Appalachian Apollo

Formed in Spring of 2015 by frontman and producer Chris Reilly, guitarist José “Tito Beautiful” Keenan, and drummer Jake Marconi, Appalachian Apollo began arranging Reilly’s songs for folk trio, though they all had imagined a bigger sound for the songs.  Over the end of 2015 -- not long after their original guitarist, José “Tito Beautiful” Keenan, left the band, the folk rock troupe gained three fellow students as members. They were: J.T. Spranklin on bass, Isaac LeSage on guitar & vocals, and Jason Belanger on keyboards and vocals. With this lineup of 5, Appalachian Apollo gained a humble following playing shows in & around both NYC & Hofstra University.

The group recorded and self-produced their first album “In Dreams There Are No Deathbeds” during 2016 & early 2017, with more songs getting written along the way.  Tito was able to briefly return and visit in 2017 to record with the group for two more fateful sessions. When multiple members left school after the spring of 2017, the group drifted apart. It was the beginning of summer 2018 when the long awaited album was finally mixed.

After mixing the record, Reilly began searching for another drummer and bass player so he could play the songs out again. He had ultimately arrived the perfect three piece comprised of friends who grew up around Reilly’s small home town, Blairstown, New Jersey, located in the mountains for which the project is named.  This group is drummer Connor Konecnik and bassist Jordan Brower (shown in the pictures on this page), and it is with this lineup that Appalachian Apollo began playing out again. This lineup of musicians played at the album release show on October 18th, 2018. They can be heard playing on “Blue Inferno,” the single that was released in 2019.

Throughout Appalachian Apollo’s lifespan, Reilly has been the solitary constant member of the folk rock project. He still plays with Brower, though Konecnik had to leave the lineup due to professional obligations elsewhere. Since then, Reilly has recorded and release a solo singer/songwriter single: “Dawning,” which details the writer’s experience with late stage neurological lyme disease, as well as a ground shaking truth that has permanently changed Reilly’s life and worldview.

Both Brower and Reilly have moved north to the beautiful Green Mountain State known as Vermont, and Appalachian Apollo is playing shows there. Reilly is currently working on the second album with the help of Brower, along with several friends & instrumentalists Reilly met during his college years, and even with some help from hired guns. With the help of these kind folks, Appalachian Apollo is currently recording over thirty new songs for a second and third album, both at home and in professional studios all over the Northeast, primarily in Vermont and NYC. They are all incredibly excited to continue to make music and share it with the world.