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Tired Radio might’ve been born in Brooklyn as the solo outlet of singer/songwriter Anthony Truzzolino, but it didn’t take long to turn things into a full-fledged band that found a home at Red Scare. Now, with their new album Hope In The Haze set to be released this Friday (pre-order), Tired Radio is ready to push things even further. If you’re into the heart-on-sleeve, gritty kind of melodic punk rock, you’re probably about to find your new favorite band.

We caught up with Anthony to talk about how Tired Radio evolved from a bedroom project to a band, the emotional weight behind the songs, and why quitting might just be his superpower.

PRT: You started Tired Radio as a solo project in 2017, before shelving the project and then starting it up again two years later. What made you want to revisit the project?

Anthony: I honestly came back to Tired Radio out of desperation. I’d just gone through a breakup and felt totally fucking wrecked, and I needed something to keep my brain busy. Picking the project back up gave me something to focus on, something to pour myself into instead of just sitting in that darkness. It was less about making a band work and more about giving myself a reason to get out of bed every day. 

PRT: And was there one specific moment that made you decide to turn it into a live band rather than a recording project?

Anthony: At first, I had no intention of Tired Radio being anything more than a recording project. But Kevin kept pushing me to make it a real band, and eventually I caved. We had our first rehearsal in early March 2020. Two weeks later the pandemic hit, and I honestly wondered if that was the universe telling me to quit. But in July our first single came out, and the response was incredible. A couple weeks after that, I got an email from a European booking agent offering us a tour — which was a total dream come true. That was the specific moment I knew that this wasn't just a recording project anymore — it had to be a band. 

PRT: That was right before the pandemic ground things to a halt. Was there any moment there where you felt like throwing in the towel thinking it just wasn’t in the cards?

Anthony: Pandemic aside, I’ve probably thought about throwing in the towel on a weekly basis since this band started. That’s just kind of who I am — I second-guess everything, and quitting is kind of my superpower. But weirdly, the pandemic had the opposite effect on me. Instead of making me want to quit, it actually gave me more time to focus on the band, and that made me want to keep it going even more. 

PRT: Lucky for us you didn’t or we wouldn’t have ended up with the amazing album that is ‘Hope In The Haze’. Did you find writing and recording a full-length a relatively easy process? Or were there some unexpected challenges?

Anthony: First off, thank you for saying that about the album — that means a lot. The writing part was actually pretty smooth because I already had a mountain of songs going into the studio. In fact, there were so many that we ended up splitting them into two seperate releases — we recorded the upcoming LP and our last EP 'Lousy, thanks.' all at the same time. Recording, though, always comes with its share of unexpected challenges. I kind of hate it. The whole process stresses me out, shreds my nerves, and probably takes years off my life. It just feels so final once it's tracked, ya know? What you put down is what the world hears, and I’m the kind of person who always walks away thinking, ‘I could’ve done that better.’ So yeah — writing is fun, recording is misery, but somehow it all worked out.

PRT: The new album will be out on Red Scare. How did you end up with Toby?

Anthony: We first met Toby after we opened for Brendan Kelly in 2021. We stayed in touch for a while just kind of feeling things out but he never indicated that he was interested in working with us. But over time I started becoming friends with a bunch of Red Scare bands, and they wouldn’t stop pestering him about signing us. Eventually I think he just got sick of the relentless badgering and caved. So really, we owe it all to our friends annoying him into submission. 

PRT: The album starts off with ‘Seem OK,’ an acoustic song with just you and a guitar. Is that a conscious nod to the band’s origins?

Anthony: It wasn’t really a conscious nod to the band’s origins — though I kind of love that idea — but it was definitely intentional. I wanted it to feel like an introduction or prologue to the record, something that sets the tone before everything kicks in. Having it just be me and a guitar felt right, because so much of this album is very personal and vulnerable. Stripping it down that way was a way of letting people in right from the start. 

PRT: Your lyrics are very honest and heartfelt and some of them hit hard. Is writing a more affordable form of therapy for you?

