Suburban Indie Rock Star dives headfirst into these insecurities, which are inflamed by the continuation of high-school-like social hierarchies (“Casualty”) and quelled by ironic references to his own stardom and amusing, self-aware quips like “I wrote the book on honesty.” It’s also a celebration of the music that he was criticized for loving when he was younger. “I've come to this point now where I'm trying to, in my own way, open up and be like, ‘I don't care what you think. This is what I enjoy, and I'm not ashamed to admit it anymore,’" he says.
Reyes is based in a northern suburb of Chicago, which means frequent train rides into the city, watching the suburbs slowly transition into a more populated urban landscape. For an EP that captures the distinct breeds of social alienation from both backdrops, as well as the traditionally “cool” sounds from the city and traditionally “uncool” sounds from the ‘burbs, it’s an awfully fitting image. “Pretty much the entirety of my existence is having one foot in each door,” Reyes says.
