Back From the Dead: Inside The Cab’s Rebirth

Back From the Dead: Inside The Cab’s Rebirth

After more than a decade away from the spotlight, The Cab has returned with Chasing Crowns — a record forged through survival, reconciliation, and the kind of creative spark that refuses to die. For Alex Marshall, the journey back wasn’t just about making music again; it was about rediscovering purpose, rebuilding brotherhood, and honoring the fans who never stopped believing.

From near‑death experiences to late‑night writing sessions in Bali, from platinum‑level fan favorites to brand‑new anthems built for the stage, Alex opens up about the band’s rebirth, the stories behind the songs, and what it feels like to step back into the world they once ruled. This is The Cab — older, wiser, grateful, and absolutely locked and loaded.

We’re here with Alex from The Cab. First of all, let’s talk about Chasing Crowns. Is there an overall story or concept behind the album title?
Alex (DeLeon) had that concept back in 2020. All of our records have been tied together in some way — Whisper War, Symphony Soldier, The Lady Luck EP — so when we started building this new record, it naturally leaned into Chasing Crowns.

You can look at it a lot of different ways: being your best, chasing greatness, going for the throne. For us, we’d been gone for quite some time. Coming back with this record felt like redemption — unfinished business. Chasing Crowns just had to be the title.

It’s been fifteen years since the previous recording. What made you decide now was the time to rev up The Cab again?
I had a situation happen when I was living in Las Vegas — I got super sick, and doctors told me I had forty‑eight hours to live. I pushed through, obviously, but it changed everything.

Alex reached out to me after that and said, “Dude, the past is the past. We need to get together and start writing and making music again.” That was the real beginning of Chasing Crowns, and it started in 2019. A lot of the songs that made the tracklist came from that period.

Then COVID hit and delayed everything. We’re both married now, we have kids, life is different. Rolling it out this year just felt right. After such a long hiatus, we wanted to take the time to make something we were truly proud of. Once we got it there, we put it out — and we’re super happy with it. We poured everything into this album.

What was it like to play live again in 2025 after being away for so long? Were you nervous at all?
Man, it’s funny — we always joke that we’re older now and should bring canes or knee braces onstage. But honestly, everyone was a little nervous leading up to the first day of rehearsals.

As soon as we started playing through the set, there was this moment where everyone looked at each other like, Wow. There’s something special between these five people. It was like riding a bike. Smiles came over everyone, and the nerves disappeared. It felt like, This is where we’re meant to be.

Performing now comes with a whole different perspective. We started touring at seventeen — we were just kids. Back then you think things will last forever. As you get older, you realize every show, every opportunity, every interview is a blessing.

Grateful and appreciative — that’s how I’d sum it up, and I think everyone in the band feels the same.

What are you looking forward to most about your The Back From the Dead tour?
When you’re doing opening tours, you’re usually capped at a 30‑minute set. With a headliner, you can really interact with fans — and we’re super personable. There’s no separation. It’s a family.

We’ve been asking fans what songs they want to hear. We’re music listeners too — when you go to a show, you want to hear certain songs, and sometimes artists don’t do that. So we’ve been listening.

Building a set is like making a movie. You want to take people on a journey. Being able to play an hour and a half lets us put it all out there — deep cuts, new cuts, Symphony Soldier, everything. Covering the whole spectrum of the catalog is special.

One of your stops is the Fonda Theatre here in Los Angeles on June 1st. When was the last time you played LA, and what are you looking forward to most about that show?
Honestly, our last LA headliner was so long ago I can’t remember. We definitely came through on the All Time Low tour last fall.

But I lived in LA, Alex lived in LA, a couple of the other guys lived in LA — it was home for almost a decade. Coming back feels like returning to a big chapter of our lives. It’s another home to us.

And the Fonda Theatre is awesome. It’s going to be a really fun show.

You were announced for the Vans Warped Tour this summer. What’s your favorite Warped Tour memory, and what do you think about Warped Tour coming back?
When we did Warped, it was the full U.S. run. The camaraderie between all the bands was amazing, and seeing fans all over the country was special. It’s treated more like a festival than a one‑off show, so tons of people get to see their favorite bands in one place.

Now that they’re doing it as one‑off festivals in different parts of the coast and different countries, the hype is real. People are traveling from everywhere. Being part of that family again is super special. It’s full circle for us.

