Colossamite
Encyclopedia
Colossamite was a mid-to-late 1990s math rock
band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota
. They were one of the most prominent exponents of the genre.
Colossamite's members included Nick Sakes (vocals, electric guitar), Ed Rodriguez (electric guitar), John Dieterich (electric guitar), and Chad Popple (drum set); the group had no bass player. All except Sakes were transplanted Wisconsin
ites.
Like similar groups such as Zeni Geva
, Craw
, U.S. Maple
, or Dazzling Killmen
(this last group for which Sakes sang before relocating to Minnesota) Colossamite's music was almost hyperbolically brutal, chaotic, and rhythmically and formally complex. Rather than relying, as most heavy metal bands, on guitar distortion to produce an intense sound, Colossamite instead often relied on very loud "clean" (undistorted) guitars, played dissonantly, in conjunction with vocals that were screamed rather than sung. Songs featured jarring shifts in tempo and mood, with the overall sound being extremely raw, heavy and often slow.
Colossamite released three recordings on the Chicago-based Skin Graft Records
and one split CD on Italy's Freeland Records. The group, however, did not last long, perhaps because the extreme and uncompromising nature of its music (as with much contemporary classical music, which incidentally Colossamite's music resembles) was appreciated mainly by a niche audience, thus proving fairly uncommercial.
The group disbanded in 1998. Three of the four members now play in the experimental rock band Gorge Trio
, based in Oakland, California
.http://www.myspace.com/gorgetrio
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. They were one of the most prominent exponents of the genre.
Colossamite's members included Nick Sakes (vocals, electric guitar), Ed Rodriguez (electric guitar), John Dieterich (electric guitar), and Chad Popple (drum set); the group had no bass player. All except Sakes were transplanted Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
ites.
Like similar groups such as Zeni Geva
Zeni Geva
Zeni Geva is a Japanese heavy metal group led by singer and guitarist KK. Null, together with guitarist Mitsuru Tabata and drummer Tatsuya Yoshida...
, Craw
Craw (band)
Craw is an independent band from Cleveland, Ohio, USA. They belong to the harder-edged branch of the math rock or post rock movement, in the same category as bands such as Colossamite, Keelhaul, Zeni Geva, Dazzling Killmen, and Ruins.- History :...
, U.S. Maple
U.S. Maple
U.S. Maple was an American noise rock band. The group formed in Chicago in 1995. The band consists of Al Johnson , Mark Shippy , Pat Samson , and Todd Rittmann — who banded together with the intent of becoming the deconstructionists of rock and roll.-Formation and first single:U.S...
, or Dazzling Killmen
Dazzling Killmen
Dazzling Killmen was a math rock band from the St. Louis, Missouri area. The band combining a punk-inspired noisy ruckus with jazzy Sun Ra-type intelligence and complex arrangements.-Biography:...
(this last group for which Sakes sang before relocating to Minnesota) Colossamite's music was almost hyperbolically brutal, chaotic, and rhythmically and formally complex. Rather than relying, as most heavy metal bands, on guitar distortion to produce an intense sound, Colossamite instead often relied on very loud "clean" (undistorted) guitars, played dissonantly, in conjunction with vocals that were screamed rather than sung. Songs featured jarring shifts in tempo and mood, with the overall sound being extremely raw, heavy and often slow.
Colossamite released three recordings on the Chicago-based Skin Graft Records
Skin Graft Records
Skin Graft Records is an independent record label specializing in No Wave and noise rock music, originally based in Chicago, Illinois...
and one split CD on Italy's Freeland Records. The group, however, did not last long, perhaps because the extreme and uncompromising nature of its music (as with much contemporary classical music, which incidentally Colossamite's music resembles) was appreciated mainly by a niche audience, thus proving fairly uncommercial.
The group disbanded in 1998. Three of the four members now play in the experimental rock band Gorge Trio
Gorge Trio
Gorge Trio is an American experimental rock band based in Oakland, California. It is composed of three-fourths of the critically acclaimed math rock band Colossamite, which disbanded in 1998, and is survived by three releases on Skin Graft Records....
, based in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
.http://www.myspace.com/gorgetrio
Discography
- 1997 - All Lingo's Clamor EP (Skin Graft)
- 1998 - Gust's of Lead split 7" with White Tornado (Skin Graft)http://www.skingraftrecords.com/catpages/free04.html
- 1998 - Economy of Motion (Skin Graft)
- 1998 - Frisbee EP - came with a Colossamite frisbee (aka Camera Within EP, Skin Graft)
External links
- Colossamite page at Southern Records site
- Colossomite photos from Skin Graft Records site]
- Colossamite page
- Interview about Colossamite (2003)
- Page about Colossamite and Gorge Trio
- [ Allmusic entry for Colossamite]