For almost a decade, the Plain White T’s have been playing to packed audiences craving for that perfect pop-punk punch. Their journey, which began in a small suburban basement playing covers, has taken the band to Warped Tour three times, landed them opening slots for bands like Jimmy Eat World and AFI, and now finds the high-energy five-piece about to kick-off the 2006 Nintendo Fusion Tour with Hawthorne Heights. The Plain White T’s are road warriors in the truest sense and with their first major label album, Every Second Counts, the band is ready to rock in a big way. Call it hard work or call it destiny, one thing's for sure — the Plain White T’s were put on this earth to entertain you. PWT’s story started back in high school, when frontman Tom Higgenson first stepped into Chicago's famed rock club the Metro and saw his future on the stage. With the local music scene exploding nationally courtesy of bands like Smashing Pumpkins and Veruca Salt, he decided the time was ripe for his own dreams to be realized. Armed with paper, pen and guitar, Tom went to task, experimenting with lyrics and melodies on a four-track in his parents' Villa Park, Illinois home. Once he'd reached a level of comfort with his songwriting, he worked up the courage to hand off a tape to Christian Lane, singer of 90s buzz band Loud Lucy, and to his surprise, Christian actually listened to it. Once he’d recruited a group of school pals — including guitarist Dave Tirio—it was only a matter of a couple years before the Plain White T’s, who’d attracted a loyal following thanks to Tom’s ridiculously melodic tales of teen angst and loveless nights, were playing the Metro themselves. “Anytime we could get in front of a bunch of kids who’d never heard of us, we saw that as a huge opportunity,” he says. “Winning over fans, that’s what it’s all about. And even from when we were 16, we always wanted to be successful and have a wide audience.”