Childhood friends Ronnie Winter and Duke Kitchens formed the band while attending a music theory class in 2001, however The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus officially came into fruition with the addition of new members in 2003. Despite an extensive 18 month period of writing songs, recording and releasing a 6-song EP and expanding their fan base through utilising social media sites, the band failed to get signed.
Due to this disappointed a number of members left or were kicked out and were replaced by Elias Reidy on guitar and vocals, Joey Westwood on bass and drummer Jon Wilkes. With new members The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus honed in and focused their emo-pop and screamo sound, which ended up getting the band signed with Virgin in 2005. A year later came their debut LP “Don’t You Fake It” which was certified gold selling over 500,000 copies. The album and major-label distribution introduced the band to a much wider audience after which their fan base swelled considerably. The album featured the singles “Face Down”, False Pretence”, “Your Guardian Angel” and “Damn Regret” and was supported by touring alongside the likes of My Chemical Romance, Rise Against and Thirty Seconds to Mars.
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus released their sophomore album “Lonely Road” in February 2009. The album debuted at No. 14 on the Billboard 200, was produced by Howard Benson known for his work with My Chemical Romance and Hoobastank and featured the singles “Pen and Paper” and “You Better Pray”. The band subsequently toured with Shinedown, Framing Hanley and Tickle Me Pink, before returning in 2010 with their independently released EP “The Hell or High Water”.
“Am I the Enemy” arrived in August 2011 featuring the singles “Salvation” and “Fall from Grace”. After the release guitarists Duke Kitchens and Matt Carter departed the group to focus on their personal lives, with fan Josh Burke and Randy Winter filling in. It wasn’t long before Jon Wilkes departed the group as well prior to the group headlining the People Awakening and Uniting for Liberty Festival in Florida, U.S. On July 4, 2014 The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus released their fourth studio album “4” featuring the singles “The Right Direction” and “Not My Style”.
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus have been performing as a band for over ten years now and their reputation now appears to precede them with the amount of people gathered at their stage during the Midlands Slam Dunk festival. It is true that the American rockers do not visit the UK entirely frequently so there is an elusive nature to their show which makes it even more in demand.
Although they have not achieved commercial success in the UK, the music is clearly well known as the crowd cheers enthusiastically to the sound of opener 'False Pretense'. They clap, applaud and sing in all the right places and the band seems very grateful for this as they give their all to mammoth versions of 'Misery Loves It's Company'.
They are out to prove they are ones to watch in rock as they bring out a blistering version of 'Your Guardian Angel' and as a mosh pit breaks out they thrash even harder on their instruments to really bring the house down.