In 2015, As It Is exploded with Never Happy, Ever After. As it celebrates its 10th anniversary, the band have reunited, re-recorded it with their famous mates, and are heading to Slam Dunk. Patty Walters and Ben Langford-Biss look back at the album – and the fertile period in British rock – that changed their lives forever…
“The idea of us having a ‘legacy’ was never something we’d heard before we returned. It never felt like As It Is was building something like that.”
Six months on from announcing their return, Patty Walters remains blown away by the response to As It Is’ reformation. The frontman and his bandmates – vocalist/guitarist Ben Langford-Biss, bassist Alistair Testo and drummer Patrick Foley – revealed last year that they were getting back together to perform at 2025’s Slam Dunk Festival, while more recently they unveiled Never Happy, Ever After X, a 10th anniversary re-recording of their celebrated debut LP, featuring guests like Sleeping With Sirens’ Kellin Quinn and Holding Absence vocalist Lucas Woodland.
It's led to an outpouring of love towards As It Is that’s left them feeling equal parts shocked and thankful.
“It’s difficult to articulate or believe,” Patty says of the reaction to their comeback. “We never felt like a big or groundbreaking band, or the kind of band you’d end up hearing at alternative club nights. We felt like we were a lot of people’s secret and that we meant a lot to a handful of fans… I still can’t really wrap my head around the response.”
Never Happy, Ever After came out during a fertile period in British rock. Bring Me The Horizon had broken through first with Sempiternal and then to even greater commercial success with That’s The Spirit. The likes of Don Broco, Twin Atlantic and Young Guns were leading a wave of radio-friendly alternative bands, while the UK pop-punk scene, spearheaded by Neck Deep’s sudden transatlantic success, paved the way for bands like As It Is, Boston Manor and ROAM to carve out sizeable followings of their own.
It was a time of great achievement for the Brighton-based As It Is. After forming in 2012, they were snapped up by heavyweight U.S. label Fearless Records (home to, among others, Pierce The Veil and Ice Nine Kills) and thrown into tour after tour. Patty and co-vocalist Ben look back on it all with a sense of fondness, but there’s an element of world-weary cautionary tale to their recollections, too.
“Neck Deep really blew open the doors for UK pop-punk to go international,” Ben remembers. “What happened was beyond our wildest dreams. The idea of signing to an international label was completely foreign to bands like ours, but then it happened to Neck Deep, us, ROAM, Trash Boat, Boston Manor… it really felt like a scene was happening.
“But we also felt like outsiders, because Patty’s YouTube background wasn’t deemed cool in the way that TikTok is now. There was a weird stigma attached to it, whereas nowadays, all bands are using these platforms to promote their music.”
Above: As It Is in 2016
“And we barely knew each other when we started,” Patty adds. “As It Is started through ads on a website called joinmyband, and we quickly became friends, but we were just meeting each other, and we hadn’t had similar upbringings and life experiences. We were strangers when we started, but having then been through everything together across that time, we’re now as close as people can be.”
As Ben points out, the members of As It Is were also barely even into their 20s when they were suddenly thrust into international tours and opportunities aplenty off the back of Never Happy, Ever After. On reflection, it’s hardly surprising that, despite the successes, things eventually became unsustainable.
“We were super naive and fresh faced,” he says. “We skyrocketed to doing 175 shows a year, and looking back, maybe it all happened a bit too fast. Obviously, as it turned out, it wasn’t sustainable. Back then, the band came first, we said yes to everything, and it wasn’t healthy. The music industry likes to sweep you up to the point where your personal lives don’t matter, and you’re basically just put on tour forever.”
As It Is managed to keep things going for a good few years after Never Happy, Ever After’s release, but the intensity which Ben describes eventually led to him leaving in 2019, followed by Patrick in 2020 and Alistair in 2022. As It Is played their final shows that same year, before a lengthy period of inactivity and the eventual announcement of the band’s hiatus by Patty.
Time, though, is a great healer. The members of As It Is remained in contact during their period apart, while pursuing other projects, like Ben’s band Bleak Soul, and conversations about a potential reconciliation were taking place. Patty, initially reluctant towards the idea after suffering with his mental health, felt like he was in the right place to make a return, and following some productive sessions all together and a conversation with those behind Slam Dunk, the comeback was on, with the timing perfect to celebrate 10 years of Never Happy, Ever After.
For Patty, it’s like it was written in the stars.
“I see the album title as really ironic and striking given our experiences,” he says. “In our early 20s, we were experiencing a lot of confusion and self-hatred – we felt like we didn’t belong, and we had a point to prove. As It Is has always embraced those feelings, and I think the biggest journey of these recent years has been finding happiness both in and out of the band.
“We’re bringing healthiness to this project for the first time, something that’s really been helped by reacquainting ourselves with 11 songs that mean so much to us. We still identify with ourselves in those songs, so reconnecting with them in our 30s has been a special opportunity.”
With guests ranging from big names like Kellin Quinn and Sum 41 guitarist Dave Brownsound to young guns like Holding Absence and Yours Truly, as well as some of their friends from back in the day (members of ROAM, Mallory Knox and Trash Boat all feature), Never Happy, Ever After X is a celebration of how As It Is went from outsiders to an integral part of UK pop-punk’s moment in the sun.
With Slam Dunk set to be one hell of a party, fans are naturally wondering whether more shows and, crucially, new music could be on the horizon. As It Is are playing their cards close to their chest on the latter for now, but it sounds like something could be happening.
“There’ll definitely be more shows,” Ben concludes. “At the moment, we’re just vibing out being a band again, but we’re enjoying playing together. One thing I will say is we’re always busy, even if we’re quiet.”
“We’ve learned a lot over the last 13 years, and the breakneck speed at which we were moving through the 2010s is something we don’t want for the band now,” Patty agrees. “But what I will say is this: I’ve never been more excited about the future.”
Never Happy, Ever After X is released on April 18. The band play Slam Dunk in May – get your tickets now.
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