User:Birchhilldam

BIRCH HILL DAM

Birch Hill Dam is a heavy, stoner metal band, formed in 2007 by Mike Nygard & Sam Barrett (former members of the Massachusetts Grindcore band "Entropy"). The initial lineup, once solidified, featured both Nygard (vocals)& Barrett (guitar), along with Joe DiMucci(bass), and John L'Herieux (drums). The band went on to release a self produced, five-song demo in late 2007. They decided to part ways with John in mid-2008, and Matt Neely (Headed for the Smoke) was recruited to fill their percussion void. The new lineup then headed into the studio with Pete Rutcho (Damage Studios) to record their 11 song, debut album. The self titled release was made available to the public in late 2008/early 2009, and became very successful, gathering rave reviews from over 20 on-line zines. In early 2009, Jeff Fultz (Seemless) was added to the mix as a 2nd guitarist. Jeff fit in well with the band, and complimented Barrett's style almost to perfection. Fultz played with the band until early 2010, but decided to leave due to his ever increasing work/life schedule. The remaining members continued writing & rehearsing in preparation for their sophomore release, tenatively titled, "Colossus". In late August of 2010, the band then decided to part ways with long-time bassist, Joe DiMucci. Nygard, Barrett, & Neely remained the focal points of the group, but were without bass until early 2011. By chance, a good friend recommended Pete Gelles(Nutshell) as a great fit to the bands style. Shortly thereafter, the band auditioned Gelles, and after two practices, they added him to the mix. Gelles had the immediate challenge of not only learning the 1st album in it's entirety (for live performances), but also owned the task of adding his flavor to the already completed 2nd album. This proved to be no problem for him at all, as the band headed back into the studio with Pete Rutcho (Damage Studios) in April, and released "Colossus" in June of 2011. To date, the album has already received numerous