Days of the New began as an experimental rock/groove metal trio called Dead Reckoning, with Meeks, Matt Taul, and Jesse Vest.

A demo version of the song "Freak" appeared on the Harvest Showcase Volume 3, a compilation of Louisville area artists.

Jesse Vest and Mat Taul are listed as band members in the liner notes although they do not appear on this recording.

[7] The band recorded their first album, Days of the New, at Allen Martin Productions in Louisville, Kentucky, in October and November 1996.

Meeks later criticized this billing, arguing due to their acoustic sound, Days of the New should have toured with a group like Dave Matthews Band.

Just before starting this summer tour, however, Meeks had already told interviewers that all of his fellow band members were holding him back and, consequently, were being released from the group.

Before they could fulfill club touring duties with Finger Eleven and Flight 16 in December, without citing reason, Meeks canceled in early November.

[16] In 2010, Mike Starr of Alice in Chains began playing with Meeks, preparing for a tour that would also feature Charlie Colin of Train.

[18] In 2014, the original lineup of Days of the New announced they had reunited and were planning a summer tour called "Full Circle."

Following a cancelled date in Columbia, Missouri, the band abruptly ended their set in St. Louis on September 6 due to Meeks being too drunk to perform.

In the next several days, the band released several statements on Facebook claiming they'd reunited with Meeks because, after he'd unsuccessfully tried to recruit other musicians, he'd begged them to return.

Meeks put a new lineup together and continued touring but was arrested in Portland, Maine on October 10, 2014, on a warrant for failure to appear in court to answer charges of possessing a hypodermic needle.

[21] In August 2018, after a four-year hiatus, Meeks played a solo show at the Red Bicycle Hall in Madison, Indiana.

On March 3, 2021, an unofficial bootleg compilation of some of Days of the New's rarer tracks, entitled 'The Gift', was released illegally without the consent of the band or previous record label.

[citation needed] 911 Entertainment Records issued an apology and pulled the bootleg album from streaming services.

However, shortly after on July 26, 2021, 911 Entertainment Records released a revised version of the compilation, removing and adding several songs, titled 'Illusion is Now'.