Solace (band)
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Solace is a
Heavy Rock band hailing from the
Jersey Shore,
USA.
Formed in
1996 from the ashes of
Atlantic Records artist
Godspeed, Solace is best known in the
Stoner Rock genre, but as guitarist and founding member
Tommy Southard has said "We're not a
Stoner band, we're a
Rock 'n' Roll band - a
Heavy Rock band, a
Metal band."
[http://www.lollipop.com/archive_temp.php3?content=issue52/52-02-08.html] The comparison of their albums to those of
Black Sabbath,
Queens of the Stone Age and
Kyuss,
[http://www.meteorcity.com/027.htm] as well as their live performances at
Stoner Rock festivals such as America's Emissions from the Monolith and Europe's Roadburn Festival, have rooted them deeply in this genre of
Rock, however.
Godspeed years
In 1994,
eastcoast rockers
Godspeed were taken from their
South Jersey basement and hurled into
Electric Lady Studios to record their
Atlantic Records debut album,
Ride. Featuring future Solace members
Tommy Southard and
Rob Hultz,
Godspeed's major label run included a cover of "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" for
Nativity In Black: A Tribute To Black Sabbath with
Iron Maiden's
Bruce Dickinson, tours of the USA and Europe with
Black Sabbath,
Dio,
Cathedral and
Sugartooth, as well as a music video for their single "Houston Street" featured on
MTV's
Headbanger's Ball and
Beavis and Butt-head.
The birth of Solace
Godspeed dissolved after just one album, but following stints as lead guitarist for both
Sugartooth and Slap Rocket,
Tommy reignited the band in 1996 with
Rob and former Glueneck singer
Jason, naming the revamped outfit
Solace. After a 1997 demo, Solace released their self-titled 7" debut in 1998, followed by 1999's
Distanced from Reality EP, a split with fellow New Jerseyans Solarized.
Close behind was their debut LP - 2000's
Further. A cover by
Metal art veteran
Wes Benscoter (
Slayer's
Divine Intervention) hinted at darkness within the album, which was quickly considered a departure from the
Stoner Rock pigeon-hole the band had already been put into.
[http://www.meteorcity.com/010.htm]13 and beyond
2003 heralded the band's follow-up to
Further - their second full-length album
13. Considered by some to be superior to its predecessor,
[http://www.allmusicguide.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:9l1m963ohep6] 13 helped Solace further define themselves as more than simply
Stoner Rock, assisted by the vocals and guitar work of
Doom Metal legend
Scott Weinrich (also known as Wino, formerly of
The Obsessed,
Saint Vitus,
Spirit Caravan) on the track
Common Cause.
In addition to the release of
13, 2003 saw their song "Indolence" used on the soundtrack of the popular video game
Tony Hawk's Underground. This year also saw the band finally cement their line-up with former Lethal Aggression drummer
Kenny Lund and the addition of second guitarist
Justin Daniels. With this new line-up, they entered the studio once again in 2004 to record
Hammerhead, a split EP with
Albany, NY's Greatdayforup.
Bad luck
From early in their career, Solace has been faced with almost mysterious problems. The band had an estimated 8 different drummers between 1996 and 2003
[http://www.monolith.gr/interviews/html/solace.html (Number of different drummers from 1996-2003 has been estimated from as little as 7 to as high as 12)] and suffered through supposed splits with vocalist
Jason. Even seemingly random accidents - one resulting in the destruction of the original master tapes to their sophomore album
13 - vexed the band.
[http://www.lollipop.com/article.php3?content=issue61/solace.html]This curse seemed to be lifted at least somewhat in 2003, but returned only a year later when drummer
Kenny was diagnosed with cancer. All of the band's plans were halted, including a new recording contract with independent label
Century Media. This set-back did not stop them from returning to the studio once
Kenny recovered in 2005 to begin work on their as-yet unreleased album
A.D. Later that year, the band faced yet another hurdle - this time in the form of undisclosed personal problems - and were forced to cancel a coast-to-coast US tour.
[http://www.ninehertz.co.uk/news.php?id=136] This heralded the start of a hiatus that lasted months.
Solace today
In April 2006, Solace regrouped and headed to Europe for Holland's Roadburn Festival. Upon their return, Listenable Records picked them up and will be releasing their new album
A.D. US and European tours are being planned to coincide with its release, and the band is playing numerous festivals and shows in the interim.
*
Tommy Southard - Guitar (Formerly of
Prunella Scales, Slap Rocket,
Godspeed, Social Decay,
Sugartooth, etc.)
*
Justin Daniels - Guitar
*
Kenny Lund - Drums (Formerly of Lethal Aggression)
*
Rob Hultz - Bass (Formerly of
Godspeed, Lethal Aggression)
*
Jason - Vocals (Formerly of Glueneck)
Former members
*John Proveaux - Drums
*Bill "Bixby" Belford - Drums
*Matt Gunvordahl - Drums
*Keith Ackerman - Drums (Currently of
The Atomic Bitchwax)
Albums
Self-Titled, Warpburner,
1998Distanced from Reality (
Jersey Devils Split with Solarized), Freebird/
MeteorCity,
1999Further,
MeteorCity,
2000*
13,
MeteorCity/Listenable,
2003Hammerhead (Split with Greatdayforup), Underdogma,
2004A.D., Listenable, Unreleased
Compilations
Stone Deaf Forever, Red Sun Records,
1999Judge Not, Underdogma Records,
2000Doomed, The Dark Reign Records,
2000Where the Bad Boys Rock, People Like You Records,
2001The Mighty Desert Rock Avengers, People Like You Records,
2002MeteorCity Hellacious 2002 Sampler,
MeteorCity Records,
2002Rebirth of the Heavy, Volume 2, Music Cartel Records,
2004Burn the Street, Daredevil Records,
2005Tribute albums
Graven Images - A Tribute to The Misfits, Freebird Records,
1999Right In The Nuts - A Tribute to Aerosmith,
Small Stone Records,
2000 Slave to the Power - A Tribute to Iron Maiden,
MeteorCity Records,
2000 Destroysall - A Tribute to Godzilla, Shifty Records,
2003A Tribute to the Beast - Iron Maiden Tribute, Nuclear Blast Records,
2003*"Die Drunk", Ambrosia Path Productions,
2006*"Cement Stitches", Ambrosia Path Productions,
2006*"Hungry Mother", Ambrosia Path Productions,
2006Solace: The Videos - Volume 1, Ambrosia Path Productions,
2006*"Indolence" (from
Further) used on the soundtrack of
Tony Hawk's Underground (Video Game),
ActiVision,
2003*"Cement Stitches" and "Rumble" (from
Hammerhead) used on the soundtrack of
American Skiier (DVD), X Ski Films,
2004*Various tracks used on the soundtrack of
MTVs show
Homewrecker,
2005*
Die Drunk - The Official Solace Website*
MySpace Profile*
StonerRock.com - Rock reviews/forums featuring extensive information on Solace
