Posted in Questionnaire on November 30th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Tony Spillman of Spillage
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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I started writing songs as a kid, but I got more serious when I was 17 when I started working as a guitar tech for Trouble.
Describe your first musical memory.
Hmmm. Probably very excited.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
Listening to my first recorded and published song.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
When players left my band for another opportunity.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
When I’m in nature.
How do you define success?
Being happy and productive at work.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Watching the pandemic riots… sad.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
A gold record.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
To expand your mind and emotions.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
We meet again. The Summer 2019 Quarterly Review. It’s four in the morning and I’m getting ready to start the day. I haven’t even managed to pour myself coffee yet, which even as I type it out feels like a crime against humanity, such as it is. I’ll get there though.
Wednesday in the Quarterly Review marks the halfway point of the week, and as we’ll hit 30 reviews at the end, it’s half of the total 60 as well, so yeah. Feeling alright so far. As always, good music helps. I’ve added a couple things for consideration to my ongoing best-of-the-year list for December, so that’s something. And I think I’ll probably be doing so again today, so let’s get to it.
Quarterly Review #21-30:
Torche, Admission
15 years later and Torche‘s sound is still expanding. To that point, it’s never sounded quite as expansive as it does on Admission, their fifth album and second for Relapse behind 2015’s Restarter (review here). There are still plenty of straight-ahead heavy riffs on cuts like “Reminder” or “Slide” or the bomb-tone-laden “Infierno,” but in the title-track, in “Times Missing,” the closer “Changes Come,” “Slide” and even the 1:30-long “What Was,” there’s a sense of spaciousness and float to the guitars to contrast all that crunch, and it effectively takes the place of some of the manic feel of their earlier work. It’s consistent with the brightness of their melodies in songs like “Extremes of Consciousness” and the early pusher “Submission,” and it adds to their style rather than takes away, building on the mid-paced feel of the last album in such a way as to demonstrate the band’s continued growth long after they’d be well within their rights to rest on their laurels. Sharp, consistent in its level of songwriting, mature and engaging across its 36-minute entirety, Admission is everything one might ask of Torche‘s fifth album.
If you, like me, believe doom to be the guardian style of classic heavy metal — you could also argue power metal there, but that’s why it’s an argument — Chicago’s Spillage might be the band to help make your case. With their own Ronnie James Dio in Elvin Rodriguez (not a comparison I make lightly) and a connection to the Trouble family tree via founding guitarist Tony Spillman, who also played in Earthen Grave, the band unfurl trad-metal poise throughout their 53-minute second album, Blood of Angels, hitting touchstones like Sabbath, Priest, and indeed Trouble on a chugger like “Free Man,” a liberal dose of organ on “Rough Grooved Surface” adding to the classic feel — Rainbow, maybe? — and even the grandiose ballad “Voice of Reason” that appears before the closing Sabbath cover “Dirty Women” staying loyal to the cause. I can’t and won’t fault them for that, as in both their originals and in the cover, their hearts are obviously in it all the way and the sound is right on, the sleek swing in the second half of “Evil Doers” punctuated by squealing guitar just as it should be. Mark it a win for the forces of metal, maybe less so for the angels.
San Diego strikes again with Pharlee‘s self-titled debut on Tee Pee Records, a 29-minute boogie rock shove that’s marked out by the significant pipes of Macarena Rivera up front, the shuffling snare work of Zack Oakley (also guitar in JOY and Volcano) and the organ work of Garret Lekas throughout, winding around and accentuating the riffs of Justin “Figgy” Figueroa and the air-push bass of Dylan Donovan. It’s a proven formula by now, but Pharlee‘s Pharlee is like the band who comes on stage in the middle of the festival and surprises everyone and reminds them why they’re there in the first place. The energy of “Darkest Hour” is infectious, and the bluesier take on Freddie King‘s “Going Down” highlights a stoner shred in Figueroa‘s guitar that fits superbly ahead of the fuzz freakout, all-go closer “Sunward,” and whatever stylistic elements (and personnel, for that matter) might be consistent with their hometown’s well-populated underground, Pharlee take that radness and make it their own.
Long-running desert rockers Dali’s Llama return with Mercury Sea, their first release since 2017’s The Blossom EP (review here) and their first full-length since 2016’s Dying in the Sun (review here), sounding reinvigorated in rockers like opener “Weary” and the subsequent grunge-vibing “Choking on the Same,” “When Ember Laughs” and the garage-style “She’s Not Here.” Persistently underappreciated, their albums always have a distinct feel, and Mercury Sea is no different, finding a place for itself between the laid-back desert blues and punkier fare on a cut like “Someday, Someday,” even delving into psychedelic folk for a while in the 6:54 longest track “Goblin Fruit,” and a bit of lead guitar scorch bringing it all together on closer “All My Fault,” highlighting the theme of love that’s been playing out all the while. The sincerity behind that and everything Dali’s Llama does is palpable as ever in these 11 tracks, an more than 25 years on from their inception, they continue to deliver memorable songs in wholly unpretentious fashion. That’s just what they do.
