For as much as the world has changed since Real Friends first emerged in 2010, the band’smission hasn’t. The Illinois quintet continue to bleed without apology and write songs that makeit okay to feel everything: the ups, the downs, and anything else inbetween. Rather than shyaway from emotion, the group run right towards it with distortion cranked and hearts opened,tightening their careful distillation of pop and punk on each subsequent release.When the band—Dave Knox [lead guitar], Kyle Fasel [bass], Eric Haines [rhythm guitar], andBrian Blake [drums]—welcomed new vocalist Cody Muraro in 2020, the goal stayed the sameas they crafted new music for Pure Noise Records. In 2021 they released “Torn in Two” to anothing but positive response from fans.In 2022 the band is set to release more new music.