‘It’s a famous place’: Grammy-nominated band stoked for first Grand Strand performance
Ryan Meyer has traveled all over the world while performing as a member of band Highly Suspect.
Still, there’s many places he’s heard about for years that he’s been eager to visit — including the Grand Strand.
Meyer and the other members of the Grammy-nominated band can check that one off the list Saturday as they are set to perform at the House of Blues in North Myrtle Beach.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Myrtle Beach. It’s a famous place,” said Meyer, the Highly Suspect drummer and back vocalist who performs alongside twin brother Rich Meyer (bassist and back vocalist), Johnny Stevens (lead vocalist and guitarist) and Matt Kofos (guitarist, synthesizer and back vocalist). “ I’ve been hearing about it my whole life. And I’ve traveled a lot. We’re very lucky to travel and go to a lot of places, but I’ve never seen Myrtle Beach. I’m stoked.”
The band, which originates from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, released its third studio album, “MCID,” in November and is beginning its latest tour on the Grand Strand after six weeks off the road. The band earned three Grammy nominations from 2016-2018 and the single “16” has hit as high as sixth on the Billboard charts and is playing regularly on area rock stations.
The group, which started out as a cover band, has seen its popularity rise in recent years.
“Honestly it may seem like it’s an overnight thing, but it was so gradual for us that it’s business as usual,” Ryan Meyer said. “We haven’t had a takeoff moment as far as I’m concerned. We’ve had No. 1s and you find a spike in attention when that happens, but it’s kind of just a blessing but not anything too different for us.
“We haven’t gone to arenas yet. We haven’t hit the success that I want to get to yet. We’re still grinding it out, working for that.”
Aside from their music, Highly Suspect members are known for their outspoken nature on controversial topics such as drugs and President Donald Trump. Meyer said they embrace being “real” and believe their personalities and shows provide something unique.
“I think they’re probably gonna get something that they’ve never seen before. I say that because I’ve been to plenty of concerts and I’ve never seen anything like ours before,” Meyer said of those who attend Saturday’s 7 p.m. show. “It’s off the cusp. There’s always something different happening. We have a general set list, but we don’t play the same songs every night.
“And the music style is all over the map. If you listen to MCID we have Young Thug to Tee Grizzley and Nothing But Thieves and Gojira and everything in between. We’ve got slow songs, fast songs, hip hop, heavy rock music. It’s kind of like going to a mini festival in a way.”
Meyer said that through his travels he’s learned not to rev up expectations when heading to a new place. Therefore, his preconceived notions of the Grand Strand are limited.
“I expect nice beaches. I expect to eat some good barbecue and meet some nice people,” he said. “But other than that I try not to expect too much.”
This story was originally published January 31, 2020 at 3:32 PM.