Speedealer ride again! And just about at top speed, too. The Dallas, Texas, outfit were last heard from circa 2003, and their turnabout is marked with the self-release of Blue Days Black Nights, a fury-driven 10-tracker that takes the best of their heavy-rock-via-punk delivery and beefs up tones to suit another decade and a half’s worth of hard living and accumulated disaffection. The Dallas four-piece blaze through songs like “Never Knew,” the hardcore-punk “Losing My Shit,” the more metallic “Nothing Left to Say,” and the careening aggro-swagger of “Rheumatism,” but there’s still some variety to be had throughout, as highlight “Sold Out,” “War Nicht Genung” and “Shut Up” find the band no less effective working at a somewhat scaled-back pace. However fast they’re going, though the attitude remains much the same, and it’s “fuck you fuck this” fuckall all the way. Those familiar with their past work would expect no less, and time has clearly not repaired the chip on Speedealer‘s shoulder. Their anger is our gain.
Based in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, the instrumentalist four-piece Mt. Echo present a somewhat noisier take on Russian Circles-style heavy post-rock with their nine-song/46-minute debut, Cirrus. Not at all shy about incorporating a noise rock riff or a more weighted groove, the dual-guitar outfit nonetheless spend significant time patiently engaged in the work of atmosphere-building, so that their material develops a genuine ebb and flow as songs tie one into the next to give the entire affair a whole-album feel. It is their first outing, but all the more striking for that in terms of how much of a grip they seem to have on their approach and what they want to be doing in a song like “Lighthouse at the End of Time” with airy lead and chugging rhythm guitars intertwining and meeting head-on for post-YOB crashes and an eventual turn into a harder-pushing progression. Ambience comes (mostly) to the fore in the seven-minute “Monsters and the Men Who Made Them,” but wherever they go on Cirrus, Mt. Echo bring that atmospheric density along with them. The proverbial ‘band to watch.’
Over the course of five longform tracks on Ocean, Germany’s Monocluster build fluidly on the accomplishments of their 2015 self-titled debut (review here), greatly expanding on the heft and general reach of their sound while, as opener “Ocean in Our Bones” demonstrates, still holding onto the ability to affect a killer hook when they need one. Ocean is not a minor undertaking at 56 minutes, but it dedicates its time to constructing a world in cuts like “Leviathan” and “A Place Beyond,” the giant wall of fuzzed low end becoming the backdrop for the three-part story being told that ends with the 11:43 “Home” standing alone, as graceful and progressive as it is brash and noisy — a mirror in that regard to the nine-minute centerpiece “Guns and Greed” and a fitting summation of Ocean‘s course. They keep this up for very long and people are going to start to notice. The album is a marked step forward from where Monocluster were a few years ago, and sets up the expectation of continued growth their next time out while keeping a focus on the essential elements of songwriting as well. If we’re looking for highlights, I’d pick “Leviathan,” but honestly, it’s anyone’s game.
The third full-length from Argentine trio Picaporters marks another level of achievement for them as a band. XXIII arrives three years after El Horror Oculto (review here) and is unquestionably their broadest-cast spectrum to-date. The album comes bookended by eight-minute opener “La Soga de los Muertos” and “M.I.,” an 18-minute finale jam that would give a Deep Purple live record reason to blush. Soulful guitar stretches out over a vast rhythmic landscape, and all this after “Jinetes del Universo” motorpunks out and “Vencida” pulls together Floydian melo-prog, “Numero 5” precedes the closer with acoustic interplay and the early “Despertar” offers a little bit of everything and a lot of what-the-hell-just-happened. These guys started out on solid footing with their 2013 debut, Elefantes (review here), but neither that nor El Horror Oculto really hinted at the scope they’d make sound so natural throughout XXIII, which is the kind of record that leaves you no choice but to call it progressive.
As their moniker hints, there’s some edge of danger to Belgium’s Beaten by Hippies‘ self-titled debut (on Polderrecords), but the album ultimately resolves itself more toward songwriting and hooks in the spirit of a meaner-sounding Queens of the Stone Age in songs like “Space Tail” and “More is More,” finding common ground with the energy of Truckfighters though never quite delving so far into fuzzy tones. That’s not at all to the band’s detriment — rather, it helps the four-piece begin to cast their identity as they do in this material, whether that’s happening in the volatile sudden volume trades in “Dust” or the mission statement “Rock ‘n’ Roll,” which feels geared a bit to the anthemic but would probably work just as well in whatever pub they happen to be terrorizing on a given evening. Their delivery skirts the line between heavy and hard rock as only that vaguely commercially viable European-style can, but the songs are right there waiting to take the stage at whatever festival is this weekend and blow the roof — or the sky, I guess, if it’s outdoors — off the place.
