AAR’s Ritter revels in life as Emerald Coast resident

DESTIN, FL – Tyson Ritter, frontman for the rock band All-American Rejects, couldn’t say enough nice things about his adopted hometown during an interview last week.

“We love Destin,” he said. “I may be from Oklahoma, but Destin is home to me.”

The 24-year-old and the rest of the band – Nick Wheeler, Mike Kennerty and Chris Gaylor – hail from Stillwater, Okla.

That all changed about five years ago.

“How did we discover Destin? That’s a good question,” Ritter said. “We were flying on Thanksgiving break, or a little bit before it, on a Delta flight. I was flipping through a magazine and see an article that says ‘Florida’s New Hot Destination.’ What a sweet play on words.

“About that time, Nick and I were pretty tired of our hometown. You know, it just gets smaller and smaller, it seems, the longer you stay after high school.

“We saw the beautiful sandy beach. And, Destin, we were like, wow, I put my foot down and it squeaks. We’ll stay here forever.”

Since then, Ritter, along with Wheeler, tries to spend “all of my free time there, which isn’t much.” He estimates about 1½ years out of the five so far.

Some vocals for AAR’s newest CD, “When the World Comes Down,” were recorded at Ritter’s house here, according to the liner notes, and which he confirmed.

“We can make it happen with a little portable rig,” he said with a laugh. “Wherever the inspiration is, you know.”

Although AAR’s Web site (allamericanrejects.com)
uses the latest technology, including Kyte TV, Ritter said he doesn’t own an iPod (other band members do) and likes to keep things simple when he’s in the area.

Some of his favorite spots are along Scenic Highway 30A in South Walton County.

“I ride my scooter up and down 30A until my butt hurts,” he said. “We go fishing off the beach, and I have a lot of local friends.”

Ritter also gave a major shoutout to his favorite eatery, Stinky’s Fish Camp, also in South Walton.

“It’s an incredible, incredible spot. We always eat there. I love going and getting a big sweet tea and just sitting there awhile.

“I’m just a patron, like anyone else. People accept us and treat us with respect,” he said.

Before you head over to Stinky’s hoping for a chance meeting, you should know that Ritter is not here now.

As he talked on the phone, the band was in Dulles International Airport on its way to the United Kingdom for a tour that started this week in support of “When the World Comes Down,” which was released Dec. 16.

(Yes, they were recognized, and the interview was intermittently interrupted by “people chatting us up.”)

The band’s first single from the new CD, “Gives You Hell,” is a huge hit, breaking into Billboard’s Top 10 two weeks ago, moving up to No. 6 last week and holding there this week.

“‘When the World Comes Down’ was completely difficult,” Ritter said. “It was like trying to build mountains from scratch with wood instead of dirt.

“You’re always trying to reinvent yourself and trying to not make it forced. This record was a huge, huge undertaking for us because we knew we needed to make it the best record it could be.”

Ritter thinks the result was worth the effort.

“We’re really proud of the CD. I think it’s more mature and shows we’re thinking more outside our little world to the world we all live in.

“You only get so many chances to write the record of your lives, and I think we came close to doing it.

“Since ‘Move Along,’ (AAR’s previous CD) I’ve gone from being 21 to 24 and that’s a lot different from when you’re 17 to 21 and you’re pretty introverted in your own life.”

Ritter said that while he likes “Gives You Hell,” his favorite track is probably “Another Heart Calls,” which features AAR’s first duet, with sisters Catherine and Allison Pierce from Alabama.

“Nick and I knew when we wrote it that the song had to be a duet because it’s about a fight that never gets resolved. I was looking for someone with a little bit of an edge, you know, a little bit of grit,” Ritter said. “I came across them on a YouTube search.

“They were mysterious and darker and had never had that opening shot to the world. They just did an amazing job. As an established artist, it’s good to know that you can create a platform for a new artist to be heard.”

Speaking of other artists, AAR is getting a lot of attention lately not only for their own songs, but also for covering Britney Spears’ hit “Womanizer.”

Why did they do it?

“Because Yahoo! said they’d put us on the front page of their Web site if we did a contemporary cover,” Ritter said.

They added their own touches, including some new lyrics and a brief nod to the Turtles’ “Happy Together.”

“People really like it for some reason.”

At home, Ritter listens to “old school records and CDs.” He likes classic rock, such as AC/DC and INXS, but he also enjoys Broadway tunes.

“I love musical theater probably just as much as rock,” he said, and as a student, he performed in some school productions. “I was in ‘Wizard of Oz’ and ‘Bye Bye Birdie,’ and then I graduated.

“I just wanted to be on stage. I didn’t care how I got there.”

If they don’t make it back to the area before then, Ritter said the band is planning to participate in MTV’s spring break coverage in Panama City Beach in March, as they did in 2007.

In the meantime, there’s plenty of “Sunshine” on “When the World Comes Down” if you know where to look. Hint: Don’t let the 30 seconds of silence that come up as Track 12 fool you.