Built to Spill and Playdead

Formerly of the alternative rock band Treepeople, Doug Martsch created Built to Spill in 1992 alongside Brett Netson and Ralf Youtz. Martsch's initial intention was to change the line-up after every album, and true to his word after the release of the band’s debut album “Ultimate Alternative Wavers” in 1993, Brett Netson was replaced by Brett Nelson, and Youtz replaced by Andy Capps. Built to Spill, and in particular Martsch became known for his jamming style similar to Neil Young, his elaborate indie-rock solos like Dinosaur Jr.’s J Mascis, and fractured and cut-up song structures and melodies in a similar vein to Pavement.

Along with cellist John McMahon and a number of ex-Treepeople, the band earned their second underground breakthrough with the album “There’s Nothing Wrong with Love”, finding further appraisal from the indie-rock genre. After Martsch’s first of three albums as the side-project, the Halo Benders, and signing with Warner Bros. in 1995, Built to Spill released a split EP with Caustic Resin titled “Built to Spill Caustic Resin” in 1996.

The move to Warner Bros. still allowed Martsch his creative licence and with a line-up of Martsch, Nelson, Netson and Scott Plouf, Built to Spill released their major label debut “Perfect from Now On” in 1997. The album, along with high-profile shows including Lollapalooza, led to a significant swelling of the band’s fan base, and earned a host of positive reviews.

With a notable lack of structural consistency and continuity, Martsch was forced to keep the same line-up as to be able to play both new and old songs, and earned a reputation for an impressively elaborate and unpredictable live show. With a now fixed line-up of Nelson and Plouf, Built to Spill’s subsequent release “Keep It Like a Secret” in 1999 proved to be the band’s tightest and polished release, once again earning warming appraisal from critics and fans alike, and marked their introduction to the pop charts. On the demand of fans, Built to Spill released the unimaginatively-titled live album “Live”, with the same line-up, however featuring once again featuring Brett Netson and Jim Roth.

The band’s subsequent album “Ancient Melodies” (2001) was the first album to be met with mixed reviews, and Martsch went on to release a folk and blues solo album “Now You Know” in 2002. Built to Spill’s sixth studio album “You in Reverse” (2006) was heralded as a return to form, if not their finest album, and the band embarked on a subsequent tour in support of. The band released their seventh full-length album “There Is No Enemy” in 2009 followed by a festival show at the Matt Groening curated All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival in Minehead, England, and subsequently release the well-received EP “The Electronic Anthology Project” in 2010.