Inside Joyce Manor’s ‘I Used To Go To This Bar’
This year marks the 18th anniversary of California’s Joyce Manor’s career as the treasured alt-pop-punk ‘Wildflowers’, and to help celebrate this achievement, the band are unleashing their seventh studio album, I Used To Go To This Bar, via Epitaph Records. The Note was beyond appreciative to have Barry Johnson (guitar/vocals), Chase Knobbe (guitar) and Matt Ebert (bass) all take part in a collective discussion about the record, baking, The Bear, songwriting and so much more.
Words Will Oakeshott // Image Dan Monick
Before the end of 2025, Joyce Manor’s seventh studio album, I Used To Go To This Bar, was already escalating to the top of the metaphoric ‘Stairs’ for multiple critics’ most anticipated releases of 2026 – weeks before its actual release date.
The full-length was included in Rolling Stone’s “Here Are The Albums We Can’t Wait To Hear in 2026” list, Pitchfork’s “The 55 Most Anticipated Albums of 2026”, Vulture’s “Albums We Can’t Wait to Hear in 2026”, Consequence’s “The Most Anticipated Albums of 2026”, Brooklyn Vegan’s “Albums We’re Anticipating in 2026” and numerous other acknowledgements from dignified publications.
When this writer is joined by guitarist/vocalist Barry Johnson, guitarist Chase Knobbe and bassist Matt Ebert via Zoom from their homes some 13,000 kilometres away, the first and rather obvious question that seemed necessary to ask was about their thoughts on this spirited enthusiasm for their latest alt-pop-punk opus.
“Uhhh, I hope that we don’t let them down,” says Barry Johnson. “I hope it’s not a big fat letdown (laughs). You know, a third of the record is already out, so… If that’s what is causing the anticipation, well, the rest of the tracks are very strong too. There’s at least three more that are as strong too, I think.” He says all this with a glowing, mischievous grin.
Matt Ebert chimes in - “It feels to me like the pressure’s off a little bit, because if you like the three [songs] that are out, I couldn’t see people really hating the rest of the record.”
Although both Barry and Matt’s responses were relatively straightforward, with glimmers of optimism (and comedy), the early reports indicate that their predictions of positive receptions to the LP have been blissfully confirmed. Flood Magazine exclaimed, “…it’s clear that their legacy is here to stay.” RIFF Magazine articulated that “I Used To Go To This Bar is an easy listen that encapsulates the band’s legacy.” Then, Scene Point Blank stated, “Joyce Manor keeps it short, sad, and sharp. It feels like old friends you can’t quite stop missing. 9/10.”
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To a degree, these remarkable reviews are as unsurprising as they are accurate. For 18 years, Joyce Manor have sculpted their legacy in adventurous indie alternative pop punk, and I Used To Go To This Bar is another charming chapter in their story.
Take the striking blasts of the opener ‘I Know Where Mark Chen Lives’, which astonishingly blends the Foo Fighters’ earlier stadium rock tenacity (‘All My Life’) with Yellowcard’s anthemic violin-punk from the noughties, all then overseen by Pennsylvania’s The Wonder Years. Or ‘All My Friends Are So Depressed’, an emo country folk number that is simply spellbinding. This is followed by the second single, ‘Well Whatever It Was’, a composition that geek power pop rock icons Weezer would, in all likelihood, cherish.
The last song mentioned also features arguably Joyce Manor’s pièce de resistance of film clips, directed by Lance Bangs (REM, The White Stripes, George Harrison, Death Cab For Cutie and JackAss). The short film is essentially a hilarious parody of The Great British Bake Off TV Series.
“We had that opportunity to work with Lance, and we're fans of ALL of his work, so it was really cool to be given that opportunity. He brought some ideas to us, and we really liked that one, so he just kind of took it and ran with it,” Matt discloses with fond memories.
He elaborates further – “It’s amazing what he was able to pull off in a relatively short amount of time- a matter of weeks! Then he was like: ‘Ok, we're all good. We're gonna shoot this day’, and I think it came out great. It's really funny, he got some really good actors on there, and I think it's a great video.”
“I really hope it comes out on Rage,” he adds, having admitted he’s a self-confessed connoisseur of the Australian TV music program.
