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: Clifford Dinsmore of Dusted Angel & Bl’ast

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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

I would never try to define what I do. I’m more of a “go with the natural flow” kind of person. I got into music through punk rock in the late 70s and early 80s. Steve, the drummer for Dusted Angel is actually one of the very 1st people I ever jammed with. Then I met the guys that I formed M.A.D. with when I was 17 and that eventually evolved into the band BL’AST!.

Describe your first musical memory.

One of my first musical memories was my uncle Steve and my Mom taking me to see Tower Of Power and Credence Clearwater Revival at the Oakland Coliseum in 1972. Totally life changing!

Describe your best musical memory to date.

It’s hard to pick from so many great musical memories. One that stands out is seeing Black Flag, Adolescents, Minute Men and China White at the Mabuhay Gardens in SF when I was 16 . We were at all those shows back then, but that particular night was absolutely amazing.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

Going through my experiences with cancer was definitely an ultimate test of will and my belief in myself. It’s definitely not for everyone, and is an extreme exercise in self-discipline, and that discipline is the key to survival in that kind of fucked up life-altering situation.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

Artistic progress eventually leads to self liberation and a more personalized view of life on earth and the universe as a whole.

How do you define success?

I would define success as being in a position of personal autonomy and still being able to get by and survive. Traveling and playing music with friends and making enough to get from one place to the next.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

The last presidential election!!! Sheer Terror!!

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

Another Dusted Angel record!!

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

The most essential function of art, in my opinion is to emphasize the incredible aesthetic of natural vs. unnatural in the world we live in. And musically, to create the soundtrack that moves through history. Imagine a world without art and music, it would be insanely bland!

Say something positive about yourself.

I’m kind of a nice person when I’m in a good mood?

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

I’m looking forward to going to Hawaii this winter with my girlfriend to hang out with family and friends. Being in the ocean over there is always so revitalizing.

https://dustedangel.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/dustedangelband/
https://www.facebook.com/DustedAngel/

http://www.heavypsychsounds.com/
https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/

Dusted Angel, This Side of the Dirt (2025)

Santa Cruz doom rockers Dusted Angel will release their awaited second album, This Side of the Dirt, tomorrow, Sept. 19, through Heavy Psych Sounds. The band first emerged with a 2009 self-titled EP (review here) and their full-length debut, Earth-Sick Mind (review here), followed in 2010, but as will happen, life and other bands took priority. Vocalist Clifford Dinsmore (also Bl’ast and Spaceboy) got cancer twice, drummer Bill Torgerson (also Bl’ast) passed away, and they were sent reeling, but the eight songs and 40 minutes of This Side of the Dirt demonstrate what Cali underground heavy showgoers have known all along — the band are alive and well. Now a five-piece with Dinsmore and fellow founding members guitarist Eric Feiber and bassist Elliot Young, as well as drummer Steve Ilse (ex-Herbert) and guitarist Eddie Gregor, the band don’t so much erase the last 15 years as bring the sound of Dusted Angel into the present to represent where they’re at now.

I don’t know how long some of this material has been around, but with a decade and a half between records, the greater likelihood is it wasn’t all put together three months before they hit the studio. But if a cut like opener “Plastic People” or the subsequent single “Death Crushes Hope” have been in the works for however long, the record doesn’t is too brash to sound stale. The recording is raw tonally and Dinsmore‘s vocals are largely without effects, so as “Death Crushes Hope” picks up to add speed to the fluid, follow-that-riff! nod of “Plastic People,” the effect is true to the band’s roots in punk and hardcore. That intersection, between riff-centered doom/heavy rock and now-oldschool hardcore punk, is precisely where Dusted Angel will meet you, and while the temptation there is to say “for a beatdown” or some such implication of violence, the truth is This Side of the Dirt as a whole is no more defined by its aggression than by its groove. In any case, there’s plenty of both to go around. Here, that’s a reminder of part of the band’s initial appeal 16 years ago.

