Suddyn break was a long time coming

The local rock band Suddyn has earned a small break into a big business.

Spending most of the year in Montauk carries with it certain advantages, after all, with New York City not too far away and the hamlet’s emergence as an East End hot spot, complete with a more flashy—and connected—summer crowd.

Following a successful show at the popular Surf Lodge last summer, brothers and Montauk natives Alan and Jarrett Steil and Irish-born drummer Brendan Connolly were put in touch with Grammy Award-winning producer David Kahne, who has made albums for Paul McCartney, Sublime, The Strokes, Tony Bennett and The Bangles, among others. In January, Mr. Kahne invited Suddyn, which previously enjoyed chart and radio success in Ireland, to his private studio above the famed Avatar Studios on the west side of Manhattan to record three new songs—“Brighter Star,” “In Flagrante Delecto” and “Nothing Lasts Forever,” which together make up the band’s newly-released EP, “Before the City.”

On Wednesday, August 25, Suddyn celebrated with a performance at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett.

“David Kahne saw our potential and heard some of our newer songs,” Mr. Connolly said in a recent interview in Montauk. “It’s one of the most renowned studios in the world and it was really interesting to work with someone who has worked with so many famous artists.”

Long before the internet and computer-based technology revolutionized the music business, up-and-coming bands could record a catchy single or two, receive some radio play, and then have record executives knocking down their door. That is not the case in today’s industry, the members of Suddyn all agreed.

“Everyone is on MySpace, everyone is on Facebook and it’s even tougher to break through all that and get to the labels,” Mr. Connolly said. “So when you have a producer like David Kahne come along, it’s a direct link to the industry. And because he’s so successful, people listen.”

Suddyn first struck gold in Ireland with the single “Drowning Souls,” a top-10 hit for two weeks on the Irish charts, and seemingly overnight, the band was one of Ireland’s best selling unsigned acts. But breaking through in America is a much more difficult task, according to Jarrett Steil, Suddyn’s lead guitarist.

“Fifteen years ago, if we said we worked with David Kahne, we’d be getting phone calls,” he said. “Now we’re still beating on the door, but at least we get somebody to open the door.”

Alan Steil, Suddyn’s lead singer and keyboardist, said band manager Linda O’Connor has been getting calls returned more regularly from record executives because of the connection to Mr. Kahne. During the band’s early success, Suddyn consisted of four members, including Colin O’Dwyer, a bass player who recently left the band to return home to Ireland. His departure surprised the remaining members, but also made the group tighter as a result.

“It’s been a big year of change for the band,” Mr. Connolly said. “We’ve had to rethink our music, the writing style changed and there was this new thing—it wasn’t stale.” The band had written and recorded “Brighter Star,” the first track on the new EP, years earlier, but Alan said the new version sounds better than ever, the result of Mr. Kahne’s talent as a producer. “It sounds incredible,” he said. “In Flagrante Delecto,” which translates to “caught red-handed,” was also fine-tuned by Mr. Kahne, who added horns and strings to give the song a bigger sound.

The last song on the EP, “Nothing Lasts Forever,” is appropriately titled, as it represents much of what the “new” band is about. An unexpected change and a little bit of luck could lead the band to greater things. “It’s tough being in a band; it’s like being married times ten,” Mr. Connolly said. “And that’s why a lot of bands fall at the last hurdle, because life gets in the way and people get tired and just can’t do it anymore.”

“But people say when it happens, it happens so quickly,” he added, alluding to the band’s ultimate goal of becoming full-time professional musicians. “People say one minute you’re sitting in a cold garage writing songs, and the next minute you’re sound checking at Madison Square Garden.”

“That’s what we’re all hoping for anyway,” he said, as the entire band broke into laughter, “and that it will happen tomorrow.”

Suddyn performed at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett on Wednesday, August 25, and the first 50 guests received a free copy of the band’s new EP, “Before the City.”