Anthony: Absolutely — writing is 100% therapy for me. That’s really what Tired Radio is at its core: a place for me to put all this pain and mess inside of me so it doesn’t fucking eat me alive. I’ve been in and out of therapy since I was 14 years old, and while I think it’s a great resource that helps a ton of people, it’s never really done much for me. Music, though, has always been there. I’ve been using it as an outlet for just as long, and it’s consistently helped me more than anything else to process my emotions and work through my trauma.

PRT: How hard did you chuckle when you came up with the D.R.E.A.M. song title?

Anthony: Hard enough that I haven't stopped chucklin' about it — and that was two years ago. Growing up, I listened to '36 Chambers' every single day, so getting to sneak a nod to Wu-Tang into the record rules.

PRT: I read somewhere that you’re a fan of 90s-era Goo Goo Dolls, which I totally get because they were amazing back then. I also hear it in some of the songs, along with some Beach Slang influences (minus the emotional abuse accusations). Who else would you say are some of your biggest influences?

Anthony: Yeah, both the Goo Goo Dolls and Beach Slang are definitely huge influences on me. I grew up on that 90s-era Goo Goo Dolls stuff, and it totally shaped the way I think about melody and guitars. And without Beach Slang, I don’t think Tired Radio would exist. Hearing those first two Slang EPs literally reinvigorated my love for punk and inspired me to buy my first guitar and start writing songs. But if I had to pick one favorite songwriter, it’s Mike Kinsella from Owen/American Football — I think he's fucking brilliant. Beyond that, The Replacements (and Paul Westerberg in general) are massive for me, along with Leatherface, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Iron Chic. All of those bands taught me different lessons about songwriting, honesty, and heart, and I think little pieces of each of them have found their way into Tired Radio.

PRT: If you had the chance to sign with a major label like the Goo Goo Dolls and secure financial stability for life, but it meant playing saccharine sweet songs like ‘Iris’ every night… would that be a tough call?

Anthony: Honestly, that would be the easiest decision I’ve ever had to make… but I’m not gonna tell you which way I’d go. Gotta keep a little mystery alive :)

PRT: ‘Fade Away…’ is an unexpected one. Like an interlude with electronic touches. Which is something you don’t hear a lot on punk rock albums. Where did that one come from?

Anthony: 'Fade Away' actually goes all the way back to the very beginning of Tired Radio in 2016. It was one of the first things I ever wrote for the project. The lyrics are pulled directly from some journaling I did during a suicide attempt, so it’s an extremely personal song for me. Instead of re-recording it for the album, we decided to use the original GarageBand demo from 2016 to keep it as authentic and raw as possible, and just added the electronic drum beat on top of it. Which, come to think of it — I guess that was 100% a conscious nod to the band's origins after all. 

Originally, when we sequenced the record, 'Fade Away…' was meant to be the closing track. The album would start with 'Seem OK', which opens on this sunrise-esque D chord and, despite its heavy lyrics, has this flicker of hope — ending with the line, ‘If I can somehow find the strength to fake a smile long enough to seem OK, I’m not OK.’ And then the record would close by giving in to the pain, with the last line being, ‘I will never be OK.’ Those chaotic electronic drums swirling around the speakers were meant to represent the noise in my head — or the haze, if you will. It was a way of bookending the record between seeming OK and admitting I’ll never be OK. Hope that makes sense! 

PRT: With both yourselves and Get Up Kids playing at Fest this year, will there be a repeat performance of ‘Hamburg Summer’? Or a sequel called ‘Gainesville Autumn’?

Anthony: Wait — how do you know about 'Hamburg Summer'? lol. That’s some deep-cut knowledge right there! As for a sequel, we can only hope for 'Gainesville Autumn'. Fingers crossed the stars align and we get to make it happen. 

PRT: What’s up next for Tired Radio once the album will be out? Any plans to come over to Europe? And if so, will you bring a D.R.E.A.M.S. shirt so I can spend my money on it?

Anthony: If all goes according to plan, this record makes us just famous enough to quit our day jobs but not famous enough to get recognized at the grocery store. That feels like the sweet spot. But really, the hope is that people connect with the record and we get to tour on it a bunch. There’s even been some early chatter about maybe getting over to Europe next summer, which would be a dream (pun very much intended). And yeah, I’ll gladly sell you a D.R.E.A.M. shirt — partly to pay for gas, but mostly to fund my Doner Kebab obsession.