Do you ever think about that band from your high school and wonder what they’re up to now? I don’t have to — The Macks were that band for me, and I distinctly remember admiring them from a couple of grades behind. It’s not easy to start a band in high school, and it’s even harder to stay a band. But for 10 years, The Macks have stayed a band, and they’ve done so with a staunch doggedness that’s done nothing but move them forward.

On Sept. 25, following a string of inventive singles in close succession, the Portland, Oregon, natives will release their sixth album, “Bonanaza,” via DevilDuck Records. But before that, founding members Sam Fulwiler and Ben and Josef Windheim were kind enough to answer a few of my questions amid the buildup to what will surely be their most cohesive album and busiest tour to date.

YY: In a 2024 interview with Clash, Courtney Taylor-Taylor of The Dandy Warhols said The Macks had "just started to get really, really good in the last year." Was this a shift you were aware of and intentional about, and if so, what do you think drove it? If not, what do you think made him say that?

Ben: Yeah, while obviously we had been a band for several years at that point, 2022 was kind of our “coming out” year, where we released two albums and started to get some real recognition in Portland and beyond. Both those records I’m proud of but I think our songwriting, execution and performance ability took major leaps after we put those out. Courtney had come out to some shows of ours and was really supportive but I think what really turned his ear was an early version of “Nice.”

That moment was over a year ago now — do you feel like you've maintained that practice of "trying to get to the source with unstructured, powerful, cool shit," as he called it, and what has that looked like?

Sticking with “Nice,” that song is pretty simple on paper, really just a single riff repeating with little variance, which would be awfully boring if we weren’t able to subtly twist the narrative and arc. Sam basically conjured a verse and chorus out of thin air, which gives the song a very motorik, impending feel. I think that contrasting unstructured-yet-structured thing is what Courtney was getting at, and it’s something we’ve always wanted to do but not quite put our finger on until then.

I think you see that in other songs on “Knife” like the jams in “I Just Surfaced” and “Family Ties,” but “Bonanza” weaves it into the songwriting more naturally. Tracks like “Dually of Man,” “The Modern Grape,” “Donnie 737,” “Bluto” all kinda belong in the same school of unconventional song structures that still feel natural and engaging. Bottom line is we’ve always loved to turn songs on their head, but “Bonanza” is us exercising that inclination much more skillfully.

I haven't really lived in Oregon since high school, so I regrettably feel very out of touch with what's going on back home right now. As a group that's been wired into the local music scene for a while, what is it like now, and in what ways has the scene changed over the years?

When we were first starting out, Portland was so hard for us. We didn’t really live in the city, we were under 21 for a while and couldn’t really crack into the DIY community, which had so many effortlessly cool bands while we were kinda dorky try-hards. It was kinda gate-kept, which I don’t say negatively. There was a high bar for community and artistry that we weren’t hitting yet.

We found a home in Eugene where we honed those values and still played in Portland all the time, but it was always an uphill battle. We moved to Portland in October 2020 after spending six straight months unemployed, spending all of our time writing and recording and practicing. And COVID saw a shift in the Portland music scene in a few ways. It ended a lot of bands, it closed down venues, it was pretty devastating. But, it also made people much more appreciative of visible effort and passion I think.

There are some amazing bands right now and I don’t feel people have to play it down anymore, which I think is a positive change that has allowed us and many of our friends to blossom here. We care so much about our music and our city and it is awesome to have it reciprocated now.

The writing process for “Dajiban” was very jam-oriented and took a while to come together, while “The Macks Are A Knife” was almost the complete opposite. How did “Bonanza” come together, and what can we expect to hear on the new album?

Sam: “Bonanza” was different in that it was far more targeted writing. “Knife” had a lot of songs that didn’t make the cut because we ended up writing almost 20 potential tracks. “Dajiban” was similar with a lot of material being dropped by the end to focus on what was going to be the album.

With these two albums, there was a lot more discussion regarding track list and ordering, but with “Bonanza,” we seemed to know how it was all going to go from the beginning.

There was agreement early on that these tracks were worth developing, and we didn’t want to spend any excess time working on any “maybes.”

Articulation and refinement were some of the big goals for us going into the new album so more care went into making sure what was being written had purpose and improved the track at hand, ideally.

The pandemic killed a lot of bands, but in your case, it actually brought The Macks closer together. Being good friends (or family) can certainly help, but what else can you say about your longevity as a group?

It takes a lot of communication and understanding each other’s perspective whether that be musically or day-to-day habits.

We’re all pretty different people and we bicker but we have a lot of love for one another because we have picked each other and this project over any other outside BS.

We can stay together because we all want to reach the same destination and we are each other’s best chance of getting there.

If you have a bad day, you can always return to the mission, and there, you will find common ground with your bandmate.

After 10 good years together and some minor lineup changes, in what key ways does today's version of The Macks differ from your high school days, and what hasn't changed?

Josef: The writing process and approach to live sets is, in some ways, exactly the same as it has always been. Despite being seen by many people as a “live” band, we’ve always had our hearts set on making the best recorded music possible.

The thing that has changed is probably a heavier emphasis on the recorded side, especially with “Bonanza.” Where we are heading hopefully is toward more intentionality in all aspects: writing, recording, the visual art, the presentation, etc.

In high school, it was about getting something off our chest. Now we have even more to get off our chest, but we want to reach more people. Of course, we will still be playing our asses off live and forever.

You guys have a crazy tour coming up with Acid Mothers Temple, during which you'll only have two nights off between Oct. 2 and Nov. 9. As this tour is presumably one of the biggest you've taken on to date, what emotions are you feeling two weeks out? What are you most looking forward to, and what might you be dreading?

Ben: I believe we now only have one day off instead of two. We have done tours of similar lengths before, but nothing with a schedule as mad as this. The emotions are high everywhere. The thought of driving 4-8 hours, playing our hearts out, and repeating 38 times in a row is daunting and exciting. I know we’re looking forward to that third-week automatic delirium, where we are more machine than man and completely locked into the routine.

I think body maintenance is the scariest part. Josef’s physical exertion during a set is just insane and keeping Sam’s voice healthy and strong without any real recovery periods is something looming on our minds. We’ve dumped a lot of time into preparation for this, and we’re eager to experience the highs and lows that we know this will contain.

What's something listeners should keep in mind before hearing the new album or going to see you out on tour in just a few weeks?

Josef: No expectations, except that we will give you everything we got! We are very excited to share this record with the world.