Real Estate (band)

History

Formation and early years

Courtney, Bleeker and Matt Mondanile were childhood friends in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Courtney and Bleeker first met in third grade, and became friends in eighth grade over a mutual interest in Weezer, Built to Spill and Pavement. When Courtney and Bleeker were students in Ridgewood High School, Courtney met Mondanile, who was a year above him, while on the school bus. Mondanile was listening to the Impossibles on his Walkman and asked if Courtney wanted to listen. From there, Courtney became acquainted with Mondanile and his friends, and even auditioned to join the latter's band as a bass player before being rejected in favor of an older kid who had a car.

On Courtney's 15th birthday, he organized a show in his parents' back yard, with performances by all of his friends who were in bands. This was the first time that he, Bleeker and Mondanile performed live together.

After graduating from Ridgewood High School, they went their separate ways to study in college. Courtney attended The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington; Mondanile attended Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts where he became involved in the burgeoning local noise scene and started his own recording project which he named Ducktails; and Bleeker attended Bennington College in Bennington, Vermont. Each would continue writing songs on their own and pass them among each other.

During a summer break while they were in college, Courtney, Mondanile and Bleeker reunited as Lese Majesty, the recording and touring backing band for their high school friend Julian Lynch, with Lynch as the lead singer and guitarist, Courtney on Fender Rhodes piano, Mondanile on bass and Bleeker on guitar. Playing drums was Etienne Pierre Duguay, an acquaintance of Mondanile's in Massachusetts with whom he had formed a band called Predator Vision that was named after watching the movie Predator while listening to a cassette recording of them jamming in the basement of Mondanile's house, high on acid. Lese Majesty recorded an album at Courtney's uncle's house in Maine and embarked on a U.S. tour, though Courtney had to opt out due to still being in college and not having the freedom to tour.

Courtney's songs in particular inspired the others to suggest forming another band to perform them. Courtney shared some song ideas with Mondanile over G-chat They would jam in the basement of Courtney's parents' house, and during a night of drinking vodka by the backyard pool, Courtney came up with the bass line for "Suburban Beverage." Bleeker briefly moved to Philadelphia while the others continued developing the band, and when Bleeker asked to rejoin, he took up the bass so that Courtney could play guitar, making it easier for him to sing. While rehearsing at Courtney's house, his parents also suggested that they all get real estate licenses. The band also had the idea of working for Courtney's parents' real estate agency in case their music career didn't achieve success.

The band is influenced by the Feelies, as Real Estate said to Still in Rock.

''Real Estate'', ''Days'', and ''Atlas'' (2009–2015)

After issuing singles on the Underwater Peoples and Woodsist labels, the band's 2009 self-titled debut received critical acclaim, including an 8.5 rating and Best New Music tag from Pitchfork Media. Review aggregator Metacritic gave the album a normalised rating of 79%, indicating "generally favourable reviews". Tours followed, supporting acts such as Girls, Kurt Vile, Woods, and Deerhunter. In 2010, Real Estate performed at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago and the Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona.

In 2011, Real Estate signed with the Domino Recording Company. After initial recording sessions and prior to signing the deal, the band parted ways with Duguay, not wanting to be legally-bound to the drummer due to his unreliability. Subsequently, the second album, Days, features one song with Duguay, "Out of Tune," while the rest of the drum tracks were performed by Courtney, Mondanile and Samuel Franklin. For live shows, the band recruited drummer Jackson Pollis, formerly of Tiny Masters of Today, and keyboardist Jonah Maurer, a friend of Mondanile's at Buxton boarding school in Massachusetts.

The group issued Days, on October 18, 2011. The album received positive reviews, including a rating of 77/100 on Metacritic and 8.7 on Pitchfork. Later that year, The Fader featured Real Estate on the cover of Issue No. 76. 2012 saw the band perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California and the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. From mid-2012 and throughout 2013, Real Estate shows would feature the band playing new material, some of which would eventually be included in their third album.

A single "Talking Backwards", was released in early 2014, followed by the band's third album, Atlas. The album was written by Courtney, Mondanile, Bleeker and Pollis, with Maurer having moved on to join Titus Andronicus. Shortly before recording of the album commenced, the band decided to add keyboard parts that were more advanced than they were capable of themselves, and so they recruited Matt Kallman, formerly of Girls.