That said, for most who take it on, This Side of the Dirt will be their first experience with the band, and so the shove in “Little Lizzy” or the brooding, ultra-West Coast break in the title-track, and the chug in the later verses of the earlier, assumed-it’s-named-for-the-tobacco-company-which-I’m-still-not-sure-is-okay “Redman” will be striking for the perhaps unexpected angle they approach the concept of capital-‘H’ heavy. This becomes a strength for Dusted Angel throughout the LP as the two sides of their sound intertwine and “Kiss o’ Shame” is able to resolve in a riff and noise push that’s emblematic of the blend at its finest. The rawness in their approach, a sans-frills production — that’s not to say it’s too barebones or harsh; tones are full and the mix is balanced, but they’re not trying to be coated in fuzz or effects — bolsters the impression as “This Side of the Dirt” and “Kiss o’ Shame” dig into the center of the record where the vinyl side-split is found, but digitally (like on the album-premiere player below) the structure is of course more linear. In this way, those two songs giving over to “Little Lizzy” mirrors the shift from “Plastic People” and “Death Crushes Hope” into “Redman” at the outset, but that’s not to say the tracks are doing the same thing, because they’re not.

But if you want to look at the tracklisting as two, one, two, one, then the final grouping, “The Thorn” and “Seeking the Dawn” might be said to summarize that procession on a one-to-one basis. “The Thorn” is a little longer, and in classic ’00s-era riff-rock fashion is nearly halfway through its five-minute runtime before the first verse has started (love that), while “Seeking the Dawn” underscores the groove of the entirety while giving a crescendo to top it all off. The last thing to go when it’s all over is the lead guitar, and fair enough for the tumult preceding. By the time they get there, the declarations of purpose and character are long since made, but Dusted Angel neither overstay their welcome, and if there’s a formula at work, it’s malleable enough that they never seem to repeat themselves while at the same time never losing sight of their core direction. It doesn’t necessarily feel like balance, however, with the shouts and angular turns, shoves and changes of meter, but This Side of the Dirt is a more exciting listen as well for that.

The entirety of the album is streaming below, with more background from the PR wire thereafter.

Please enjoy:

Dusted Angel, This Side of the Dirt album premiere

Dusted Angel’s journey is one of passion, perseverance, and reinvention. Frontman Clifford Dinsmore reflects on the band’s history, from its explosive beginnings to its triumphant resurgence.

“It all started in 2008 when I heard Bill Torgerson (Bl’ast!), Eric Dog Feiber, Eliot Young, and Scott Stevens were jamming,” says Dinsmore. “When mutual friend Kieth Meek told me they wanted me to join, I was intrigued. Hearing The Thorn and Seeking The Dawn for the first time blew my mind — I had to be part of it.” After Dinsmore penned the song Dusted Angel, the band adopted the name as their own.

The early years were marked by relentless gigging, a 7” release, and their debut album, Earthsick Mind. But tragedy struck with the loss of Bill Torgerson. “Losing Bill was devastating — he was irreplaceable,” Dinsmore admits. “The only hope was Steve Ilse, who reluctantly joined part-time.” Challenges mounted when Scott Stevens faced nerve damage, slowing the band’s momentum. Still, they shared stages with Fu Manchu, High on Fire, and Melvins, keeping the fire alive.

Personal battles followed — Dinsmore survived two cancers, a bone marrow transplant, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, Dusted Angel endured, playing sparse shows as a four-piece before finding new life with guitarist Eddie Gregor. “When Eddie joined, everything clicked,” says Dinsmore. “For the first time in years, we felt like a real band again.”

Now, with a new album, a deal with Heavy Psych Sounds, and global ambitions, Dusted Angel is charging forward. “The momentum is unstoppable,” Dinsmore declares. “We’re ready for whatever comes next.”

