West Coast skate punk band FIDLAR making rare Connecticut stop at Toad’s Place

California-rooted FIDLAR writes vivid punk songs about the turmoil of being young.

“I figured out as I got older that life just sucks when you get sober,” they chant in the song “Sober,” then flip it. “I figured out when I got sober that life just sucks when you get older.”

The band shares hoary tales of substance abuse, desperate getaways and awkward crushes. “No Waves” is a litany of punishing or pleasurable physical and emotional experiences, delivered at a psychopunk speed. “Bad Habits” is a lyrical self-examination of a messed-up life that takes ownership: “But they’re my bad habits.”

FIDLAR does all this in a way that is more cathartic than confessional. The band writes anthems for those who can barely stand up, whether that’s due to overindulgence or deep depression. The band’s name is an acronym for “F*** it, Dawg – Life’s a Risk.” These are fast loud songs of survival and empowerment.

FIDLAR’s only previous Connecticut show was 10 years ago. Having released a flurry of new EPs in the past few months, as well as an “unplugged” album that humorously softens some of their toughest hits, the band is now on a national tour opening for the alt-pop artist Oliver Tree. Several of the dates, however, find FIDLAR headlining shows in clubs. One of those is Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. at Toad’s Place. It’s an excellent venue for a grand return to Connecticut.

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The Courant spoke to FIDLAR frontman Zac Carper about the band’s new approach to touring and recording, memories of New Haven and his recovery from substance abuse.

Courant: The last time you were in New Haven, you were opening for the Pixies at the Shubert Theater. Do you remember that?

Zac Carper: I remember! That was the show when I realized “Oh, shit! Pixies fans don’t like us!” That show specifically was like “Get off the stage!”

So what is this tour like?

We’re doing a tour with this guy Oliver Tree. It’s a tour within a tour. It’s just one of those things. We’re trying to figure out how to adapt to the new climate. It’s expensive to tour. It’s expensive right now in the world to tour. So we’re doing a couple of shows with Oliver and then we’re like “Hey, how do we go play to people where we’ve never played?” It’s definitely an experiment for us. We’re using that old energy and also saying “How do we have fun?”

We’re doing it because we write music so we can play shows. This opportunity came up, and we were like “Okay, let’s go scare some Oliver Tree fans.”

You just put out several new EPs. Is there a new album coming?

There’s an album in the works. We’re going into the studio as soon as we finish the tour. But I keep going back and forth in my head about it because I do really like the freedom where you write a couple songs, record them, put them out and just kind of move on. Like I was saying before, you have to learn the new climate. I know we’re kind of an album-based band, but we’re just trying new things, I guess.

What are the live shows like?

It’s pretty funny. We’ve been experimenting with it the past couple years. Everyone has their own opinion on what makes a good setlist. What we’ve noticed is that the best approach is 100% energy, not letting up. Our friends, even the band members, sometimes say, “Maybe there should be a part in there that’s kind of calm, give the kids a break,” and I don’t know. I think these kids are different now. They just love to go all out for an hour, an hour and a half.

We play a lot of stuff from the first two albums. The third album is harder to play, to be honest. We kind of made that record in the studio, so we haven’t been able to really translate some of those songs.

What’s wild, too now, is that all these new songs we just put out, we went with an approach of trying to translate our live shows to record rather than “Let’s get in the studio and figure it out.” So those songs are written in a way where we’re seeing how we can involve the audience. Off the new EPs, the funnest song to play right now is “Sand on the Beach.”

You write so much about yourself and your issues. How are you doing?

I’m doing great. I’m very stable. It’s really weird, I’m not gonna lie, it’s really weird. I’m in a great routine, I have a great relationship. I have a great house. I have a dog. I exercise every day. I meditate. I go to bed before midnight. I’m eating healthy. I’m sober. It’s been pretty wild the past couple years.

You came out of a skate punk scene. Are you still a skateboarder?

FIDLAR in general is a skateboard term. I do skate. I surf more than I skate, to be honest. I grew up in Hawaii. There weren’t actually that many places to skate in Hawaii. It was more surfing, and then when I moved to L.A. it was all skating, as the waves suck out here.

FIDLAR plays Sunday at 8 p.m. at Toad’s Place, 300 York St., New Haven. $30, $25 in advance. toadsplace.com/.