Mondanile's departure and ''In Mind'' (2016–2019)

On May 25, 2016, the band announced that Julian Lynch had replaced Matt Mondanile, who "will continue to focus his creative energy on Ducktails." Regarding Mondanile's departure, Courtney admitted that it was less than amicable. "He didn’t just quit. I mean, there’s more to it. It’s kind of stuff that I don’t necessarily want to talk about. So I don’t know, it's just complicated. It’s definitely a little more mutual than I guess what people might think is the case," said Courtney.

After Mondanile's exit, the band considered recording their fourth album as a four-piece, with an additional guitarist brought in for live shows. While Courtney was in Madison, Wisconsin for a solo show, he met with Lynch, who by then already had several solo albums to his name and had collaborated with the members of Real Estate in various forms since high school in Ridgewood. When Courtney mentioned a vacancy in Real Estate, Lynch offered his services. After Courtney consulted with Bleeker and gained the latter's approval, Lynch officially joined and participated in writing and recording the band's fourth album.

Regarding the change in guitarists, Courtney said, "Removing Matt from the band definitely changes the equation, but I'm pretty sure I met Julian on the same day I met Matt Mondanile. So this isn't just some new guy; we have a long history with him, too." As for Lynch's contribution to the band's sound, Courtney commented, "He's a very different musician from Matthew, all around. We weren't asking him to join to replace Matthew. We were asking him to join in order to make the band new. He was a friend, yes, but it was an added bonus that he would be pretty different from Matt. So it was exciting for us to see what that meant."

During the band's Fall 2016 tour, Lynch was unable to participate due to a five-month visit to India from September to February with the purpose of research for his Ph.D dissertation in ethnomusicology. The band recruited Doug Keith, who had played guitar on tour for Courtney's solo album Many Moons, to fill in until Lynch's return.

On January 24, 2017, the band announced the March 17 release of the Cole M.G.N.-produced In Mind, their fourth album and the first with Lynch. They also debuted the music video for first single "Darling". The new album's release date coincided with several gigs the band played at SXSW, including a headlining set at an event hosted by Showtime to promote the new series of Twin Peaks; the show's lead actor Kyle MacLachlan also introduced the band before their set. On May 22, 2017, the band debuted an animated video for In Mind's second single "Stained Glass", along with a special interactive website in which viewers could virtually add color to the video as it played. On May 26, Real Estate announced it had designed a shoe for Keep Company, with net proceeds for the Keep x Real Estate limited edition Ramos shoes going to the ACLU. Each pair of shoes included a cassette single containing previously unreleased instrumental "In Time" and demos of "Two Arrows" and "Two Part".

On October 4, 2017, the band announced the postponement of a fall tour "for a mix of unforeseen reasons both personal and professional," with the cancelled dates being rescheduled for February 2018. On October 13, 2017, the band issued a statement indicating that Mondanile had been fired due to allegations of his mistreatment towards multiple women. Hours before the statement was issued, Mondanile denied the allegations in a phone interview for Pitchfork. Three days later, an article elaborating on the allegations was published in Spin, where the band added that they had not gone public sooner with details regarding Mondanile's dismissal because "the women concerned requested privacy and we honored their wishes." In a statement issued by his attorneys, Mondanile apologized for his inappropriate behavior. He also accused Real Estate of violating the "leaving agreement" he signed upon his dismissal that "prohibits both him and the band members from making any negative or derogatory statements about the other, or that may negatively affect the other’s reputation and career," claiming the band came forward not to "protect the victims" as stated but "to protect the band's commercial viability."

In January 2018, Mondanile further elaborated on his firing from Real Estate, stating that a disagreement over the inclusion of one of his songs on Atlas led to a falling out with Courtney, and he wanted to record the next album with Courtney and Bleeker at the new studio he had set up in Los Angeles without Jackson Pollis whom he felt uncomfortable working with due to Pollis' dislike towards him over his behavior with women. Ultimately, Courtney and Bleeker told Mondanile that they didn't want to record with him due to his unwillingness to tour, the distance of their living situations, and his treatment of women.

On November 16, 2017, it was reported that Real Estate would be contributing original songs for the upcoming romantic comedy Plus One starring Jack Quaid and Maya Erskine.

