He’s also learned over time that as long as he’s happy with what he’s doing, that’s pretty much all that really matters. A very recent tweet from a stranger on the hellhole that is Twitter reaffirmed this healthy mindset.
“This has taken a while to grasp, but nothing from the outside is gonna make you feel good,” Awsten says. “I can take the time to post jokes and whatever, but yesterday I saw a quote tweet that was like, ‘This is the first funny thing that Awsten’s ever done.’ Imagine if my goal was to be funny online and I saw that. I’d be like, ‘Wow, okay, dick!’ It hurt. That’s why I’m grateful to the people who accept this project for what it is, and go forward with it. And I think those people are going to feel rewarded by it.”
First, though, Awsten’s got more microscopic pixel-colouring to be getting on with. Before we sign off and let him get back to it, he stands up and lifts both hands up in the air, as if he’s carrying a significant weight. It represents everything he’s been doing for the last nine days.
“I feel like I’m holding this album and it’s heavy as shit, and I’m like, ‘I’m going to make sure that the rest of this gets built correctly,’” he explains, continuing to support this imaginary mass. “It’s like the structure and the bones and everything are there, and I’m trying to steer this heavy-ass ship. But the thing is, it’s right there and I see where it needs to go, and I only have to do a few more things to tie the fucking thing and make sure it stays against the dock, and put the anchor down. It’s so close, and I’m not gonna start dropping the ball now in any area – there’s not gonna be any compromise.”
Awsten’s desk beckons once more. Clean clothes be damned.
“I don’t want to look back in a year or two or whatever and be like, ‘Ah, this is what I would change…’” he concludes. “I wanna be like, ‘Man, we fucking killed this!’”
Waterparks’ new album INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY is due out in spring next year via Fueled By Ramen. The band support You Me At Six in February 2023