Guitarists and original members Dan Wheeler and Mitch Holt also decided to part ways with the group in late 2010 to allocate more of their time to be home with their families and to pursue their other endeavors outside of the band.
[2] In 2009 the band recorded its first full-length album, 20,000 Ghosts, which was engineered and produced by Louie Lino (Nada Surf, Matt Pond PA), mastered by Alan Douches (Sufjan Stevens, Animal Collective) and features artwork from Dark Was The Night artist, Ryan Feerer.
The band utilized many talented friends (such as BMI rep/violinist David Claassen, harpist/artist Timbre, England in 1819, the PASTE Magazine staff, and a church choir in Memphis) along the way in locations ranging from the van to living rooms to professional studios.
The musical collaboration, nomadic recording process, and communal funding of the project combined with the lyrical themes of unity, brotherhood and relationships, all contributed to and exuded from the final product.
Kinder focused on a side project, "The Wealthy West" and wrote several tracks for TV & movies but eventually the three remaining members began testing out new material throughout the fall of 2011.
The resulting EP, "Left | Right" was released January 6, 2015 Over the past several years, The Rocketboys have toured nationally with The Mowgli's, Kopecky Family Band, Relient K, and The Almost, and have played shows both locally and nationally with many acclaimed bands/artists such as Eisley, Bob Schneider, Grizzly Bear, Twenty One Pilots, The Octopus Project, This Will Destroy You, The Appleseed Cast, Lydia, Balmorhea, and St. Vincent, to name a few.
The Rocketboys, and Kinder (both solo and under the moniker "The Wealthy West") have had numerous songs on TV shows including "Private Practice" The Real World Washington, D.C. ,The Buried Life, Glee, Royals, Last Sparks Of Sundown, One Tree Hill and many more.