artists » Nick Wheeler of All American Rejects

We caught up with Mike and Nick while on tour and got a chance to talk with them about their new AC30 Custom Classics. Flip on MTV and you’ll likely catch the video for The All-American Rejects’ “Dirty Little Secret.” In the video, postcards of people’s real-life secrets are flashed before your eyes, as the highly addictive rock/pop anthem seeps its way into your brain - never to be forgotten, even if you try. Damn you AAR!

One thing that is not so secret and equally as unforgettable is that the ‘Rejects love VOX, and they’re proud to show it! The band confides, “We’re kind of geeks in that sense. We only use gear in our videos that we actually used to record the song, so it’s as true to life as possible.”

And VOX has been along for the ride since the beginning. Reminiscing about how they first got into VOX, Nick Wheeler, guitarist and co-founder of the ‘Rejects was quick to reveal, “I thought the amps we were using at time had horrible clean tones, so I was talking to the guy that produced our first record, Tim O’Heir. He said, “You should get an AC30 for your clean.” It just kind of evolved from there. Mike (Kennerty) did the same thing. He uses the VOX for his clean, and I’m using it for my dirty sound, ’cause it sounds great when you crank it up.”

Nick, who continues to use his classic AC30/6TBX on the road, has his settings etched in his mind, “I’ve got mine at about two o’clock on the brilliant channel, and then I jump the brilliant and normal channels together. I don’t know what it does technically, but it just gives it that over-the-top ‘oomph.’ It’s a staple sound. Classic and great for rock music! It’s just a great tool.” Mike was also quick to add, “And it looks cool. You see everyone else imitating it, too. Everyone tries to make their amp look like a VOX.” Nick agrees, “It does have the best grille and the best logo out there.”

Mike Kennerty, who formally joined the band for Move Along, has been enlisting the services of the new AC30 Custom Classic. “I played VOX while recording the album, and I’ve tooled around with VOX before. I always enjoy them. I needed something for this tour, so we got the new Custom Classic. It sounds great, no complaints!”

And the touring doesn’t stop. Currently wrapping up the Zippo Hot Tour, plus their own headlining tour, the guys will be heading to Japan next and then later to Europe. And it’s a big change from the last time they headed across the pond. Nick recalls, “We traveled a little bit with the first album, but the venues were very small, dingy clubs. We did get to do the festivals, and the festivals over there are really what count - like Reading and Leeds. We got to play the main stage twice over there now, so that’s cool.”

The best city so far? Mike’s answer was a quick one, “We played New York the other night. It was probably the biggest club show we’ve ever done. It was pretty amazing to be sold out at the Roseland Ballroom. It doesn’t get much better than that. I was dying sick though, which inhibited my enjoyment, but I can still appreciate it in hindsight.”

The All-American Rejects plan to tour non-stop, “Probably a couple more US tours and hopefully we’ll get to Mexico and South America. We definitely have Japan, Europe, the UK and Australia lined up, so there will be lots of touring, lots of traveling. There’ll be a new album for sure, but we’re just getting started on this one!” Hit up www.allamericanrejects.com for the latest news, and help keep The All-American Rejects at the top of the pack by voting for their vid’s on TRL.

Article: Jenn Plonski
Photo credit: Keith Smith