Interview With REOG

Greetings From Metalheads Forever Magazine, How are you today?

Excellent, always a pleasure to talk to another true friend of metal.

Your recent 2018 EP “First Things First” Would you like to tell me the making of the EP and the production behind it?

This was all self recorded, we hired a friend to help us out with the mixing and mastering, also putting down drums in his studio. Richard our lead guitarist spent some time experimenting with some of his parts. On iBrainless he actually gave us several versions of the ending to see which one everyone liked, but there ended up being something kind of magical with them all together so we ended up keeping everything.

EP Tracklist:

1.Daily Grind
2.Indecision
3.Nothing Gonna Stop Us Now
4.iBrainless
5.Beggars Can’t Be Choosers
6.Hold You All Night

Was there any particular concept behind it?

Not intentionally but maybe you could say it conveys a certain dissatisfaction with the modern world? Hopefully coming across though more in a mostly humorous and positive way. For example, iBrainless is about our overreliance on cell phones and technology, but not so much to criticize people for using it, after all, we are all as big offenders as anyone! So more like, “we hear you” if you don’t always feel happy with how things are going, but also let’s kick ass and make it the best.

Six awesome metal songs, great precision, vocals, and arrangement were so perfect, how as a band do you feel about this EP?

Appreciate it. Three of the songs are regulars in our live set so obviously we like the songs. That said, the whole process was kind of rushed that we were eager to get some new material out there, but didn’t fully feel we captured the sound we hoped for. We still hope it can at least bring across our vision as a band and give some people looking for new music something to rock out to. The three regulars we are actually re recording to include in our upcoming LP that we hope brings out more of what we originally envisioned with those songs.

How is the touring coming up?

We closed out 2022 with a lot of mostly local SoCal area shows, and are taking a brief break to focus on some recording, but we do have a couple national regional tours in the works as well as international in Sammy’s native Indonesia, maybe extended to the region. We are excited about all that and expect it all to happen so keep checking our Facebook page and website for official dates

Are you planning to get back to the studio anytime soon?

We are there right now. Expect a new LP in 2023. This is the first time recording with this lineup and will feature mainly staples of the live set. We are also writing some new material that we also hope to start recording in the next year.

Would you like to tell me how REOG was formed and a bit of history about the band?

Reog was originally formed by Sammy with all Indonesian members, looking to do something more in line with the classic metal music he was into than his previous band. The band was reformed a few years back with new members and Sammy taking over lead vocals.

How has the journey been for REOG?

Probably the usual ups and downs. Especially without label support in the current music environment, it is always hard for an original band to get the attention of people who don’t always think they can find good original music in this genre. Also hard to keep a group of 4 or 5 musicians all focused and committed to the same goals. And obviously Covid was a challenge for everyone. But right now we have that with an excellent line up wanting to go as far as it will take us, and a stage sound most nights matching what we envision. Whenever you come across someone who really enjoyed your music, or finish a set that you know you just killed it, it reminds you that it is all worthwhile.

What would be some of the highlight moments for the band?

We have played for some nice crowds at some good venues, played on a few bills with other bands we like and respect, opened for some bands we like. We also put out a music video that was a fair success. Recently we were included in a festival with some 80’s power or classic metal heavy hitters like Ross the Boss and Riot V.

What would be some of the upcoming plans for the band?

We have a lot of hope for 2023. With the LP and tour plans we discussed earlier, we feel we have the pieces in place to really get something going. The Indonesian tour is something we especially look forward to as there has been a lot of excitement over there and over here.

What would be the biggest dreams?

The beauty of heavy metal is that no matter how much it looks like rock is dying, new young fans continue to and will always continue to be brought in because the music is so good, someone will always be discovering Iron Maiden or Metallica for the first time and hopefully wanting to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. And as we gain the ability to put on bigger live shows, we hope to contribute to inspiring new fans who are maybe even discovering heavy metal for the first time. If the music and show are good, the potential fan base is always there, under the right conditions we can unlock an avalanche where the Reog experience just keeps getting better and better.

What is the message for the fans?

If you haven’t seen us with the current lineup yet, you really need to come out and see for yourself. If we are too far, reach out to us and we will come to where you are on an upcoming tour. Let’s keep live original rock going, show everyone that people do still want to hear this type of music and create an amazing concert experience together.