hidden in plain view

History

Hailing from different towns around Morristown, New Jersey, Hidden in Plain View formed in August 2000, when former 8 Over Par members Joe Reo (vocals) and Rob Freeman (guitar/backing vocals) merged with former Jersey Nonsense members Kenny Ryan (guitar) and Chris Amato (bass), as well as Derek Reilly (drums). The name "Hidden in Plain View" refers to a situation at singer Reo's day job in a supermarket, where a customer used the expression after needing help finding a blantantly visible item. With this original line-up, the band recorded a three-track demo and soon got in touch with the local record label DAB Records, who released their now sought after, Chris Badami produced, debut Find in March 2001.

With the label facing bankruptcy and the band substituting Jay Snyder for Reilly, Hidden in Plain View were picked up by Note to Self Records in early 2002. For their sophomore EP titled Operation: Cut-Throat, the band exchanged their heavy distortion guitars and genre-typical fast-paced drums for a lighter, more uplifting sound, yet they still maintained a degree of melancholy, especially in the lyrics and vocal melodies. The CD was released on June 11, 2002. Before the end of the year, Ryan left to co-form Rushmore Records signing Houston Calls, while he was replaced by Mike Saffert.

Even though a full-length had been announced by Note to Self, who had since been licensed by LLR Recordings, Hidden in Plain View signed with southern California pop punk label Drive-Thru Records in June 2003. Simultaneously with the announcement of their signing, LLR re-printed Operation: Cut-Throat. The band went on and recorded four songs for their self-titled Drive-Thru debut. After the recording of the EP, Snyder quit. Hidden in Plain View was released in November 2003, featuring the liner notes picturing his replacement, Newnan, Georgia born Spencer Peterson.

Release-wise, the following year was somewhat less busy for the band, with appearing only on the Counting Crows tribute album Dead and Dreaming: An Indie Tribute to the Counting Crows and the Drive-Thru christmas compilation Happy Holidays from Drive-Thru Records, though the band toured extensively in both the United States and the United Kingdom and recorded their first full-length album. Life in Dreaming, which dropped in early 2005, showcased a much more mature, yet edgier and at times darker sound than the band's previous EPs, thanks to the latest two additions to their line-up, Saffert and Peterson.

The majority of 2005 was spent touring domestically and internationally, as the band played 24 dates of the Warped Tour, visited Japan for the first time and co-headlined the European Drive-Thru Invasion Tour 2005, which hit a total of sixteen cities in seven different countries across Europe. On October 16, 2005, Hidden in Plain View participated in MTV2's Dew Circuit Breakout (a television battle of the bands), competing in the New York City finals against Pete Miser.

Hidden in Plain View recently moved into a house to start writing songs for their follow-up full-length to Life in Dreaming, set for a release in 2006.

Members

• Joe Reo – vocals
• Rob Freeman – guitar, vocals
• Mike Saffert – guitar
• Chris Amato – bass
• Spencer Peterson – drums

Former members

• Derek Reilly – drums
• Kenny Ryan – guitar
• Jay Snyder – drums

Discography

Albums

• Life in Dreaming (2005)

EPs

• Find (2001)
• Operation: Cut-Throat (2002)
• Hidden in Plain View (2003)

Non-album tracks

• "Mr. Jones" – released on Dead and Dreaming: An Indie Tribute to the Counting Crows (2004)
• "Christmas Song" – released on Happy Holidays from Drive-Thru Records (2004)
• "I Ran" – released on Punk Goes 80's (2005)
• "Hot 'n' Sexy" – released on the B-side of the 7 inch vinyl single "Ashes Ashes" (2005)

External links

• Hidden in Plain View's official website
• Interview with Hidden in Plain View (Video)
• Hidden in Plain View's former official website (last updated October 2001)
• Hidden In Plain View's Official Myspace site