JE: What made you decide to put out your album in blue and burgundy rather than other colors, say pink or pea-green?

TA: The burgundy palette was suggested by the cover artist, Ryan Heshka. I told him I wanted an otherworldly feel.  We worked together on the image concept.  He suggested the pale blue for the title.  I wasn't sure at first, but he showed me some other works of his that incorporated blue accents into the same palette and I was convinced.  I love it, it really works.

JE: What songs didn't make the cut for Music From Regions Beyond, and where do they go from here?

TA: There were two other songs that didn't make it out of the practice pad, because one or more elements weren't working.  One in particular I think will be resurrected in the future, but it needs a new chorus first.

JE: Are you excited about the upcoming tour or is touring kind of losing its glamour?

TA: I am excited about it, although "glamour" is not a word I'd personally use in connection with touring, it's often anything but!  It's been a long time since we did a full U.S. headlining tour, which we're on now.  It's nice to be back in the night after Warped this summer.

JE: Do you prefer a big venue or a smaller more personal venue?

TA: For me, it's really about the crowd, and the sound system.  If the energy is there from the crowd, a show can be just as crazy in a larger venue.  And it's nice to be able to hear yourself play.  Those two factors are what matter to me for a good show, and whether you get either, both or neither just depends on the particular place, regardless of size.

JE: What is your favorite country to tour?

TA: That's hard to say.  They've all got their different perks.  The U.S. is nice because you don't feel so far away from home, even when you're on the other side of the country.  There's a lot of food to look forward to, Texas BBQ or whatever.  The shopping's great in England.  Australia is beautiful, with great audiences.  Japan is another world.  I like them all, for different reasons.

JE: Are you excited to tour with Social Distortion again? Are you good enough friends with Mike Ness to like pinch his butt or would it be all awkward?

TA: Well, we toured the entire U.S. (with a few shows in Canada) for nine and a half weeks with Social D in 2004, so I don't know that we'd be on tour again, although we have done a few shows together since then.  They're a great band.  Mike Ness is more of an acquaintance ... singers are more likely to be resting their voices at the hotel than hanging out on tour...I think that's true for us both.

JE: What is every one's favorite song off MFRB and why?

TA: It seems like there are a lot of favorites.  The single, "Forever Fades Away" is one of them.  "Hechizo de Amor," "Pain," "As the Cold Rain Falls," "Hotprowl" and "Where the Moss Slowly Grows" have all been mentioned by a lot of people as favorites as well.

JE: What is your favorite artist that you have collaborated with?

TA: If you mean musically, I'd say the guys in AFI as they're the only other musicians outside of Tiger Army that I've really collaborated with.

JE: So who thinks they are the toughest in the band and are they really as they claim?

TA: I don't think anyone in the band thinks they're tough -- there's always someone tougher.  We can hold our own if we have to, but otherwise, there are better things to do like playing music.

JE: How was Warped Tour this year?

TA: Long, hot and grueling.  The 30 minutes you're on-stage is great...the other 23.5 hours in the day leave much to be desired.

JE: What has been your worst and best experience overall from being on tour?

TA: Well, getting sick on the road is no fun.  Sometimes your body just decides to give out on you and it can be a long road back as tour provides little opportunity for rest.  I've seen some amazing places on tour that I probably wouldn't have seen otherwise and there are always little moments that stay with you, one of them for me being the white sand and parrots flying around at Gold Coast.  That sort of thing might be commonplace in Australia, but it isn't in the States!

JE: What is your favorite tattoo, and what is your worst?

TA: I couldn't pick a favorite...there are too many that I like for different reasons, whether it's the art/execution, the time in my life it reminds me of, or whatever else.  I was lucky that I never got a *really* bad tattoo.

JE: Nick 13, I noticed you were a guest DJ on Sirius radio in July on Friday the 13th, how did you line that up? Was it cool? will you do it again?

TA: It's just something that came about somehow - I definitely enjoyed it and hope to do it again.  I've never "officially" DJ'd live, but I spent a lot of my youth making mixtapes, so doing that for radio or a room of people is a lot of fun for me.

JE: How does their Australia feel about Tiger Army and how does Tiger Army feel about Australia?

TA: Well, we've only been there once (in 2005), but it was one of our favorite tours ever...it's a great place!  The shows were a blast and it was just such a different experience from the U.S. or Europe.  We're planning an Australian tour in either February or March of 2008, so keep an eye on tigerarmy.com and myspace.com/tigerarmy for details!

JE: How does it feel when you hear your fans chant the familiar "Tiger Army Never Die!"? What would be the worst thing they could chant?

The louder and more enthusiastic a crowd is, the better!  The worst thing a crowd ever chanted was in Germany - they chanted "Lazy" after a third encore and playing every song we knew!

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