With a signature blend of melodic finesse and retro-rock intensity, American pop-psyche band from Highland Park, New Jersey, The Grip Weeds have carved out a unique niche in the modern rock landscape—and at the heart of that sonic identity is lead guitarist Kristin Pinell Reil. The band was formed by brothers Rick Reil (guitars/keys/vocals) and Kurt Reil (drums/vocals) in 1988. Bassist Davd DeSantis rounds out the foursome.
On the band’s latest album, Soul Bender, released in June 2025 by JEM Records, Reil’s guitar work soars with clarity, power, and purpose, adding rich textures and emotional depth to an already ambitious body of work. We caught up with Kristin to delve into the making of Soul Bender, her creative process inside the band’s own House of Vibes studio, her evolution as a guitarist and vocalist, and what it means to shred with soul in a male-dominated genre.
On the New Album – Soul Bender
Soul Bender is being described as a tour de force with a lot of sonic and musical experimentation. From a guitarist’s perspective, what new territory did you explore on this album?
Working on Soul Bender was not exactly new territory for me, except I really focused more on writing guitar parts and trying to figure out what the song needed. I knocked myself out to sculpt these tracks. We all did. Our production and songcraft went to a new level.
But because The Grip Weeds have our own recording studio, there has always been a lot of instruments and equipment readily available to experiment with. I played so many different guitars and amps, I couldn’t even tell you. We are not on the clock. So, you can still hear my ’60s and early ’70s retro guitar influences on these tracks, but I just streamlined them and tried to say more with less and really enhance the song.
Creative control is everything to us.
The Grip Weeds are known for being entirely self-contained, encompassing production, engineering, and even the artwork. How did that full creative control impact your guitar work and tone on Soul Bender?
The Grip Weeds have a full studio of instruments and equipment at our disposal. There are a lot of choices. It’s all up to us. We can take our material in any direction we want. Though we usually follow the songwriter’s direction, we might try out many guitars or amps before we finally hit on what makes the track spark. My husband, Kurt, oversees production. We work together on my ideas, and he helps me refine and develop them. We have a pretty cool chemistry. He can hear things and sort them out.
Yes- we are and have always been “DIY” and very “hands on.” Creative control is everything to us. It’s a lot to manage- when you’d rather just sit down and be creative musically. But obviously, you can’t just record music and then do nothing with it. Nobody will hear it. And because no one understands it or cares about it as much as we do, we created this whole thing at the “House of Vibes.” We have the infrastructure in place.
Also, we have the family thing going on, which makes us very tight. We run a commercial recording studio. We do graphic arts, photography, videos, and design album covers for our releases and other bands. We handle the legal and financial sides of the business contracts, taxes, merchandise sales, and inventory. We develop content for our website that is maintained by our friend’s company, NetArk,
We are signed to a label (JEM Records) who oversee our distribution, publicity, and airplay, but we always work closely with its owner, Marty Scott.
Can you tell us about a track on the album where your lead guitar work really shines or pushed you in a new direction?
My absolute favorite playing was the harmony guitar lines and leads I did on “Flowers for Cynthia.” The track just keeps building, layering, and weaving around the 3-part vocal harmonies.
“Column of Air” has a wall of guitar harmonies and a big fat Les Paul solo that I’m really proud of.
“Gene Clark (Broken Wing)” is a guitar cornucopia – layers of “faux” pedal steel and 12-strings and another twisty big fat Les Paul solo.
What was the vibe like recording this album at House of Vibes, and how does that studio space inspire your playing?
The Grip Weed’s studio, House of Vibes, is in our own house. It’s comfortable to be able to walk downstairs and rehearse or record. It’s a lifestyle we’ve all worked to build. We can do our thing!
Gear and Style
What guitars and gear did you rely on most for this album? Did you experiment with any new pedals, amps, or tunings during the sessions?
My main instrument is a Gibson Les Paul ’57 Custom Shop Reissue Gold Top (2002). I use that to work up most of the parts for our songs. When I actually track, I’ll end up using a lot of different guitars to add tones and character to a recording.
Some different instruments I picked up for this album were a Gibson Lap Steel (a total bitch to play and get in tune), an Epiphone Mandolin (which I tune however I want- it’s all by ear), a Jerry Jones Electric Sitar (amazingly cool sound), and a ’50s Gretsch Duo Jet (a tone monster).
We used a variety of amps, but usually smaller ones like a ’60s Gibson Skylark, Reverb Rocket, or Princeton Reverb.
Collectively, The Grip Weeds and our recording studio, House of Vibes, have a huge arsenal of vintage guitars, pedals, and amps- most of which were used at one time or another on this record. On our website – www.gripweeds.com – we offer a Soul Bender bonus disk which includes a link to a 35-page booklet that (among other things like interviews, lyrics, and photos) has a comprehensive list of all the instruments/equipment we used in recording Soul Bender. It kind of blows my mind when I see all the things we used!
