NUVOTV TALKS TO THE GOO GOO DOLLS ABOUT THEIR UPCOMING SUMMER ALBUM, MAGNETIC, AS THE ICONIC BAND MAKES HOLLYWOOD HISTORY ON THE SUNSET STRIP

One of our all-time favorite bands, the Goo Goo Dolls have already set the tone for summer cruising with the top down and a feel-good vibe buzzing from the radio courtesy of the addictive new anthem “Rebel Beat,” which frontman John Rzeznik calls “a song about happiness and hope and finding out where you belong.” (Check out the song below and see if it doesn’t marvelously stick in your cabeza all day!)

It’s no coincidence that the new track sounds custom-made for summer. “Rebel Beat” is the kick-off single to the Goos’ hotly-anticipated tenth studio album, Magnetic, set for release on June 11, approximately a week before the official launch of summer on June 21! The alt-rock hit-makers debuted a few additional tracks from the upcoming album during a recent show in L.A., and the tracks we’ve heard so far are on par with timeless classics like “Iris” and “Slide.” Check out the badass power ballad “When the World Breaks your Heart” here.

We caught up with the Goo Goo Dolls – singer-songwriter-guitarist Rzeznik, bassist Robby Takac and drummer Mike Malinin – in Hollywood at the band’s RockWalk induction on May 8, when the Buffalo, N.Y.-based group added their handprints in front of the Sunset Strip music store alongside fellow rock icons like Carlos Santana, Van Halen and Queen.


‘There’s songs that are like little snapshots that take you back to a moment of your life & fill in the blank spots of your memory. It’s amazing to be able to create music like that.’ — John Rzeznik


NUVOtv: John, at the Goo Goo Dolls’ recent L.A. show at the Troubadour, you called “Come to Me” one of your favorite songs off the new album. What does it take to impress you as a songwriter?

JOHN RZEZNIK: “I only really sort of judge my own music and try to stay out of the way of judging other people’s music – I tried that on TV [on The Next Great American Band in 2007] and it was a disaster! But I think a good hook and some lyrics that really mean something to me, and hopefully to other people, that’s what I try to shoot for when I’m writing a song.

“I hope that I can write something that people can relate to and go, ‘Yeah, you know what, I feel like that sometimes.’ Because to me, there’s always that music, those songs that are like little snapshots that take you back to a moment of your life and sort of fill in the blank spots of your memory. It’s an amazing thing to be able to create music like that.”

So far, what we’ve heard from Magnetic is the punchy pop-rock single “Rebel Beat” and the reflective ballad “When the World Breaks Your Heart.” What is the key direction of the new album – will it be picking us up with high-energy pop-rock anthems or making us feel sentimental?

“I think it’s going to be picking you up in a very sentimental way. Hey, that’s the best answer I’ve given all year. I gotta write that down!”

No need to do that because the Goo Goo Dolls’ music speaks loud and clear! Can’t wait for the June 11 release of Magnetic!

The Goo Goo Dolls’ Magnetic tour – a double-bill with Matchbox 20 – kicks off on May 17 in Baltimore and hits L.A. on July 17.