The film clip hosts an array of well-known performers acting as infamous musicians (Robert Smith, Morrissey, Kate Bush, The Gallagher Brothers) competing in the bake-off, including actor John Michael Sedor, stand-up comedians Shapel Lacey and Cam Gavinski. Even Bad Religion’s Brett Gurewitz is involved. In a roundabout way, this does fit into this brilliant puzzle, as Mr. Gurewitz was matter-of-factly the producer for the newest JM full-length.
“(Working with Brett) was great! As a guitar player, it's really cool to be pushed to just get good takes, where you don't have to rely on, like editing, and just seeing the difference in how the final product ends up and sounds a lot more just emotional and raw,” Chase Knobbe discloses.
Taking a moment of happy reflection, he continues, “He does the same thing with vocals and all that stuff, like he wants to do as little like tinkering in post as possible. I think that's basically his flow. So, he just pushes you to perform better, and that sticks with you when you're playing shows, when you're practising - you have this ‘new standard’ that you're paying attention to, where you're able to make it sound really good in the studio. That requires focus and challenging yourself.
“I think Brett is good about getting you to that headspace without explicitly telling you what to do. He's funny, he's really light-hearted in the studio and just wants things to be good and fun and go smoothly. So, it's kind of like on you to not fuck that up,” he admits with a chuckle.
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Brett himself is an avid admirer of the trio (Joyce currently do not have a full-time drummer, but have worked with the likes of Social Distortion’s David Hildago, Jr., and Joey Waronker [recent Oasis percussionist]) and when he was asked about a production role for the record by Johnson, his answer was simply: “Dude, I would love to.”
“Joyce Manor are a quintessential South Bay punk band,” Gurewitz previously professed in press material. “They're writing timeless songs for the American Songbook. If Barry was a novelist, he'd be Ernest Hemingway. To me, they’re among the most important bands of the last two decades.”
Undoubtedly, these are astronomic compliments from Brett, a legend of SoCal punk, when discussing Mr Johnson; but these words of praise are very difficult to dispute. Barry’s brash, sombre, yet bedazzling storytelling in his shimmering honey-whiskey voice are beyond magnetic. It therefore plagued this scribe to ask about his lyrics, if there is perhaps a cinematic aura involved with his storytelling?
“I strive to make music that has moments of beauty in it, and that made me kind of feel like there's a longing maybe. Sort of like Julie Cruise’s music from Twin Peaks or something like that. Like, you know, beautiful.” He halts for a moment, as if re-experiencing his poetry under a new light, then proceeds – “Maybe there's sort of some nonlinear, cryptic [motif] that just makes you feel a certain way… And not exactly like totally telling a traditional story in a song. But maybe like, kind of using imagery to evoke a feeling.
“I would love it to feel like parts of David Lynch movies – I love his movies.”
The lead-up to this moment, releasing album number seven, has been a whirlwind of creativity, time commitment (work began in 2023), opportunities (‘Constant Headache’ was featured on the multi-award-winning TV series The Bear) and extensive touring, which included a life-changing run with Future Islands and Weezer playing massive amphitheatres.
“Weezer is one of my favourite bands ever,” Barry confesses joyously. “So, that was just out of this world! It was fun to do it with another band that we also like [Future Islands], that we could hang with and kind of be more comfortable around. And then you'd hang with Weezer a little bit and just feel dumbfounded. I've just spent so much time thinking about, listening to and watching Weezer. I used to have a Weezer DVD! Once they invented YouTube, it was just like, probably the third thing I ever typed into YouTube was ‘Weezer’.”
How did it feel hearing your music on The Bear?
“That was exciting! You couldn’t hear it.” Matt Ebert says with an infectious smile. “When we got the email about it, we didn't know in what capacity it was going to be used. This is not that long ago from when that Kate Bush song was used in Stranger Things, and it was a huge moment for these artists [who get involved], you know?”
Johnson clarifies – “So, we’re like, ‘Oh my god, we're gonna be in this show, The Bear. It's a really popular show. If it's a pivotal scene, this could be a really big deal!’ But then, he’s like listening to it on the radio, almost inaudibly (chuckles). But, a lot of people picked up on it, so that was cool.”
Joyce Manor’s I Used To Go To This Bar is out now via Epitaph Records. Listen here.
