In the early 2000s , Cheplic had given the singer-songwriter route a strong run . He released Don ’ t Let Me Lose My Mind , a solo album put out under his own name , on a Monmouth County label and did shows around the country . The record received airplay on college stations and public radio , but things fell apart when the label went under . Years later , he released Who Burned The Book of Love ? - another solo album as a fundraiser for a homeless shelter in
Union City . He had already begun playing with Pietro Ciliberto , a fellow teacher at Roselle Catholic High School , about starting a band . “ Pete plays mandolin and we got to talking about mutual artists we like - rootsy , Americana stuff ,” recalled Cheplic . “ And so for a little while it was just the two of us and then it was the two of us plus somebody else . There was a lot of different iterations .” The band released their first record , Birth Of The Cold , in 2013 .
Watch the video for “ Why Not Us ?” by The Bitter Chills