Better Late Than Never

Honor Society’s fall trek in support of debut album Fashionably Late kicks off Sept. 21 at Varsity Theater in Minneapolis and, so far, will run through the end of the year.

Tickets for some dates are on sale now, with additional shows going on sale later this week.

Fashionably Late isn’t due until Sept. 15 but Honor Society’s music is already making a name for itself with a trio of singles: “Where Are You Now” from the Bandslam soundtrack, a cover of The Cars’ “Magic” for the Wizards Of Waverly Place soundtrack and the lead single from Late, “Over You.”

While the band was out on the road with Jonas Brothers, Jordin Sparks and Wonder Girls, they took a minute to drop by the Pollstar offices in their big red tour bus – nicknamed Clifford ’natch – and talk about working with the reigning Kings of Tween while finding time to play their own headlining shows, as well what the future holds for them.

To hear frontman Michael Bruno tell it, the tour was a lot of work, but well worth it.

“We’re busy but it’s awesome. The busyness is great,” Bruno said. “A lot of planning goes into our busy days. A lot of times the day just runs from one thing into another all the way from the morning until the next day. We have an awesome team that makes it all happen.

“We’ve had a couple of police escorts to make sure we get to places on time. That’s definitely a first for us.”

The singer said juggling two tours at once was complicated even further by the fact that he and the other members of the band go out of their way to connect with fans.

“We try to meet every person possible,” he explained. “Right after our set we have two meet and greets put together by our sponsors Verizon and USA Pears. But after the Jonases perform, we usually find a spot in the venue for another signing and that’s pretty much open to the masses as long as they’re pre-ordering our album. That can run until like midnight or one in the morning.”

Drummer Alex Noyes, who played in the Jonas Brothers’ touring band before joining Honor Society, said shoehorning headline dates into a full JB schedule also meant playing all hours of the day and night.

“Sometimes they’re after hours shows and sometimes they’re matinee shows,” Noyes explained. “In either case, it ends up being the pre-party or the after-party for the Jonas Brothers tour.

“It’s been really cool, with people from the tour showing up. The fans obviously like it. We’re giving them a full set of music from our debut album. Jordin has come out and the boys have come out and actually performed with us a couple of times. It’s been a really great vibe.”

Since managing one tour is hard enough, most people would find two at once insane. Apparently for Honor Society though, there was never a question.

“This is really our first extensive touring experience,” Bruno said. “One thing we wanted to do was maximize what people got from us this summer. The platform that the Jonas Brothers have given us is absolutely incredible.

“What we wanted to do is say to fans, ‘Hey if you like what you heard [in the few songs we get to play opening], you should come see a full Honor Society show. Everyone from the Jonas Brothers to our management team loved the idea of us doing the arena shows and then doing more intimate gigs to give a fuller picture of our music.”

Even though the band seems to have come out of nowhere, they’ve been working to get to this point for a while.

“The four of us are celebrating our two year anniversary as a band,” Bruno said. “Alex was the last to join the band, and myself, Jason [Rosen] and Andrew [Lee] were a band for a couple of years before that. We’ve also known each other since we were kids.”

Noyes said touring as part of the Jonas Brothers band was great, but being part of his own band opens up other doors.

“Honor Society has given me the opportunity to collaborate with Mike and Jason and Andy on a lot of writing,” the drummer explained. “There’s not a huge difference, because ultimately I just enjoy performing. But it’s awesome to be able get up on stage and do my own thing with guys who are basically my best friends.”

While some bands might at least contemplate taking a break after such an arduous summer, Bruno and company have no intention of slowing down.

“We’re so proud of the album that we’ve made that we want to make sure that we’re out there supporting it and bringing it to fans,” the singer said.

“I think the best promotion for the album is the show. If you come see us live you’ll get what Honor Society is all about. I think that’s our best selling point, our live show.”