''The Main Thing'' and ''Half a Human'' (2020–2021)

On January 15, 2020, the band announced their fifth studio album, The Main Thing, which was released on February 28, 2020. Alongside the announcement was the release of the album's first single, "Paper Cup", featuring Amelia Meath of Sylvan Esso. The single was also accompanied by a music video. The Main Thing was recorded with childhood friend and producer Kevin McMahon.

On August 4, 2020, Real Estate announced that Jackson Pollis was taking time out from the band to pursue other interests, with Sammi Niss replacing Pollis as the band’s live drummer.

In April 2021, the band released an EP, Half a Human, composed of songs that the band had worked on during ''The Main Thing'''s recording sessions but were later completed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

''Daniel'' and Lynch's departure (2023–present)

The band released its sixth studio album, Daniel, on February 23, 2024. The album was produced by Daniel Tashian, and was the band's first to feature drummer Sammi Niss. The following year, the band released The Wee Small Hours: B-Sides and Other Detritus 2011-2025, a collection of b-sides and rarities.

On July 14, 2025, Real Estate announced a "the eleven year and seven month anniversary tour" of Atlas which was scheduled to begin on September 10. On August 23 guitarist Julian Lynch announced his departure from Real Estate with his last shows being the band's upcoming dates on Tennis's farewell tour prior to the Atlas anniversary tour. For the Atlas anniversary tour, the band recruited James Richardson to replace Lynch on guitar.

Members

Current members

• Martin Courtney – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2008–present)
• Alex Bleeker – bass guitar, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals (2008–present)
• Matt Kallman – keyboards (2013–present)
• Sammi Niss – drums (2020–present)
• James Richardson – lead guitar (2025–present)

Former members

• Matt Mondanile – lead guitar (2008–2016)
• Etienne Pierre Duguay – drums (2008–2011)
• Jonah Maurer – keyboards (2011–2013)
• Jackson Pollis – drums (2011–2020)
• Julian Lynch – lead guitar (2016–2025)

Touring members

• Doug Keith – lead guitar (2016)

Timeline

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BackgroundColors = bars:bars

BarData = bar:MC text:"Martin Courtney" bar:MM text:"Matt Mondanile" bar:JL text:"Julian Lynch" bar:JR text:"James Richardson" bar:JM text:"Jonah Maurer" bar:MK text:"Matt Kallman" bar:AB text:"Alex Bleeker" bar:EPD text:"Etienne Pierre Duguay" bar:JP text:"Jackson Pollis" bar:SN text:"Sammi Niss"

PlotData = width:11 bar:MC from:start till:end color:Vocals bar:AB from:start till:end color:Bass bar:MM from:start till:01/01/2016 color:Lead bar:JL from:01/01/2016 till:23/08/2025 color:Lead bar:JR from:11/09/2025 till:end color:Lead bar:EPD from:start till:01/01/2011 color:Drums bar:JP from:01/01/2011 till:04/08/2020 color:Drums bar:SN from:04/08/2020 till:end color:Drums bar:JM from:01/01/2011 till:01/01/2013 color:Keys bar:MK from:01/01/2013 till:end color:Keys

LineData = layer:back color:Studio at:17/11/2008 at:18/10/2011 at:04/03/2014 at:17/03/2017 at:28/02/2020 at:23/02/2024

