Touring since October, the band Everclear will make its way to the Newport Music Hall on Saturday to support the release of its latest record “So Much for the Afterglow.”For Everclear drummer Greg Eklund, the best part about touring is the travel aspect, he said. The band was on the road for three years supporting its prior album, “Sparkle and Fade.” “It was tough but it was also a lot of fun,” Eklund said. “We’ve always been a touring band, that’s what it’s been about.””During the tour it was cool to see how with every show more people would come (to see Everclear),” Eklund said about touring in support of “Sparkle and Fade.” “By the end of the tour we were playing theaters (as opposed to the little clubs they started out playing in.)” Everclear recently added guitarist Steven Birch to the band’s touring line-up. “We brought him on tour to fill out the sound,” Eklund said, while explaining the differences between studio sound and live sound. “He is an old friend of ours. He has also created the artwork on the albums “Sparkle and Fade” as well as the new one.””So Much for the Afterglow” features more of a pop-like sound than the band’s previous releases. Eklund said Everclear didn’t feel any pressure to make the new record radio-friendly because of the success of the hit song, “Santa Monica.””We didn’t want to make the same record (“Sparkle and Fade”) twice,” Eklund said. “Art (Alexakis, singer/guitarist) writes melodic songs, so that’s what ended up on the record.”Eklund said the only requirement the band has about its music is that it must sound good to them. “So Much for the Afterglow” met that requirement.Eklund cites drummers Stewart Copeland (The Police), Steven Perkins (Jane’s Addiction) and Dave Grohl (Nirvana/Foo Fighters) as his influences. He pointed out that each of the percussionists has broken out of their back-seat role as drummer and taken over the center stage. Eklund plans to follow in their footsteps and pursue his own career after the demise of Everclear.”We’ve all talked about only doing one or two more records,” Eklund said. “We want to split while we’re on top.”Eklund said he is looking forward to playing in Columbus again. He said Ohio has always been good to the band. How good? Well, if you don’t have tickets, you’re out of luck. Saturday’s show at the Newport Music Hall is sold out. But don’t forget, Everclear wouldn’t want you to be sad. Spend the evening enjoying one of Everclear’s CD’s or cassettes.