TRACKLIST
SIDE A
Plastic People – 5:23
Death Crushes Hope – 6:21
Redman – 3:32
This Side of the Dirt – 5:20
SIDE B
Kiss O Shame – 6:21
Little Lizzy – 4:05
The Thorn – 5:11
Seeking the Dawn – 4:28

DUSTED ANGEL is:
Elliot Young – Bass
Eric Fieber – Guitars
Clifford Dinsmore – Vocals
Steve Ilse – Drums
Eddie Gregor – Guitars

Dusted Angel on Bandcamp

Dusted Angel on Instagram

Dusted Angel on Facebook

Heavy Psych Sounds website

Heavy Psych Sounds on Bandcamp

Heavy Psych Sounds on Instagram

Heavy Psych Sounds on Facebook

Following up on the announcement last week that Dusted Angel had signed to Heavy Psych Sounds, the details of the Santa Cruz-based doom rockers’ next full-length, This Side of the Dirt — implying ‘alive’ — are now emerging. The release date is Sept. 19 for the eight-track outing, and the first single, “Death Crushes Hope,” is streaming now.

You might see in the quote from frontman Clifford Dinsmore (Bl’ast, Spaceboy) below he calls it “Death Crushed Hope.” I don’t know which is right — ‘crushes’ appears more often, so I’ve gone with that, but it’s a guess at best on my part — but either way, I remember 2010’s Earth-Sick Mind (review here), favorably, and though it’s been 15 years, I’m looking forward to hearing what Dusted Angel are coming back with after what seems to have been a busy decade-and-a-half.

The PR wire has it like this:

Santa Cruz stoner rock gang DUSTED ANGEL to release new album on Heavy Psych Sounds Records this fall; first track streaming now!

ALBUM PRESALE: https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop.htm#HPS359

USA PRESALE: https://www.heavypsychsounds.com/shop-usa.htm

Santa Cruz, California’s stoner rock veterans DUSTED ANGEL (with Bl’ast frontman Clifford Dinsmore) return after fifteen years with their new album “This Side Of The Dirt” this September 19th on Heavy Psych Sounds, and unleash a rip-roaring first track with “Death Crushed Hope”!

Says frontman Clifford Dinsmore: “’Death Crushed Hope’ was always meant to be an uplifting song. It was inspired by the frustration I felt with getting older and the pain we all feel losing friends and loved ones along the way. Later, during my personal battles with cancer, it provided a whole new perspective. Despite the harshness of earthly circumstances, there are still the elemental forces of nature. There is still the option of escape and meditation within the solitude and tranquility of this planet’s wild and majestic wonderlands.”

Dusted Angel is a band that likes to keep it in the family. Made up of a group of close friends who have known each other since the early 80s — stemming from playing in various intertwined bands, engraved in the extended Santa Cruz scene — the band features Clifford Dinsmore on vocals (Bl’ast!, Seized Up, Spaceboy), Ed Gregor on guitar (Hedgehog, No Use For A Name), Eric “Dog” Fieber on guitar (Mock, Creature, Fire Sermon) Steve Ilse on drums (Creature, Herbert, Automatic Animal) and Eliot Young (Lost in Line, Seance) on bass. Fifteen years after their debut LP “Earth-Sick Mind”, the sleeping giant awakens to delight the masses with their crushing blend of stoner rock, doom, and desert riff worship, topped with Dunsmore’s commanding vocals. Whether slow-burning or full-throttle, their music is built for volume, leaving audiences battered, blissed-out, and begging for more.

TRACKLIST
SIDE A
Plastic People – 5:23
Death Crushes Hope – 6:21
Redman – 3:32
This Side of the Dirt – 5:20
SIDE B
Kiss O Shame – 6:21
Little Lizzy – 4:05
The Thorn – 5:11
Seeking the Dawn – 4:28

Dusted Angel’s journey is one of passion, perseverance, and reinvention. Frontman Clifford Dunsmore reflects on the band’s history, from its explosive beginnings to its triumphant resurgence.

“It all started in 2008 when I heard Bill Torgerson (Bl’ast!), Eric Dog Feiber, Eliot Young, and Scott Stevens were jamming,” says Dunsmore. “When mutual friend Kieth Meek told me they wanted me to join, I was intrigued. Hearing The Thorn and Seeking The Dawn for the first time blew my mind — I had to be part of it.” After Dunsmore penned the song Dusted Angel, the band adopted the name as their own.

