Some say being in the music industry is like running a marathon. If that’s true, Walk the Moon sprints marathons.

They exploded onto the scene in the summer of 2011 with their hit song “Anna Sun,” dubbed one of the best songs of the summer. They’ve rocked out at huge festivals such as Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza and they’re currently wrapping up their U.S. tour with two shows in Wisconsin. This Halloween night, Walk the Moon will bring its energetic, dance-heavy set to the Barrymore Theatre in Madison.

“We’ve always been a band focused on the live thing, trying to get bigger and more intense,” bassist Kevin Ray said of the band’s sound. “Things tend to get tailored to go with the live thing to produce a lot of energy at our shows.”

Influences from the Talking Heads and the Killers are evident in their uplifting, catchy choruses blasted with synths and quick-moving melodies. “The Killers have such energy, yet they’re still so rock and roll,” Ray said.

The band’s name actually originated from a song by another one of its influences, The Police, titled “Walking on the Moon.”

With songs designed to be electrifying in a live setting, it’s no surprise Walk the Moon puts on an excellent show. For the band, its music has always been about the fans.

“You can’t ignore the fact that two, three years ago the biggest crowd we played for was 100 or 200 people. Now we play festivals for like 20,000 and more. That’s when you realize things have changed,” Ray said. “We’ve got a pretty rad fan base. They’ve supported us the whole way, and everyone has been so supportive. It’s a family-type feel: We’ve got open arms and we aren’t leaving anyone behind.”

Walk the Moon released its most recent self-titled album in 2012 and have mostly been touring since. They’ve made progress on a new album, but it’s in the early stages.

“The only thing that’s happened so far is us writing some songs,” Ray said. “We spent six weeks in northern Kentucky, holed up in a Masonic lodge just writing every day for up to eight hours. But since we’ve been on tour, we haven’t really had time to do anything else.” With the tour wrapping up with this Thursday’s show in Madison, you can expect the band to put more time toward its new album.

Of course, with the show falling on the night of Halloween, some concertgoers will surely don costumes. When asked if the band would be partaking in the Halloween festivities, Ray said, “It’s been hard to organize it since we’ve been touring so much. But we’ve got something up our sleeves. It might happen. It might be hilarious.” Costumes or no costumes, Walk the Moon at the Barrymore will be a show to remember.