Cute Is What We Aim For

Avery Durnan / The USD Vista

The name Cute Is What We Aim For (CiWWAF) begs for an explanation. Confidently verbose with a hint of sassiness, the band makes quite a statement before you have even listened to their music. Founding member of the band, lead guitarist Jeff Czum, made some time to talk with The Vista.

He explains with a laugh that, “the name was actually just us making fun of local bands in the scene and how wrapped up in everything they can get. It was just us being sarcastic and being ourselves. We never expected things to take off like they did, and now we’re just kind of stuck with it.”

Take off, they did. Fueled By Ramen Records picked up the band in 2006, when they were first generating buzz. The label is famous for bringing us Panic at The Disco, The Academy Is…, Gym Class Heroes, Phantom Planet and formerly major names such as Jimmy Eat World and Fall Out Boy. Signing with the label propelled Cute Is What We Aim For from a local band to an international pop-punk sensation, “so fast it was crazy,” admits Jeff.

CiWWAF rose from the ashes of Czum and fellow founding member Shaant Hacikyan’s old ska band, Cherry Bing. “It was just something we kind of grew out of. Then it was just the two of us and an acoustic guitar making demos on GarageBand, just messing around,” said Czum.

The duo was joined by a rotating cast of band members, and embarked on their first self-booked tour. In the midst of that tour, they were contacted by Fueled By Ramen’s John Janick and signed shortly thereafter to their “dream label.”

With their debut album, “The Same Old Blood Rush with a New Touch,” the band got immediate attention from the media. Rolling Stone, Spin, Blender, The New York Times and even Hacikyan’s favorite magazine, Alternative Press, wrote flattering stories about CiWWAF, praising their boyish charm and catchy melodies. In their early days, CiWWAF was often compared to Panic at the Disco due to their similar styles and common label. AP included the band in their “Most Anticipated Bands of 2008,” while Rolling Stone labeled the trio as one of their “10 Artists to Watch.”

The emo-pop songs about heartbreaks and high-school relationship struggles featured in their first album resonated particularly well with the teenage audience. This is most likely due to the fact that the band got signed when they were in high school, and even now, their oldest member is 22.

In their newest album, “Rotation,” the band shows a decidedly more mature sound. With explorative new wave sensibility, the band builds off the success of their first album to reflect the incredible growth of teenagers to men.

“Practice Makes Perfect,” the album’s most popular single, was recently featured on MTV’s “The Hills.” Naturally, this propelled the track’s companion video to an all-day “Unleashed” premier on MTV2. Upon release, “Practice Makes Perfect” was the No. 1 most streamed video on MTV2.

Despite the fact that their music has so famously played in the background of Lauren Conrad’s dramatic lifestyle, Czum assures us that playing shows is his passion. He fondly reminisced on a recent trip to Europe, where CiWWAF had a particularly fun night in Gilville, England. “We played there only once at this small ski lodge, but everyone was going insane! People were all dancing around, being crazy, getting totally into the music, kids jumping off balconies into the crowd below and crowd surfing.”

The band’s albums are both currently available, as are concert tickets. Cute Is What We Aim For are playing with Secondhand Serenade at the House of Blues on Dec. 3. Tickets are $17.50 at the all-ages show, which will start at 7 p.m.