Guitarist/vocalist Dave Angstrom may be best known in heavy rock circles for his work alongside John Garcia in Hermano, but in leading the four-piece Luna Sol through their 12-song/50-minute sophomore outing, Below the Deep (on Slush Fund Recordings), he proves a capable frontman as well as songwriter. Sharing vocal duties with bassist Shannon Fahnestock while David Burke handles guitar and Justin Baier drums, Angstrom is a steady presence at the fore through the well-constructed ’90s-flavored heavy rock of “Below the Deep” and “Along the Road” early, the later “Garden of the Gods” playing toward a more complex arrangement after the strutting “The Dying Conglomerate” paints a suitably grim State of the Union and ahead of the fuzz-rich ending in “Home,” which keeps its melodic purpose even as it crashes out to its languid finish. Whether it’s the charged “Man’s Worth Killin'” or the winding fuzz of “Mammoth Cave,” one can definitely hear some Hermano at work, but Luna Sol distinguish themselves just the same.
Posted in Whathaveyou on November 12th, 2018 by JJ Koczan
Chicago-based doomers Spillage will play two record release shows in the coming months, one before the Jan. 11 issue date of their second album, Blood of Angels, and one after. I like the idea of a ‘pre-release show.’ Get a few copies on-hand of the record and sell it to those who show up as an early bonus for coming out, then do the actual release later on. Bands do that sometimes taking albums on tour before they’re “officially” released, but a special one-gig occasion as a pre-release show is a nifty way to accomplish something similar. Others should take note.
Spillage is of course spearheaded by guitarist Tony Spillman, who’s known as well as a guitar tech for Prong and Ministry‘s Tommy Victor and Trouble‘s Bruce Franklin, the latter of whom produced the new album. That puts the band squarely on a branch of the Trouble family tree, which suits the traditionalist doom metal aspects of their sound as they showed on their 2013 self-titled debut — man, how the years fly — and have continued to develop live since then.
The PR wire brings word of the new release on Qumran Records and No Dust Records:
Spillage – Blood of Angels – Jan. 11
“Blood Of Angels”, is the long awaited sophomore release from Chicago’s epic power doom machine SPILLAGE, will usher in the new year with soulful leads spread across mountains of riffs. The mighty title track sets the bar high, and heavy duty tracks such as “Evil Doers” and “Living In Hell” mercifully drive the nail in. “Blood Of Angels” is an instant classic, and definite candidate for Album of 2019. Mixed by Lothar Keller (The Skull/Divinity Compromised). Produced by Bruce Franklin (Trouble).
Spillage live: Dec 15 SPILLAGE..Pre-Release party The Chicago Loop Sports Bar and Grill Streamwood IL
Jan 26 SPILLAGE Record Release Party Penny Road Pub Barrington IL
Spillage line up: Elvin Rodriguez – Vocals, Tony Spillman – Guitars, Nick Bozidarevic – Guitars, Billy McGuffey – Bass, Chris Martins – Drums, Paul Rau – Keyboards.
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 1st, 2015 by JJ Koczan
The Trouble family tree strikes again, bringing forth the self-titled debut full-length from Chicago five-piece Spillage. Aside from guitarist Tony Spillman, formerly of Earthen Grave, the band also featured vocalist Lothar Keller, who plays guitar in The Skull. If that’s not enough lineage for you, it was produced by Bruce Franklin, who, of course, is one of Trouble‘s founding guitarists. So there.
It’s out now through Qumran Records on CD with vinyl to follow, as the PR wire informs:
Behold! The wait is over!
Nearly 10 years in the making, the debut album from Spillage has just been let loose on the highways of hard rock/metal!
Tony Spillman, formerly of Earthen Grave, has assembled a massively talented lineup that brings the songs of Spillage to life with raw emotion, colorful landscapes, and at times, full blown rage! Lothar Keller (The Skull/Divinity Compromised) lends his incredible range to light up the vocals, Nick Bozidarevic (Band of Brothers) joins Tony to create a very Tipton/Downing-esque guitar duo, and Willie Max (Blackfinger/Shadoz Edge) and Chris Martins (Band of Brothers) hold down an absolutely thunderous rhythm section, and Paul Rau lays down the essential keyboard accents. Special guest lead guitar spots by none other than Trouble’s Bruce Franklin send things completely into the stratosphere.
Taking the best qualities of early Judas Priest & Uriah Heep, and mixing it with Uli Jon Roth era Scorpions, Spillage manages to create brilliant, original music that stands well on its own in today’s heavy scene.
Produced by the one and only Bruce Franklin, the self titled Spillage debut will be released world-wide on June 30th, 2015 via Qumran Records. CD and digital downloads will be available online via the band’s official Bandcamp page:www.spillage.bandcamp.com.
The track listing for the debut Spillage album is as follows: 1. The Darkness 2. Live In Fear 3. The Road 4. Call It Freedom 5. In Hell 6. Insomnia 7. Devil Woman 8. Land Of Opportunity 9. We Are
Limited edition red vinyl will be available soon!
Having already shared the stage with the likes of Trouble, Elder, and Brimstone Coven, and taking part in high profile festivals such as Days Of The Doomed, Spillage is poised to hit the road this summer in full force supporting the release of their debut album. Check listings for a city near you!
