The Maine

CANDID, EMOTIONAL AND DEEPLY HOPEFUL, THE MAINE’S SEVENTH ALBUM SHOWED US ALL A MUCH-NEEDED BRIGHTER SIDE TO LIFE IN 2019. THEY REVEAL HOW IT WAS BORN, AND PAY TRIBUTE TO THE COMMUNITY THAT’S FORMED AROUND THEM.

- Andy B Ddulph

‘You Are OK’ has won Album Of The Year at the Rock Sound Awards! How does it feel?

John O’Callaghan [vocals]: “I think for us one of the best things is to have been going through the arc of our career, starting almost 13 years ago, and seeing how platforms change and how the journalistic side of things is covered. It’s just really humbling, and it’s a huge honour to be acknowledged by you guys.”

And you’ve done it all on your own terms.

John: “Our focus always went inward towards what we were doing and who was actually supporting and sort of perpetuating it all. And that would be the people that listen to the music. I think those moments of affirmation when you go to a show and you weren’t expecting to sell tickets and there ends up being a room full of people, those are the moments you can actually kind of savour and relish while it’s happening. I think these moments are few and far between for us, so knowing the hard work that we put in and the reciprocal side of people… it just means that what we’re doing still means something to somebody.”

Where did the idea of those three words - ‘You Are OK’ - as a title come from?