By Logan Broyles | SDUN Reporter

The rollercoaster ride of the last two years continues to surge forward for San Diego-based band TRANSFER. 2011 was the most successful yet for the quartet of rockers, who played multiple tours across the UK and Europe that featured stops in iconic European cities such as London, Zurich, Milan, Amsterdam and Berlin.

Along the way they laid down tracks at Abbey Road Studio, the recording studio made famous by the Beatles, a sign of validation for a band that seems to have only just begun to scratch the surface of its potential.

“Things have been pretty hectic, but at the same time it has been so rewarding to become increasingly busier with what we love to do and what we all set out for from the very beginning,” said lead singer and Golden Hill resident Matthew Molarius. “Just in the past couple years we’ve gotten to see so many different places and meet so many different people and it’s been a real eye opening experience.”

Of all the exciting and unique destinations their recent travels have taken them, the one that sticks out the most in Molarius’ mind was spending a day off in Cologne, Germany.

“The thing is when you’re traveling on these tours the experience is so fleeting because you show up, you play the show and then you go to your hotel and leave early the next morning,” he reflects. “You don’t really get to sightsee, you kind of see the world through the window of the van that we’re traveling in, so actually getting to spend a day off exploring a great city like Cologne was really special.”

TRANSFER’s ascent into stardom should come as no surprise to the locals that have followed them for years. From early on they had a plan for success and were driven to make it a reality.

Childhood friends Matthew Molarius and Jason Cardenas, who went to high school together in Corning, Calif. and started playing their first gigs in nearby Chico, originally founded the band.

“We came down to San Diego in ‘99 because we had a larger vision in what we were trying to do,” Molarius said. “We decided to move somewhere that had a more established music scene and atmosphere so that we could expand and takes things further.”

Over the years the band’s roster has changed. Andy Ridley now mans the drums, replacing Mike Cooper who left to focus on his own band, Hyena. Shaun Cornell joined TRANSFER on bass guitar back in April 2008 and brought with him his own recording studio in San Marcos.

With the memories of their sold out New Years Eve show at the Lafayette Hotel alongside The Silent Comedy still fresh in fans minds, TRANSFER heads into 2012 determined to continue its momentum.

After self-releasing their first two full-length albums and two EPs, TRANSFER signed with the Netherlands-based Mascot Label Group in April 2011. The signing was a precursor to the releasing of “Future Selves” worldwide in September 2011, which was originally self-released in 2009. The album’s hit single “Losing Composure” won Best Song of the Year at the 2011 San Diego Music Awards.

Their next album is already in the works and is expected to be released within the first few months of the New Year.

The band is scheduled to play a double header with The Silent Comedy at the Casbah on Jan. 15-16, and then will take a few months off to finish up the new record. From there they’ll be heading to Austin, Texas, to play at the South by Southwest music festival in March.