“Angel With a Shotgun” has over 253 million plays on Spotify. What does a number like that mean to you?
What’s crazy about that song is I remember exactly where we were when we made it — on Warped Tour, actually, which ties into your last question. We always toured with a little mobile recording setup, and Alex and I were in the back of the bus working on it.

The song starts with that big choir chant, and when we played it back for the first time, it just had a feeling. As a musician, sometimes you get that cliché chill — that moment of, Oh my gosh, we just uncovered something special.

It’s wild that the song is now platinum, especially because it was never released as a single. During our hiatus, it took on a life of its own. Seeing fans with tattoos of it, seeing how they react at shows — it’s amazing. That song is deep for us, and I’m grateful it’s resonated with so many people.

In 2016 you released a few solo singles — “Hurricane” and “My Girl.” Tell me about those songs, and is more solo music something you’d like to do?
After I left The Cab, I kept making music because it’s my creative outlet. If you’re a creative person and you’re not putting things out, it feels depressing — like you’re locking all these ideas inside.

I ended up doing some work in the Justin Timberlake camp with songwriters and artists, and that definitely inspired those singles. You can hear the Timberlake influence for sure. It was a fun project.

Outside of that, I’m always creating. If it’s not The Cab, I’m still making music because it’s who I am. I also have another project called KNGSMN — a collaboration with one of my best friends, Carlos PenaVega from Big Time Rush. It’s more faith‑based. We’re both Christians, and it’s feel‑good music. If it touches people, that’s success to me. But honestly, it’s just so much fun.

Let’s talk about a few songs on Chasing Crowns. Starting with the opener, “Locked and Loaded” — what does that one mean to you?
The first word that comes to mind is feisty. When we were finishing the album, our management was like, “We need to turn this in.” But Alex and I knew we were missing that rock‑guitar‑riff energy that The Cab has always had.

So within the final week before the deadline, Alex, Chantry (Johnson), and I got together. Chantry flew to Nashville, and we made “Locked and Loaded” — and “Back from the Dead” — in that same week.

Those two songs really captured the missing piece and put the cherry on top of the album. “Locked and Loaded” brings that energy and ended up being the perfect opener.

And of course, “Back from the Dead.” What does that song mean to you?
When we write songs, we leave them open‑ended so people can interpret them in their own lives. But for me, it ties directly into the idea of being the underdog — coming back, seeking redemption, finishing unfinished business.

It’s us saying, We’re back from the dead.

I want to jump to the end of the album. I’m always curious why artists choose certain songs to close a record. Tell me about “Tears in Reverse.”
I love that song — thank you for asking about it. It was actually the first song Alex and I wrote for the album. We took a writing trip to Bali because Alex loves to travel, and on the first day, that song started taking shape.

I’m heavily influenced by Coldplay, The Script, OneRepublic — uplifting, piano‑driven music. “Tears in Reverse” is a hopeful song. It’s about the fact that life isn’t all high moments. There are lows, and we’ve had them too.

It’s about spreading hope, relating to people, and saying, “We’ve been through hard times, we pushed through, and you can too — and we can help each other along the way.” That song means a lot to me.

Do you have any messages for The Cab fans who are reading this now?
The biggest thing we can say is thank you. When you put out music after being away this long, it’s natural to wonder, Do people still care? Are they still here?

The support we’ve seen — the love, the excitement, the messages, the turnout — it means everything. We’re in our mid‑thirties now, we’re married, we have kids. To still be supported like this is something we don’t take for granted.

I hope fans know that every interaction, every conversation, every moment we spend with them is genuine. Because no matter how good the music is or how well you promote it, if the fans aren’t behind it, it doesn’t go anywhere.

Their support is amazing, and we appreciate it more than ever.

In Conclusion

As The Cab steps into this new era, Chasing Crowns feels less like a comeback and more like a victory lap — a testament to resilience, friendship, and the fans who carried their music through the years of silence. Alex Marshall speaks with the clarity of someone who’s lived a full life between records, and the gratitude of an artist who knows exactly what it means to get a second chance.

With a headlining tour, a Warped Tour return, and a renewed creative fire, The Cab isn’t just back — they’re thriving. And if Chasing Crowns is any indication, the story they’re writing now might be their most powerful chapter yet.

(Interview by Ken Morton)

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