With "Everything I Ever Saw", the Menzingers herald a new era in their already eventful career. The eighth album from the punk legends from Philadelphia documents moments of significant change – personal, political and universal – while reflecting on the basic creative principles that once made them famous worldwide. After twenty years, the Menzingers have realized that the wisdom gained over time is even stronger than the emotional armor of their youth. "Everything I Ever Saw" shows the quartet embracing the here and now while strengthening the bonds that have always held them together. Work on "Everything I Ever Saw" began after touring for her 2023 album "Some Of It Was True". The band felt renewed energy as their world changed around them. "It wasn't something we originally planned," says singer and guitarist Greg Barnett. "We started writing in a very relaxed and informal way right after our last album – but we experienced really special moments that we wanted to capture." "We've been doing this for so long that it's become routine," adds singer and guitarist Tom May. "However, so much has happened in our lives between this album and the last one, and we always write about what's on our minds right now." In fact, the last three years have been very turbulent for the Menzingers: While Barnett married and had his first child, May divorced and went through a new emotional phase both inside and outside the band. "We're used to writing about separations, but divorce is different," he says. "There is something strange about it that cuts much deeper and hurts much more. The worst part is that you had a vision for your life that is now gone, and you have to learn to deal with it and grow as a person at the same time. But through this suffering, I have definitely become a better person. When you're devastated, you can put yourself back together to become the person you really want to be." It was sad for him, but he became the person he always wanted to be and found so much happiness in this change in his life," Barnett adds. "I will always consider this record as a reminder of the time of these great changes in our lives." While working on the record in the band's new studio in Port Richmond, a suburb of Philadelphia, the quartet – completed by bassist Eric Keen and drummer Joe Godino – maintained cohesion (and, yes, a cold drink or two) to support their bandmate and longtime friend during this difficult phase of his personal life. "The boys took care of me," says May, "and I can't even put into words how much strength it gave me. It's cemented our artistic relationship, because they're one of the few people I can talk to about things like that." CD2026New