Pop punk legends New Found Glory have shared a live performance of their song “The Story So Far” from the NFG Unplugged Total Request Livestream in 2021. Originally released in 2002, “The Story So Far” has stood the test of time and remains one of the band’s most popular tracks over 20 years later. The live recording, along with six other performances from the livestream, can be found on New Found Glory’s upcoming acoustic album Make The Most Of It.
“The Story So Far” is available to watch on YouTube now!
New Found Glory will be releasing their new acoustic album, Make The Most Of It, tomorrow January 20 via Revelation Records. The album features seven brand new tracks written in the wake of Gilbert’s cancer diagnosis – previous singles “Dream Born Again” and “Get Me Home” – alongside seven live acoustic versions of fan favorites like “The Story So Far”. Make The Most Of It is a rumination on what it means to grieve, to live, to approach every day with appreciation and a sense of fulfillment.
Make The Most Of It is available for pre-order – including exclusive vinyl pressings and shirts – now at https://revhq.com/collections/new-found-glory
Fans can pre-save Make The Most Of It at https://orcd.co/6v5lygb and stream at https://orcd.co/brn3np
In December 2021, fresh off the celebratory Pop Punk’s Still Not Dead Tour in support of their 10th album, Forever + Ever x Infinity, Gilbert was found unresponsive in bed at home, rushed to a local hospital, and diagnosed with an 8-inch cancerous tumor, a rare pheochromocytoma. Hospital stays, surgery, and a long road to recovery followed – but, in typical New Found Glory fashion, so did the songs.
“I didn’t want this to be the ‘cancer record’ originally,” Gilbert admits. “But when we went on tour and people started hearing the story and connecting to it, I gave up on trying to control the narrative. Not all bands are dealt these cards, but we were. Let’s take these songs and help the disease get awareness and raise money for a cause that’s working on education and research for my rare cancer.”
A percentage of proceeds from Make The Most Of It will go to The Pheo Para Alliance, the longest standing internationally recognized leader in advocacy for, and awareness of, pheochromocytoma. New Found Glory have also released a limited-edition charity shirt to benefit The Pheo Para Alliance, available now at https://newfoundglorystuff.com
New Found Glory recently released Walk Through Fire, an intimate video where the band discusses Chad’s journey with pheochromocytoma alongside reactions and reflections from the band as a whole, from initial diagnosis to the beginning seeds of Make The Most Of It to present day. Walk Through Fire is available to watch now. See it below!
“Even though the songs are sadder, they’re still hopeful,” Gilbert says. “You hear so much online about mental health and fear and anxiety. I feel proud that we can release an album with joy and honesty in a way that will hopefully make people less fearful of life. A lot of times we punish ourselves for things that might never happen. I’m going through something that did happen, but doing it with hope and joy and a greater appreciation.”
As New Found Glory can attest, life moves quickly. Just three years after forming in Coral Springs, Florida, in 1997, the group were fast-tracked from local upstarts to mainstream stars on the back of ebullient pop melodies and hardcore-tinged breakdowns, setting off a blast of pop-punk dynamite that still lights the torch for modern acts more than two decades later. They became the voice of an underground movement, spurring iconic gold and platinum records (2000’s New Found Glory, 2002’s Sticks & Stones, and 2004’s Catalyst), countless MTV appearances, an entire subgenre (easycore) and sold-out tours the world over.
The band’s forthcoming acoustic album, Make The Most Of It (Revelation Records), tackles the last year head-on with their most emotional and cathartic collection of songs to date.
In many ways, it’s remarkable it took New Found Glory 25 years to release an acoustic album. Masters of stop-gap invention – from the ever-popular From The Screen To Your Stereo movie theme cover EPs to their hardcore alter egos International Superheroes Of Hardcore – the band have balanced the impulses of new and nostalgic better than nearly every one of their peers.
New Found Glory is Jordan Pundik (lead vocals), Chad Gilbert (guitar), Ian Grushka (bass guitar) and Cyrus Bolooki (drums).
New Found Glory are hitting the road next year with special guest Leanna Firestone. Tickets and VIP upgrades are on sale now at www.newfoundglory.com/tour
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