AJ Michalka Talks Aly & AJ’s Future As 78Violet

Los Angeles, CA, United States (CNS) – Aly Michalka and sister AJ Michalka were once part of the Disney pop machine as Aly & AJ, with their songs topping Radio Disney charts, music videos played between commercial breaks on the Disney Channel, and even an original movie starring the music duo featured on the network. But while they released some of the best pop albums churned out of the Mouse House, they left the Disney-sanctioned Hollywood Records label to produce their third studio album on their own.

The Michalka sisters also changed their band name to 78Violet, which left most fans scratching their heads, and most of all confused as to when they’d release new music. Their last album, as Aly & AJ, was released in the summer of 2007. Their third album was originally due for release in 2009. After continued delays, the Michalka sisters instead announced their departure from the label and their new name, promising fans they’d be hearing new music from them soon.

AJ admits that prior to recording material for the third album, an attempt to leave the label had been unsuccessful. But finally Hollywood Records, the former home of other Disney Stars Hilary Duff, Raven-Symone, and Vanessa Hudgens, released them from their contract. The duo had already recorded an album’s worth of new tracks for their third album on the label.

“We’re probably not going to release those only because Aly and I have written so much since then,” said AJ Michalka. “The stuff that we recorded for Hollywood Records with this last record, we learned so much while we were writing it. But we’re writing better things now and we’ve grown so much since then. It sounds crazy because it wasn’t even that long ago, but when you’re a writer and you keep going, everything tends to get better.”

While their music has taken a backseat, the Michalka sisters continue to score major film roles. Aly re-teams with her co-star of last year’s vastly underrated “Bandslam,” Lisa Kudrow, along with Emma Stone and Amanda Bynes for the high school-set comedy “Easy A,” as well as the thriller “The Roommate” with Leighton Meester. AJ had a supporting role in this year’s Peter Jackson-directed “The Lovely Bones” and will play Diane Lane’s daughter in the story of the Triple Crown-winning racehorse owner Penny Chenery in “Secretariat.” “It’s really a remarkable story. It’s a total family film, really heartfelt and it’s directed by Randall Wallace. He wrote ‘Braveheart’ and ‘Pearl Harbor,’” she reveals.

But Michalka won’t reveal the direction 78Violet will take their music in. Their debut album, “Into the Rush,” was an inspirational pop/rock affair, and the follow-up, “Insomniatic,” experimented with fluttering electronic beats over their guitars and delved into more adult relationship talk. But their first album under their new moniker, due for release later this year, promises a new departure for the sisters.

“We want to make music our way. We want the freedom, we want the control,” Michalka said. “We’re now going to release it as 78Violet, completely separate from Aly & AJ. It’s cool that we can come back as a whole new artist and band, but we really just want to make the best music possible. It all starts with the songwriting, which is where me and Aly have the most fun and the most creativity, and now the most control, which is great.”

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