was really the main guy who said, 'Just trust what you're doing.'"

But the success of More Than Just a Dream let the group know that their fans were willing to follow stick with them, even when they changed their sound. "Having all that success on the last record really empowered us to say, 'You know what? These chances [we're] taking, they're the right risks to take.' I've always wanted to make a truly cross-genre record, that mashes all these different styles, in a way that feels organic and real. So on this latest record, it is just one more evolution. At the end of the day, it's still Noelle and I singing the songs, there's always the saxophone." Read more here.

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Copyright Radio.com/CBS Local - Excerpted here with permission.

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