Rejects on the ‘Plane’

When “Snakes on a Plane” representatives called the All-American Rejects to see if they wanted to add a song to the upcoming Samuel L. Jackson movie’s soundtrack, they didn’t need to think about it much.

“We were stoked. We were like, ‘Yeah! A Samuel Jackson movie.’ And the logo looked amazing ? these two snakes all wrapped around the plane,” said Chris Gaylor, the band’s drummer. “We were like, ‘OK. This has to be done.’”

Even better, it gave them an opportunity to remix and fine-tune their song “Can’t Take It,” which was not as polished as others on their album, Gaylor said. Bandmate Nick Wheeler also got to play guitar for the title track “Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)” with the group Cobra Starship.

Sadly, though, the band, which is performing at the Orange County Fair Wednesday, won’t be able to meet Jackson or attend the movie’s red-carpet premiere, Gaylor said in a telephone interview.

The band’s management will have the All-American Rejects “touring in Bangladesh or something, keeping us busy,” he joked.

Music critics and writers have described the All-American Rejects as everything from pop-rock to power-pop. When asked what category he thinks the music falls in, Gaylor gave the question some thought.

“I think we’re a rock band with melodies. It seems like if you have a lot of melody in your music today then you’re considered a pop band. But we write our own songs, and we play them ourselves. We’re punk-rock ? it’s got the name rock in it at least.”

The band, perhaps best known for hits “Swing Swing,” “Move Along” and “Dirty Little Secret,” debuted in 2002 with their self-titled first CD. Their sophomore album, “Move Along,” was released a year ago. Both albums went platinum.

But the path to avoiding the sophomore jinx was anything but easy. After DreamWorks, which put out the band’s first record, folded and was absorbed by Interscope, the All-American Rejects found themselves in the uncomfortable position of defending their demos for the second album.

The band experienced some self-doubt as a result of their rocky start, but Gaylor said it turned out for the best.

“I think self-doubt kind of motivates you. You need self-doubt to put in to something, to make it human.”

Once their first album was finally released, the All-American Rejects were able to start realizing their dream: to make music that makes people feel good.

“All music doesn’t have to be a downer. There’s a lot of good music that is, but that’s not what we’re doing. We want people to put on our music and roll down their car window and just sing really loud,” Gaylor said.

For now, it seems like the band has struck a chord that the guys will stick with for awhile.

They’re not looking to redefine music.

“We’re not trying to re-invent the wheel here,” Gaylor said. “We want to make music that people like to listen to. I think it should be very natural and organic, something just flowing out of you.”dpt.21-happs-C.1PhotoInfo0V1T5FQ420060721j2q611ncCredit: Courtesy of Interscope Records Caption: (LA)The All-American Rejects, from left, Chris Gaylor, Nick Wheeler, Tyson Ritter and Mike Kennerty.