Brown, Paul (May 24, 2019). "Waterparks Sign To Hopeless Records + Drop New Song 'Turbulent' ". Wall of Sound . Retrieved January 30, 2022. So on the more vulnerable side of things, are there are any lyrical moments he is particularly proud of? Knight points to ‘Closer’ and ‘A Night Out On Earth’ as good examples.

Or like maybe if I was good at making plant sculptures, like Edward Scissorhands vibe, I can make one while you ask me stuff. Or we can both be trimming our own projects. Payne, Chris (November 9, 2015). "Good Charlotte Proteges Waterparks Premiere Dog-Filled 'Crave' Video". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 10, 2016 . Retrieved January 22, 2021.

Watch Waterparks' Gorgeous Video For 'FUCK ABOUT IT'

Merchant, Anam (February 9, 2016). "Never Shout Never and Metro Station breeze through Chicago". Substream Magazine. Archived from the original on February 28, 2016 . Retrieved April 30, 2016. a b c d Oken, Ashley (April 13, 2023). "Album Review: Waterparks- Intellectual Property". New Noise Magazine . Retrieved April 14, 2023. Goeman, Collin (May 23, 2019). "Waterparks Reveal "Turbulent" Release Date, Single Art Sparks Theories". Alternative Press . Retrieved January 30, 2022.

Got it. You’re one of my favorite songwriters and I feel like this is genuinely one of the first time when you’re really, really emotionally vulnerable in your songwriting.a b "Waterparks – Fandom (Album Review)". Wall of Sound. October 10, 2019 . Retrieved October 14, 2019. Frogs have always been one of my favorite animals,” Knight reflects. “However, when I learned that frogs were seen as dirty and unclean in a biblical context, it was interesting to me that something that I saw as so good, natural and beautiful could also be seen as a bad thing through a biblical lens.” In other words, the concept of shame plagued the charismatic bandleader for as long as he can remember, and INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY was the moment for Knight to finally face his trauma head-on and “come to terms with himself” once and for all. That explains why a majority of the new songs possess “hypersexualized” energy — a conscious rebellion against a conservative past. “Growing up in church, you’re taught that everything is so wrong and bad. I always felt like shit, so [this album] is the breakaway from that specifically.” I don’t want to sound like an asshole here but you have to make music for art – well, I guess you don’t have to, but I feel like you probably should,” he continues. “I’m not here to be like an old-man boomer ‘blame TikTok’ blah blah blah, but things are so meme-centric now. The problem isn’t music making its way into memes, it’s when people make it for the meme. It almost undermines art in general.” Knight barely has time to slow down. The band are set to release their fifth studio album, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (out April 14 via Fueled By Ramen). But the self-professed workaholic has never known any other way. “It’s a really hard mentality to shake,” Knight reveals. “When we were a local band, we didn’t have any family connections in the music industry, and no one cared, so you had to take on every role. Even though we are not local anymore and get to play arenas with our favorite bands, if I’m not actively doing stuff to push the music, then I don’t know if anyone else will.”

With collaboration on the brain, Knight is the first to admit that for many years, he was precious about his art and was hesitant to work with others. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine, Knight changed his mind, which was evident on Waterparks’ previous album, Greatest Hits. This time around, Knight, who’s an outspoken fan of the U.K. boy band One Direction, finally got a chance to live out one of his dreams by working with esteemed songwriter Julian Bunetta, who co-wrote beloved One Direction classics like “Olivia,” “Infinity” and “Best Song Ever,” among others. “I flew to [Julian’s] place in Nashville, and we ended up making five songs together, two of them being ‘FUNERAL GREY’ and ‘BRAINWASHED,’” Knight recalls. And while he still plans to keep the majority of his music close to his chest long term, he won’t rule anything out. Knight would undoubtedly jump at the chance to work with everyone from Post Malone and Damon Albarn to Donald Glover and Toby Keith. Of course, this is still Waterparks, and the animated side to Awsten’s personality shines through the songs: from the infectiously heavy RITUAL, which features layered screams from his local Houston buddy Vincente Void of Darke Complex, to the frankly adorable two-minute sugar rush of 2 BEST FRIENDS.

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Al-Sharif, Rabab (June 6, 2016). "Pop Punks Waterparks to Release Debut Full-Length Later This Year". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on June 6, 2016 . Retrieved June 6, 2016. Shoemaker, Whitney (August 12, 2019). "Waterparks Reveal 'Fandom' date with "Watch What Happens Next" video". Alternative Press . Retrieved August 12, 2019. a b c Joe Smith-Engelhardt (January 22, 2020). "Waterparks drop unreleased demos after fans pass album challenge". Alternative Press . Retrieved January 22, 2021. Newton, Caleb (February 2, 2018). "Album Review: Waterparks - Entertainment". New Noise Magazine. Archived from the original on February 2, 2018 . Retrieved July 9, 2022.

Kennelty, Greg (June 22, 2018). "Kerrang! Awards 2018 Winners Include Code Orange, Foo Fighters & Architects". Metal Injection . Retrieved May 4, 2022. I did use to have this project with my friends where I forced them to put a bouquet together while I ask questions! Harrison, Dan (January 23, 2018). "Waterparks - Entertainment". Dork . Retrieved February 28, 2021. Taylor, Sam (August 16, 2016). "Sleeping With Sirens, State Champs, Tonight Alive and Waterparks for US tour". Upset Magazine. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016 . Retrieved August 16, 2016.The thing is, if you’re doing it, because it’s fun, and you love it, and all this shit, and it’s like, that’s great. Amazing. Do it, do it if you love it. But like, I get bummed when I see people and they’re doing this because they feel like they have to…? Eloise, Marianne (February 7, 2020). "Waterparks interview: Inside the dark side of stan culture". Louder Sound . Retrieved May 1, 2022.