The White Tie Affair

Don't mistake The White Tie Affair for a boy band. Clean-cut and good looking, the Chicago dance-rockers may not have tattoos or mop-tops, but they insist they can rock any party. We swapped emails with the up-and-coming band and chatted about video games, girls and their favorite subject: parties.

There are more and more rock bands getting exposure these days thanks to MySpace and the Internet. How do you distinguish yourself from the rest of the pack?

The Internet and MySpace have been great tools to get us a lot of exposure early on. We took advantage and used all the free marketing tools around us to get the music out there. But, at the end of the day, no matter how a band originally gets exposed, it still takes great music and hard work to separate from the "pack."

Who are your influences?
Guns N' Roses, Prince, Fall Out Boy, Stevie Wonder, Queen and Journey.

Which song from Walk This Way do you think represents your band the most?

"Candle (Sick and Tired)," because it captures all of our influences like lightning in a bottle.

You've mentioned that you wanted to bring some fun back to music. Is being a party band the only way to rock in a world full of problems?

We just want to make music that provides people an escape. Being a party band is definitely not the only way to rock in a world full of problems, but it's definitely a start.

Your sound was once described as "music for the PlayStation generation." What does that mean to you? What do you think about music games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero?

That's kind of an interesting concept. To me, the PlayStation gen is the generation of kids who are very into technology. I think the ways to get a band's music exposed are constantly changing based on technology, in my opinion, for the better. I love the fact that games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero are getting kids more interested in "playing" music. I definitely wish those games were available when we were kids.

You mix pop, punk and R&B. What kind of audiences do you get at your shows?

As our audience continues to grow, we're seeing lots of different age groups and listeners. It's mostly the kids who are into bands like Fall Out Boy and pop-punk, but we're also starting to get lots of college students coming to shows. Our live shows tend to be very high energy so most of the time the crowds are dancing, singing and screaming along.

Your videos feature you dancing and rocking alongside models in big mansions. Is this a fantasy that has become a reality?

When we shot the video for "Mr. Right," we just wanted to get some people together and have a party. Actually, most of the girls in the video are friends – or friends of friends – so we definitely hang out regularly. As far as that fantasy becoming a reality goes, we definitely try to bring the party wherever we go.