Effective period / Period of releases: 2004

Members: Phillip Mailloux, Lorenzo Vieyra, Dominique Vieyra, Miguel Reza

4-piece nu metal band from Hutchinson, Kansas

"If you were to ask a member of the Kansas based, "alternative modern metal" band Smolder how they would describe their band's sound, the answer could be something like this: Smolder is good rock music with the right mix of heavy metal, mellow passages, screams, and melody. Or to put it simply as once quoted by bassist Phillip: 'We kick ass, man.'

Smolder breaks the mold and is not afraid to go outside the musical "boundaries" radio and society have tried to place upon it. Smolder derives their musical style and influence from a wide variety of great artists such as Deftones, Project 86, Mudvayne, Sevendust, Taproot, The Mars Volta, and Days of the New. With an ever increasing following through the playing of intense live shows in addition to the recent release of their new CD, Smolder shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.

Conceived while the Vieyra Bros. were in junior high, the origins that would become present day Smolder began in a small basement in their hometown of Hutchinson, Kansas. With Lorenzo on Bass and Vocals at the time, and cousin Thomas Brown as drummer, Smolder slowly built upon the shades of talent that had shown themselves at early live shows and on self released CD's. The departure of Thomas would lead to a twist of fate as the Brothers Vieyra now sought new bandmates.

Lorenzo had long been a skilled drummer before picking up bass duties, so the search began to fill the vacant slots for lead vocalist and bass guitar. The transformation began when Lorenzo invited high school friend Miguel Reza to sit in on vocals at a jam session. After an impressive vocal display on a cover of the Deftones "My Own Summer", Miguel accepted the invitation to join the ranks of Smolder. Now only one piece of the puzzle remained...

A few years prior, friend Phillip Mailloux had played guitar for the band known as Rift with Lorenzo and Dominique. That band broke up, but it was during this time Phillip displayed the amazing guitar skills that prompted Smolder to later invite Phil in for a practice. After a brief stint on the bass for Dominique and the guitar for Phillip, the two switched rolls and this lineup has been concrete ever since. The band possess an incredible power with each member in their present roles.

With a solid new lineup, Smolder began the process of learning previously written songs as well as creating a batch of brand new material. Following the development process, the band has played several shows locally, improving with each performance and steadily gaining an ever growing following. Recently the band just released a new 7-song EP with Salty Records, and is looking to get their name out with this new CD and more live shows. They look to spread the amazing experience that is Smolder to greater audiences in hopes of reaching as many people as possible to let everyone know that this band and their music are for real." -The Cool Concern

Past Names: SSIK, Royal Flush, Superstar Monkey, Astro Creep
Former Members (besides Phillip): Tom (vocals), Aaron Brown (guitar), Johnny Torres (vocals)