The early years were marked by relentless gigging, a 7” release, and their debut album, Earthsick Mind. But tragedy struck with the loss of Bill Torgerson. “Losing Bill was devastating — he was irreplaceable,” Dunsmore admits. “The only hope was Steve Ilse, who reluctantly joined part-time.” Challenges mounted when Scott Stevens faced nerve damage, slowing the band’s momentum. Still, they shared stages with Fu Manchu, High on Fire, and Melvins, keeping the fire alive.

Personal battles followed — Dunsmore survived two cancers, a bone marrow transplant, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, Dusted Angel endured, playing sparse shows as a four-piece before finding new life with guitarist Eddie Gregor. “When Eddie joined, everything clicked,” says Dunsmore. “For the first time in years, we felt like a real band again.”

Now, with a new album, a deal with Heavy Psych Sounds, and global ambitions, Dusted Angel is charging forward. “The momentum is unstoppable,” Dunsmore declares. “We’re ready for whatever comes next.”

DUSTED ANGEL is:
Elliot Young – Bass
Eric Fieber – Guitars
Clifford Dinsmore – Vocals
Steve Ilse – Drums
Eddie Gregor – Guitars

https://dustedangel.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/dustedangelband/
https://www.facebook.com/DustedAngel/

http://www.heavypsychsounds.com/
https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/

Dusted Angel, “Death Crushes Hope”

I haven’t seen the name Dusted Angel around in a while. The band came up around the same time this site was getting started, and released their Billy Anderson-produced debut full-length Earth-Sick Mind (review here) in 2010 as a follow-up to their first 7″ in 2009 (review here) — while I’m dropping links, here’s a ’09 interview with vocalist Clifford Dinsmore — and there are myriad reasons they haven’t done a ton in the decade and a half since, among them cancer, lineup changes, the pandemic and other-band obligations as detailed in the bio below.

It’s different personnel, as noted, but Dinsmore (also Spaceboy, Bl’ast), guitarist Eric Fieber and bassist Elliot Young are the returning parties, while guitarist Eddie Gregor and drummer Steve Ilse will be making their first appearance in the yet-unannounced album for which the Cali-based band are newly signed to Heavy Psych Sounds. As is the label’s wont, staggered announcements means word of the record and probably a first single will be out in a week, and I’m especially looking forward to hearing what Dusted Angel have cooked up after so long.

So, with more likely to come, here’s the signing announcement from the label:

Heavy Psych Sounds Records to announce Californian stoner/doom metal band DUSTED ANGEL signing for a BRAND NEW RECORD !!!

We’re really stoked to announce that the US stoner/doom riffers DUSTED ANGEL are now part of the Heavy Psych Sounds Family.

The band has signed for a brand new album !!

ALBUM PRESALE + FIRST TRACK PREMIERE: JUNE 18th

SAYS THE BAND:

Clifford of Dusted Angel states: “We are so excited to be part of the Heavy Psych Sounds family with our upcoming release, which we recorded with Tim Green at Louder Studios. Eddie, Steve, Eliot, Dog and I extend our gratitude to the awesome people at Heavy Psych Sounds and are eager to share it with everyone across the globe. See you at the gigs!”

BIOGRAPHY

At the end of 2008, when I first heard that Bill Torgerson (who I’d played with for years in Bl’ast!), Eric Dog Feiber, Eliot Young and Scott Stevens were jamming I was instantly curious. When mutual friend Kieth Meek told me they wanted me to join I had to see what this is all about. Hearing The Thorn and Seeking The Dawn for the first time blew my mind and I was all about being a part of this project. After I wrote a song called Dusted Angel, we mutually agreed that would be the name of the band.