Your playing often blends melody with power. How do you balance technical precision with emotional expression in your solos?
When I have an idea for a part or an arrangement, I just practice it until I don’t have to think about it. Once you have it in your head and your fingers, the emotion and power come.
I have a simple laptop studio in my office. My process is to familiarize myself with the material by playing along with the songs. Once I know the chords and arrangements, I start improvising over the track and recording riffs and melodies. I can do whatever I want, and that’s the fun part.
I listen back and pull out the ideas I really love and want to develop further. I piece them together, learn how to play them, and woodshed. Once you know how to play the notes, you can express them!
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Creative Collaboration & Role in the Band
With Soul Bender being the band’s first album of newly recorded originals since 2018, how did the songwriting dynamic evolve this time around?
For this album, we worked up the songs in the studio and then learned and adapted them for live shows. The band members recorded demos, and we all worked off them individually on our own. There was discussion about what direction the songs should take and some collaborative brainstorming on lyrics and parts, but we no longer sit in a rehearsal room jamming on ideas, It’s just more efficient for the four of us to work this way with everyone’s busy lives.
Singing was not my thing… guitar playing is.
You’re not only the lead guitarist but also a vocalist. How do you approach balancing both roles when arranging songs for the band?
I’m just trying to help make the best recording possible. All the band members are multi-instrumentalists, and we all contribute to the creative process. So when we work up a song, we aren’t thinking how can we play this song live- we are just trying to create the best production we can.
When The Grip Weeds started developing 3-part harmonies in their recordings, I had to really work on my vocals. Singing was not my thing… guitar playing is. I am a reluctant singer. Simple things like losing my vibrato, floating between chest and head voice, increasing my steadiness, and volume were all new to me. I never had any vocal lessons or even paid attention to it. Mostly because it’s really hard for me to do both when the band performs live. I always have to adapt my playing from the studio to live. It obviously gets simplified and rawer, but in a cool way. So when we’re on stage, I’m doing all this guitar work and trying to sing harmonies – over a freight train. It ain’t easy! Thank god for in-ear monitors!
Being in a band with your husband and brother-in-law could either be magic or mayhem—what’s the secret to your chemistry as a unit?
Yes, I work with two brothers- one of which is my husband! It gets intense, but it’s really cool when your love of music is shared by those closest to you. We all have a common goal and great respect for what happens when we make music together. Sure, we argue and fight (don’t all families who work together?), but it’s all for a common cause, and we try to be as respectful as we can and move on. We are lucky that, though we have been working together for a long time, we can still come up with fresh ideas and still spark each other creatively.
You need time for technique to come– you have to practice. I spend hours crafting parts.
Personal Perspective
As a female lead guitarist in a genre still largely male-dominated, what message would you give to young women who want to shred and be heard?
-Surround yourself with supportive people- no matter who they are. Being a female lead guitar player in a rock band is still not the norm.
-Keep yourself in good physical condition. You are a musical athlete. You have to have a thick skin and be tough… or at least pretend to be! Fake it… till you make it! LOL! Traveling and walking up on a stage with a heavy Les Paul and a Marshall with a loud band behind you is not for the meek.
-Don’t be afraid to suck- just keep practicing. Watch and play with as many musicians as you can.
-Have a creative space. Set aside time regularly to focus. You need time for technique to come– you have to practice. I spend hours crafting parts. We all have time restrictions and obligations, but allowing creativity to come takes time. You will have dry spells and feel uninspired and pissed off. Creativity is cyclical. Don’t despair!
As long as I can remember, music excited me. I had a drive, a love, a passion- whatever you want to call it! Most of all, HAVE FUN. It’s a total rush– what I do!
Looking back at your journey with The Grip Weeds, how has your identity and voice as a guitarist evolved over the years?
I’ve developed my ear, my gear, my technique, my confidence… it’s just been a steady building process that thankfully keeps getting better and has no end in sight. I still love what I do. I understand and appreciate what my style is and what I bring as a musician to a song or to the stage.
Bonus: Just for Fun
If Soul Bender were a guitar pedal, what would it be and why?
Well, it just so happens that the Soul-Bender is a guitar pedal made by Fulltone; I used one on several tracks. It’s got a cool, fuzzy distortion reminiscent of Jimmy Page and other late ’60s/early ’70s classic rock guitarists.
The Grip Weeds’ Soul Bender tracklist:
Soul Bender
Flowers For Cynthia
Spinning The Wheel
Promise (Of The Real)
Conquer And Divide
Fragmented
Column Of Air
Gene Clark (Broken Wing)
Someone In Love
If You Were Here
Wake Up Time
Love Comes In Different Ways
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