Life & Work with Stereosity

Today we would like to introduce you to Stereosity

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Stereosity had an interesting start– in 2018, our drummer, Hunter Leibee, was having a birthday party at his house. Our now guitarist, Jack Carone, had stumbled upon his drumset in the garage of the house and jokingly made a comment about how they should start a band. Turns out, Hunter’s little brother, Luke, had been playing bass and taking lessons. He was a perfect fit to fill out that role. Jack at this point in time had briefly been talking to me (Sam) online through one of our other friends introducing us. We would play video games together, chat, and were going to school together as well. He brought up the “joke” about starting a band, and since I’d already been playing guitar at this point, I asked to come play some songs with them. It’s funny because at the first band practice we had, Luke hadn’t said a single word. He was a shy kid but it is funny to see him bounce around on stage now.

All three of the boys had shared a love for Radiohead, so that is where we started. For someone like me who had only mainly listened to pop and indie rock back then, it was a good experience to be introduced to some of the classics that the other members loved to listen to. We had a rough start. Jack and I knew how to play guitar but were so very new to the instruments that we could not play half of the songs that were suggested. He and I took lessons with a renowned artist named Marc Seal, who taught us how to not only play the instrument but experiment with it and make it our own. At the same time, both brothers had been taking lessons as well. In the next year, we had our first show, which just consisted of a few cover songs at an outdoor event. It’s still funny looking back on how we couldn’t stomp on a pedal on time in a song, and we only had one pedal to stomp. Another year or two go by with a few consistent band practices every week, and we finally get comfortable enough with our instruments and with each other that we start to experiment in songwriting.

At this time, our influences shifted heavily to more technical bands ranging from Polyphia to Delta Sleep to Toe. We then started releasing music, which I had been mixing and mastering myself! Cut to a few years later of consistently playing shows together, and you find us now actively building an audience base with goofy and clever video ideas on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Five years ago, when the two boys made that joke about forming a band, I don’t think any of them, including me, would realize how far we have gotten and how much fun we have had along the way. We’re still a long way from being where we want to, but as of right now, we’re all having a blast just experimenting with different songwriting techniques and testing our musical capabilities in every way that we can. We have a growing audience base and are playing some of our biggest shows to date. We can’t wait to see what the future has to offer for us, but one thing that we do know is that an album is on the way and it is some of our best work yet!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The struggles for us were wildly different at times, but all boiled down to inexperience in the beginning. There were a few times where not understanding an instrument had held us back from either learning a song or writing our own music. Much has changed since then. We also, back in 2018 – 2019, had been experimenting with adding new members to our practices and seeing what they could bring to the table. There were a few times where this had happened, and it was interesting to watch how our chemistry just was not the same with an additional person. It is in part due to our strong friendship between one another and love for the same genre and styles of music. We have always shared a passion for music in general, but the fact that we listen to the same genres and spend time together outside of practices or music is what adds to the bond.

We’ve had plenty of times where the not-so-simple idea of songwriting and structure and theory had stumped us for months. It was a tough one to conquer since everyone does it so differently. It’s one we still haven’t fully conquered and one that I don’t believe we will ever totally defeat. At the same time, it is a challenge that rewards us greatly with art that we can call our own. Working through songs together and not rushing to complete something are both super important to remember when we start a new project. We’ve also had some struggles regarding live sound and understanding how everything works in a professional setting. PLENTY of things can go wrong at live shows, and understanding them took a long time.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We are a math rock / emo band from Orange County, California. We specialize in colorful, technical instrumentation along with clever lyrics and melodies to create a unique listening experience for non-musicians and musicians alike. We are known well in the math rock / midwest emo / emo communities but enjoy floating anywhere between for cover songs and artists that we enjoy. We are most proud of how well we work together as a group and for blending together techniques that are not commonly heard of in music.

How do you define success?
Success to us can vary, but a majority of it revolves around the idea of doing what we love for a living, whether that be writing music together and playing it around the world or simply connecting with people who have the same love for music that we do. Sharing our passion is a big must for us. We would love to one day be that band that influences people to start playing guitar or to start producing music.

Contact Info:

• Website: stereosity.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/stereosity
• Facebook: facebook.com/stereosity
• Twitter: twitter.com/stereosity
• Youtube: youtube.com/stereosity
• SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/stereosity
• Other: linktr.ee/stereosity

Image Credits
Victor Duran Sydney Bai Dan Krones Marcos Mena Michael Morrison