California-based indie rockers, Greer, have released their debut album Big Smile, after a year-long hiatus, and it's been a long time coming. The album comes six years after they announced their debut single, and it's been a journey of growth, confusion, and rediscovery for the band.

The foursome, consisting of Josiah, Seth Thomson, Lucas Ovalle, and Corbin Jacques, took a break after their 2021 EP Happy People, which left them feeling "weirded out" by their own sound. The "little baby boys" that first joined forces back in 2018 were long gone, and Greer was experiencing some growing pains – or perhaps a full-blown identity crisis.

After Happy People, Josiah recalls, "It was such a confusing time, and we were in the practice space, and it felt like a void… it was like a black hole." So, following a brief tour in 2022, Greer went on a long break. Through that time apart – described by the group as difficult but necessary – Big Smile was born.

The album is a patchwork of Greer's past and present – a bit oxymoronic for a debut LP, but it just makes sense: Much like its creators, Big Smile is cohesive, but keeps listeners permanently on their toes.

Ahead of their North American tour, Greer chatted with PEOPLE about their yearlong break, Big Smile, and why they kicked off their new era by spending 48 hours locked behind glass, Severance-style.

The band's hiatus was intentional, and they later learned they needed to go through that process to grow as individuals and as a band. Seth says, "I feel like we went through puberty as a band. We started out as little baby boys, and everything was really fresh and clean. Once we started really paying attention to what we were doing, it was like, 'Wait, this is really weird.'"

After Happy People, the band felt dissatisfied and took a break, which led to a period of self-isolation and growing as individuals. Seth says, "We all self-isolated. It was a harsh time for sure, but it was really formative. That's where most of the songs came from – that void and great confusion coming out of Happy People, coming out of tour."

The band's favorite memory from working on the album is Wine Wednesday, which was a dark day for them. Corbin says, "If anything's gonna prove us to have a lack of media training, it would be talking about Wine Wednesday."

To kick off Big Smile, the band locked themselves in a glass storefront for 48 hours straight. Josiah says, "We were just trying to think of ways to promote it, and I was like, 'We should really do a free show, but we need to be enclosed in something.'" The idea was initially to do a big fish bowl, but it wasn't possible, so they settled for a Plexiglas box.

The band's comedic personas are a big part of their online presence, and they balance that with the more serious aspects of what they do as a band. Josiah says, "When it's just the four of us or when we're recording the album, it's difficult to reel it in, to stop f------ around and making jokes."

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Big Smile is out now, and Greer is currently on a North American tour. The band wants fans to wear leather and come as they are, accepting everyone, as long as they don't smell. Corbin says, "We'll still accept you."

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Big Smile is out now, and Greer is currently on a North American tour. The band wants fans to wear leather and come as they are, accepting everyone, as long as they don't smell. Corbin says, "We'll still accept you."

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