We were very active in the first couple years, playing live constantly. We released a 7″ and our full length, Earthsick Mind. When we lost Bill Torgerson, it was a severe blow to the band because he is such an irreplaceable drummer. In my my mind there was only one strand of hope and one man for the job: Steve Ilse! When I approached Steve, he was busy and extremely hesitant. When I told him he was the only person that could ever replace Bill, he reluctantly joined on a part time basis. When Scotty began to have severe problems with nerves in his arm and hands we began our descent into obscurity.

We were still playing a few great shows a year with the likes of Fu Manchu, High on fire, Melvins, Red Fang, Radio Moscow, Chrom, and other friends bands that would momentarily resuscitate the motivation. I never lost interest in Dusted Angel, and always dreamed of the day we could be more than a side project. After I had survived two different kinds of cancer and Scotty left the band, our friend Donny Champion sat in for a brief period on second guitar. Then the whole COVID-19 nightmare happened and I did a year of chemo therapy and a bone marrow transplant. When I came out of the fog and was able to function again we began doing limited shows with one guitar. We decided we wanted to dedicate more time to Dusted Angel and our search for a second guitar player began.

Eddie Gregor was an old friend and was always around, blowing our minds with his guitar playing. When I asked “what about Eddie?” Everyone just assumed he was too busy. When I finally asked him what he thought about being in the band, he said he had recently pictured playing with us while watching us perform. When he decided to give it a shot, things instantly gelled. The rest is history and for the first time in years we were able to feel like a real band again. Since his induction, it’s been non stop momentum. Incredible live shows, recording the new record, signing with HPS, and the opportunity to finally take Dusted Angel around the world. We look forward to whatever happens next!

DUSTED ANGEL is:
CLIFFORD DINSMORE – VOCALS
ERIC (DOG) FEIBER – GUITAR
ELIOT YOUNG – BASS
STEVE ILSE – DRUMS
EDDIE GREGOR – GUITAR

https://dustedangel.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/dustedangelband/
https://www.facebook.com/DustedAngel/

http://www.heavypsychsounds.com/
https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/

Dusted Angel, “Kiss of Shame” live in Santa Cruz, CA, June 25, 2023

…And of course, by the Fu, I mean Fu Manchu. This is actually a pretty cool match-up. Fu Manchu have made no attempts to hide their love of classic West Coast hardcore over their last couple records, trying to distance themselves from the “stoner rock” thing, and Dusted Angel‘s lineup boasts a who’s who of Californian luminaries, including drummer Bill Torgeson and vocalist Clifford Dinsmore of Bl’ast. One can only assume these two things aren’t unrelated, but either way, I suppose the chance to see Fu Manchu and Dusted Angel play together is just one more reason it doesn’t suck to be in Cali in January.

PR wire says dig it:

Santa Cruz doomsters Dusted Angel have been confirmed as direct support for fellow Californians and stoner rock legends Fu Manchu on their upcoming home-state tour! The tour kicks off on Jan. 13 with more DA-only dates to be scheduled around these appearances.

Dusted Angel with Fu Manchu:
01/13 The Satellite (formerly Spaceland) – Silverlake, CA
01/21 Blue Lagoon – Santa Cruz, CA
01/22 Bottom of the Hill – San Francisco, CA
01/27 Casbah – San Diego, CA

Hear ye, hear ye. The PR speaketh of things Dusted and Angelic. Astute and/or long-time attendees might recall the review of Dusted Angel‘s Earth Sick Mind from last month — or perhaps even the interview with frontman Clifford Dinsmore (ex-Bl’ast) on the occasion of the release of their first 7″ last year. Yeah, probably not.

In any case, Earth Sick Mind is out now, or so says the blue press release below with news of that and other Dusted Angel goings-on. Dig:

Dusted Angel‘s long-anticipated full-length Earth Sick Mind is out now via Mankind Records, bearing seven thunderous anthems for public consumption. The band’s blend of raging rock/hardcore crossover and cerebral doom elements has been slowly infecting full-on headbangers, stoner rock aficionados and all in between over the past two years, and it all comes together seamlessly on the 40-minute long debut album.