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

Notes

References

References

1. (2004-02-26). "Brooklyn based Music Blog: Album Review : Real Estate – Atlas (Breeze Pop)". Still in Rock.
2. Angel Ceballos. (August 2010). "Ridgewood rocks: A slew of hot indie bands have roots in Bergen town".
3. Iqbal, Nosheen. (2014-10-24). "Real Estate: 'This is definitely a growing-up record'". [[The Guardian]].
4. McGovern, Kyle. (2014-02-27). "The Boys Next Door: Real Estate's Subtle Charms".
5. Greenhaus, Mike. (2012-04-05). "Real Estate's Wonder Years".
6. Yenigun, Sami. (2010-08-13). "Ridgewood, N.J.: Why Here? Why Now?". NPR.
7. Obert, Obert. (2014-12-13). "On the line with Matt Mondanile of Real Estate and Ducktails". Journey of a Frontman.
8. Fitzmaurice, Larry. (2014-02-27). "Real Estate: Suburban Dreams".
9. Stosuy, Brandon. (2009-01-23). "Band To Watch: Real Estate".
10. Miller, Michael E.. (2009-11-16). "Interview: Real Estate Frontman Martin Courtney on Touring with Girls, the Romance of the Suburbs, and Selling His Grandmother's House". Village Voice.
11. (2017-03-20). "Live Performance and Q&A With the Indie Rock Band Real Estate". [[The New York Times]].
12. Greenhaus, Mike. (2011-12-19). "Woods and Real Estate : A Scene of Their Own".
13. (2004-02-26). "Brooklyn based Music Blog: Interview Still in Rock : Real Estate (Breeze Pop)". Still in Rock.
14. (2009-11-17). "Real Estate: Real Estate | Album Reviews".
15. "Metacritic – Real Estate reviews".
16. (2001-03-10). "Ola's Kool Kitchen on Radio 23 Real Estate Live Primavera 2010 : DJ Ola : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive".
17. Schnipper, Matthew. "Real Estate Jams". The Fader.
18. Markey, Morgan. (2012-08-02). "Interview: Real Estate Band Member Jonah Maurer Talks The Rise Of Real Estate, And What's Next For The Band". Guest of a Guest.
19. "Metacritic review of 'Days'".
20. "Pitchfork review of 'Days'".
21. (2011-10-10). "76". The Fader.
22. Breihan, Tom. (2012-08-13). "Watch Real Estate Debut New 10-Minute Song In NYC".
23. (2013-07-30). "Real Estate played Maxwell's with guest Glenn Mercer of the Feelies (setlist, video)".
24. "Real Estate".
25. (2014-01-12). "Real Estate – Talking Backwards (Official Video)". [[YouTube]].
26. (2014-03-03). "iTunes – Music – Atlas by Real Estate".
27. "Real Estate announce new album 'Atlas,' listen to 'Talking Backwards'".
28. Unterberger, Andrew. (2015-08-20). "Punk Begins at 30: A Titus Andronicus Story in Five Acts".
29. Hannah, Andrew. (2014-03-07). "Martin Courtney of Real Estate: "We wanted to make a really clean record"". The Line of Best Fit.
30. (2016-05-25). "A Message From The Band â€" Real Estate the Band".
31. Hyden, Steven. (2017-03-17). "Real Estate's Martin Courtney Would Rather You Didn't Describe His Band As 'Chill'".
32. Warburton, Bob. (2017-03-15). "Guitarist Julian Lynch is newest member of Real Estate".
33. Carew, Anthony. (2017-03-13). "On Juggling Two Loves: Music & Family".
34. Lindsay, Cam. (2017-03-15). "Past Lives and Future Days: A Conversation With Real Estate".
35. Lynch, Julian. (2016-07-25). "Considering buying an LP via julianlynch.bandcamp.com? Now is the time to do it, as I'll be out of the country for 5 months starting sept". [[Twitter]].
36. Downing, Andy. (2013-03-09). "Q&A: Julian Lynch a serious student — of music and Indian religious festivals". The Capital Times.
37. (2016-02-11). "Martin Courtney". What the Sound.
38. Keith, Doug. (2016-11-01). "Playing Guitar in Real Estate – Doug Keith".
39. (2017-01-24). "Real Estate Announce New Album In Mind, Share Video for New Song "Darling": Watch".
40. Pearce, Sheldon. (2017-03-17). "Watch Kyle MacLachlan Introduce Real Estate at SXSW's "Twin Peaks" Lodge".
41. Kloeppel, Geena. (2017-05-22). "Video: Real Estate – "Stained Glass"".
42. Pearce, Sheldon. (2017-05-26). "Real Estate Design Shoe, Donating Proceeds to ACLU".
43. Kim, Michelle. (2017-10-05). "Real Estate Share New Song to Benefit ACLU: Listen".
44. Claymore, Gabriella Tully. (2017-10-04). "Real Estate Postpone Fall Tour".
45. Cush, Andy. (2017-10-16). "Matt Mondanile aka Ducktails Departed Real Estate Amid Sexual Misconduct Allegations".
