Modern classic rock band REALITY SUITE have had a handful of releases out and about, two full-length album's, some single's and an upcoming all acoustic album out soon. They just want to keep going writing music and getting themselves out there like everyone else. The band discusses their array of releases plus more below.
1. Please tell us about the history of your band and its members.
Brian King, drummer:
My bass player Antonio and I were introduced in the sixth grade by my friend who was his cousin. His cousin knew I played the drums, and he played guitar…. And at that age, it wasn't really about ability; it was just the fact that you owned an instrument, you were instantly in the band, hahaha.
We played in his garage and wrote all the time…We wound up playing a few school dances before Antonio decided he didn't want to focus on music anymore.
I never stopped…When I was a freshman in high school, I joined a band with older kids…kids that were well out of high school. It was great because suddenly, I could play at all the clubs that I aspired to perform at but couldn't previously because I was only 15.
Towards the end of high school, my then band was looking for a second guitar player, and my girlfriend had a friend who had a boyfriend that was looking for a band….. so I was introduced to Joe.
Joe and I played in this band together for a little while before we decided that we wanted to break off and do our own thing. We played the club circuit and recorded a few albums before we decided to go our separate ways and explore different styles of music.
After a few years of being in bands that were near stardom, we all individually decided to call it quits on music for a couple of years.
Eventually, we got the itch again, called each other up, and said, “Hey, you want to do something really casual…just something for fun?” That is what turned into Reality Suite.
After four different lead singers, we discovered Kimmii, and everything fell into place.
2. What’s the origin of the band’s name?
We are looking for something that sounded larger than life. We had a name, The Industry Standard. But we were feeling so strongly about the material we were writing that I felt like the name undersold the music. Why would we call ourselves “Standard?” Let's just call ourselves "Boring" while we're at it…lol
So as I was driving one day, I was listening to the Howard Stern show on Sirius XM, and they were talking about reality shows. The word “reality” struck me…..I felt like it really related to our music. So I wrote it down on a napkin in the car while I was at a red light. That filthy napkin floated around my car for weeks until I was on the phone with Joe one afternoon. We were going back and forth over band names, and I told him about the word “reality” might work in conjunction with something else…so he started rattling off mostly nonsense names, combining "reality" with anything that came to mind. Until then, he was staring out his office door across the hallway at the other door, which had a plaque on as I said Suite 707 or something.
Reality Suite sounded kind of cool…so we stuck with it.
3. Where is the band based and what is your music scene like there? Are there any local bands you could recommend?
We are based out of New Jersey, United States. There are a few music scenes here…depending on what part of New Jersey you're located in. The Jersey Shore, Jersey City…..I cannot say we necessarily fit into any of them…In the beginning, we were a little bummed that we were not really being accepted by any of the Jersey scenes…But we quickly realized that our scene is worldwide…although we may not get that much love from the local scenes, we feel it around the world. There are definitely a bunch of bands that I would recommend…..Aurin, This Wolf, One Hundred Thousand……There's so much great music here…I wish I could list them all!
4. How would you describe your style?
We definitely have many different influences, but if I had to give you an elevator speech, I would say we are modern classic rock. Stylistically and songwriting-wise, I think we pull from the classics, but we wrap it up in a nice modern production. Heavy rock with some pop cheese in there for good measure.
5. What have you released so far, and what can someone expect from your works?
We have released two full-length albums and a live album. In between, we release several singles, all of which are available on all the streaming platforms. In 2015, we released “Skinn.” The album opener “Wingman” peaked at #5 on the Tunes Portugal Rock Chart. In 2019 our second “Awaken” spawned the singles “Kiss the Ring,” which peaked at #3 on the iTunes Portugal Rock Chart, and “Cut, Burn, Bruise,” which peaked at #3 on the Tunes New Zealand Rock Chart. In February of 2021, post-lockdown, we released “Triggers,” a modern-rock track about surviving the pandemic, which peaked at #7 on the Tunes New Zealand Rock Chart.
In April, we released an acoustic track called “Sleep with Ghosts” from our upcoming album, Closure. We are really proud of this new track….it’s also a collab with fellow Jersey band, Aurin.
Closure is dropping in late June exclusively on CD via DI Records. Yes, I said it…CD. We've just recorded an acoustic album of fan-selected favorites plus two new songs. It's all acoustic and reimagined tracks from our previous two albums. We’re really excited to release this because we're going to sign them all, number them all…The CD will also be included with the vinyl edition of our previous album, Awaken, plus two signed posters, a sticker, and collectible concert tickets…it's a really cool bundle.
And the key thing to realize is that we're only pressing 100 of these CDs…And we're not going to make Closure available on the streaming services. So it's really a big thank you to all of our fans who have supported us over the years. It's a very limited edition album. Everyone can visit our website and see all the details.
What can people expect? For the most part, we’ve continued to be unpredictable. We pride ourselves in not sticking to any formula. But I would say - we are looking forward to releasing a few new bangers.
6. Do you have any new music in the works?
Yes….we have demos waiting to be fleshed out….so far, everything is pretty heavy.
7. How about playing shows and touring, have anything planned out?
We have several shows booked in the tri-state area. Since the Covid crisis, we now announce shows 4 to 6 weeks ahead of time, fearing that things could be canceled. Check our website and Facebook page regularly for dates.
8. What plans do you have for the future as a band?
We plan to continue writing the best material that we can and hope to remain close to our supporters worldwide.
9. Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
We are available on all the streaming platforms - Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, Amazon, etc….
10. What is it you’d like a listener to remember the most when hearing your music for the first time?
I believe we all agree that we would like the listener to remember the melodies when hearing our music for the first time. We love to rock out and kick ass - but we want those earworms to stick in your head!
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