Merging Dusted Angel‘s longstanding ties to West Coast hardcore/rock as well as their infamous California surf and skate legacy — with several members hailing from notorious SST surf/skatecore legends Bl’ast — the band have teamed up with the almighty Thrasher magazine in celebration of the release of DA‘s album, with a full-page ad and promotion in the December issue of the mag (out 11/15) where readers can receive a free copy of Earth Sick Mind with a one-year subscription to the mag!

After recently storming San Francisco opening for D.C. hardcore legends Scream last month, Dusted Angel are busy racking up more live dates. Within the coming weeks we’ll be announcing the band’s upcoming participation in one badass West Coast tour early in 2011; more details will follow very shortly. For now catch them live at the Art ‘n’ Soul presents Modern Living event at San Jose‘s Voodoo Lounge next week; an event chock full of partying, art, music, and a full-on skate ramp setup, for a day of total debauchery.

Dusted Angel live:
11/17 Voodoo Lounge San Jose, CA w/ Hightower

Listening to the first full-length by Santa Cruz doom rockers Dusted Angel, I can’t help but wonder exactly what they meant by the title Earth-Sick Mind. It’s hard to tell whether the band, fronted by ex-Bl’ast/Spaceboy/Gargantula vocalist Clifford Dinsmore, were thinking of “earth-sick” like the idea of being homesick, missing planet Earth after leaving for whatever reason, or “earth-sick” as in, “God damn, I’m really sick of this fucking planet.” The cover art to Earth-Sick Mind (released on Mankind Records) isn’t much help either, as the loincloth and gasmask-clad figure featured on an apocalyptic red background standing on top of a pile of skulls could just as easily be on Earth as not. Hard to say. That pipe he’s holding looks like Earth plumbing, if that makes any difference.

The title is probably the most challenging aspect of the album though, as Dusted Angel’s straightforward doom approach is bound to be familiar and welcome amidst the seasoned heads who hear it. A double-guitar five-piece with riffs and solos from Eric Fieber and Scott Stevens, Elliot Young on bass and Dinsmore’s Bl’ast bandmate Bill Torgeson drumming, Dusted Angel don’t ask much from the listener in terms of indulgence. Rather, although tracks like “Tards on Shards” and “Scottstober” (inside jokes abound, one imagines) reach over seven minutes, there’s nothing overly complex about their structures. This can make Earth-Sick Mind feel redundant at points, but each individual track has something to grab even the most fickle of attentions, be it the plus-sized chugging of later cut “Pulverizer” or the sub-stoner drive of “Seeking the Dawn” which is kind of what Fu Manchu would be if Fu Manchu only wrote songs in the dark.

Read more »

It’s a great time for it too, because their album’s about to be released. Amazing when these things come together like that. You’d almost think someone planned it that way.

The PR wire’s got the goods, and by “goods” I mean “information.”

Earth Sick Mind, the thunderous debut full-length from Santa Cruz doom rockers Dusted Angel, is finally upon us and set for release on Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2010. The crushing seven-track attack of Earth Sick Mind was captured in San Francisco by sludgemonger Billy Anderson (High on Fire, Neurosis, Sleep) in April, and will be released next week by Mankind Records, a division of Revelation Records. A solid year and a half of touring and west coast gigs have the members of Dusted Angel conditioned to jam tighter than ever, building upon the rocking hardcore-meets-stoner/doom dynamics fans of the band already love, and taking these songs to massive new levels of crushing groove.

In celebration, Dusted Angel will perform at a pair of Bay Area record release shows this month. The first show takes place in San Francisco on Oct. 15, just days after the album’s release, where Dusted Angel will be playing alongside Dischord Records hardcore legends Scream! The following week the band hit their hometown Santa Cruz legions hard, playing alongside Christian Mistress and Thrones who are currently touring the US together.

Dusted Angel record release shows:
10/15 Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA w/ Scream, Dead Meat
10/27 Blue Lagoon – Santa Cruz, CA w/ Christian Mistress, Thrones