Pop punk legends New Found Glory have announced their new acoustic album, ‘Make The Most Of It,’ out January 20th via Revelation Records. The album features seven brand new tracks written in the wake of guitarist Chad Gilbert’s cancer diagnosis – including a new single and music video ‘Dream Born Again,’ alongside seven live acoustic versions of fan favorites. Mixed by Mark Trombino (blink-182, Jimmy Eat World), ‘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 – HERE, and for pre-save HERE.
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.
“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.”
‘Make The Most Of It’ tracklist:
01. Dream Born Again
02. Mouth To Mouth
03. Get Me Home
04. Watch The Lilies Grow
05. More Than Enough
06. Kiss The Floor
07. Bloom
08. Understatement
09. All Downhill From Here
10. Dressed To Kill
11. The Story So Far
12. Failures Not Flattering
13. My Friends Over You
14. Hit Or Miss