46. Hogan, Marc. (2017-10-16). "Matt Mondanile Accused of Sexual Misconduct by Multiple Women".
47. Cush, Andy. (2017-10-16). "Allegations of Sexual Misconduct by Ex-Real Estate Guitarist Matt Mondanile Detailed by Seven Women".
48. Hogan, Marc. (2017-10-20). "Matt Mondanile Addresses Sexual Misconduct Allegations".
49. Hatfield, Amanda. (2018-01-25). "Matt Mondanile discusses sexual assault allegations in new statement". Brooklyn Vegan.
50. Tartaglione, Nancy. (2017-11-16). "'Plus One': Jack Quaid, Maya Erskine Lead Romcom From Ben Stiller's Red Hour, Studio71".
51. (15 January 2020). "Real Estate Announce New Album The Main Thing, Share New Song: Listen".
52. (2 March 2020). "On 'The Main Thing', Real Estate discover hope in perseverance".
53. Real Estate, band. (2020-08-04). "Jackson continues to be our musical brother and dear friend. He's taking some time to focus on other things that don't include playin in the band at this time.".
54. Real Estate, band. (2020-08-04). "Incidentally, this will be our first "show" featuring our new live drummer. Her name is Sammi Niss (@sammiwins) and she is the world's greatest drummer, living or dead.".
55. (4 August 2020). "Real Estate Welcome New Drummer".
56. DeVille, Chris. (2025-04-30). "Real Estate Announce New Rarities Album The Wee Small Hours (Including A Song From Stereogum’s Strokes Tribute Album)". Stereogum.
57. DeVille, Chris. (2025-07-14). "Real Estate Announce Atlas “Eleven Year And Seven Month Anniversary Tour”". Stereogum.
58. Levy, Matt. (2025-09-06). "We saw indie band Tennis on their farewell tour. Here’s what went down". New York Post.
59. Chelosky, Danielle. (2025-08-23). "Julian Lynch Is Leaving Real Estate". Stereogum.
60. Real Estate. (2025-09-10). "You might notice a new and friendly face on stage with us this fall...".
61. https://www.stereogum.com/2322628/real-estate-reveal-new-guitarist/news/
62. "Real Estate – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard.
63. "Real Estate – Chart History: Independent Albums". Billboard.
64. "Discografie Real Estate". Hung Medien.
65. "Discografie Real Estate". Hung Medien.
66. "Real Estate Irish Charting". irish-charts.com.
67. "Discografie Real Estate". Hung Medien.
68. "Real Estate full Official Chart History". [[Official Charts Company]].
69. "Real Estate – Chart History: Heatseekers Albums". Billboard.
70. "ultratop.be - Real Estate - Days". ultratop.be.
71. "dutchcharts.nl - Real Estate - Days". dutchcharts.nl.
72. "Real Estate – Chart History: Album Sales". Billboard.
73. "06 March 2020 - 12 March 2020 Official Physical Albums Chart Top 100". [[Official Charts Company]].
74. "Real Estate – Chart History: Top Current Albums". Billboard.
75. (March 4, 2024). "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 4 March 2024". [[Australian Recording Industry Association]].
76. "Daniel - Real Estate - Official Charts".
77. "Real Estate (2) - Atlantic City Expressway".
78. "Reality EP by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
79. "Real Estate – Chart History: Hot Singles Sales". Billboard.
80. "Real Estate – Chart History: Triple A". Billboard.
81. "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas 2024/02/28". Billboard Japan.
82. "Real Estate – Suburban Beverage 7" — Underwater Peoples Records". Underwater Peoples Records.
83. "Real Estate – fake blues – 7" – Woodsist". Woodsist.
84. "Younger Than Yesterday - Single by Real Estate on iTunes". Apple Music.
85. "Out of Tune / Reservoir #3 - Single by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
86. "It's Real - Single by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
87. "Real Estate - Green Aisles (7")". Domino Mart.
88. "Easy - Single by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
89. ""Crime" by Real Estate Review".
90. "Had To Hear - Single by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
91. "Darling by Real Estate on Apple Music". Apple Music.
92. "Real Estate - Stained Glass (Coloured 7" Single)". Domino Mart.
93. "Real Estate Shares 'The Main Thing' Single".
94. (24 February 2021). "Real Estate Announce Half a Human EP, Share New Song: Listen".
95. (2023-11-27). "Real Estate Announce Tour and New Album Daniel, Share Video for New Song".