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Lead guitarist and vocalist Nick Wheeler says AAR never broke up. But the band, which includes vocalist and bassist Tyson Ritter, drummer Chris Gaylor and guitarist Mike Kennerty, did take a hiatus from 2012 to 2023 to grow as individuals. After filling in support slots for bands such as Dashboard Confessional and performing in 2022 at the Las Vegas festival When We Were Young, AAR started consistently recording and performing again.

“Bands that we came up with and toured with were getting reinvigorated,” Wheeler says. “We caught that bug, too.”

The band released “Flagpole Sitta,” a cover of the 1997 Harvey Danger song, in September. Wheeler says the band stumbled upon the song while on the “Wet Hot All-American Summer” tour in 2023. Adrenaline-racing after back-to-back shows, the band decided to spend the evening jamming out to nostalgic, ’90s songs on the tour bus. When “Flagpole Sitta” played, everyone realized a mutual love for the angst-filled, punk-rock track.

“We don’t all agree on much musically,” he says. “But we all love this song.”

Recording “Flagpole Sitta” gave AAR a “low stakes, no pressure” environment to get together and create music. The band wasn’t known for recording cover songs, but over the past decade, the only time they’ve reunited was occasionally for shows. The band needed a reason to get together and create.

“It was kind of an excuse to get in the studio together in a new environment that wasn’t a stage during sound check.”

With each band member living in different cities, things are different for AAR. Wheeler moved to Nashville 10 years ago to spend time developing his songwriting and to produce for other artists. Ritter, who formed AAR with Wheeler when the pair were still in high school, dove into acting. But their time apart helped them discover their own creative individualism outside of being in a group.

“For so long, we were the All-American Rejects.”

After the release of the 2002 debut single “Swing, Swing,” the All-American Rejects won over the hearts of millennial rock lovers nationwide. The band’s sophomore album, “Move Along,” peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 in 2005 and featured classic 2000s hits like “Dirty Little Secret” and “Move Along.” The band released two more albums, “When the World Comes Down” and “Kids in the Street,” before taking a hiatus in 2012.

Wheeler says during their time apart, he questioned who they were if they weren’t “doing the band.” However, he says they all have a renewed sense of confidence and have learned how to collaborate and make music in new, healthier ways.

“This just happened to be our thing that defined us for so long,” he says. “We had the opportunity to step back, find other things creatively and have a personal life.”

While working with young artists in Nashville, Wheeler has noticed the duality of modern-day music production. Whereas acts in pre-streaming times only had to focus on creating songs and music videos, artists today juggle much more. Although songs can be recorded and released faster, Wheeler says music has become content and some artists struggle to balance content creation with artistic creativity.

“I do think music is content now, which sucks, but there are good things and bad about that,” he says. “There’s so many other aspects to it and that, I think, causes the music to be swept up in just that content-ness of it all.”

AAR has already played the game of releasing full-length albums in their younger years. Now, the band is focusing on releasing singles, with plans to drop more songs and tour in 2025.

“We don’t have to put so much pressure on crafting this two-year project,” he says. “We can experiment and have some fun.”

While getting back into the groove of making music together, Wheeler says the band intends to continue challenging its listeners as they enter into a new era of collaboration centered around doing what they do best — rocking out.

“Our job is to continue to challenge our fans, challenge ourselves, have fun, and make what we consider great music,” he says.