Milemarker

Combining a flair for dramatic presentation with jagged, abrasive guitars and an undercurrent of political commentary, Milemarker came together as a trio during the summer of 1997. Drummer Ben Davis had just relocated from Washington, D.C., to Chapel Hill, where he connected with longtime associates guitarist Dave Laney and bassist Al Burian. Once the members’ other projects dissolved that August, the group made Milemarker its central undertaking and committed to an active schedule of recording and road work.

Rather than attempt to duplicate their concerts in the studio, the band’s earliest efforts favored raw, low-fidelity explorations dense with samples, loops, and altered textures. Non Plus Ultra (Paralogy) appeared in early 1998; shortly afterward, roommate Roby Newton began traveling with the trio to operate both the lighting rig and additional tape manipulations. During performances, fragments of impassioned sermons from television preachers underscored the music while the musicians wore shirts printed with the names of the four riders of the apocalypse—an image that once prompted a spectator to thank them for promoting the “Christian message.”

Future Isms (Stick Figure) arrived at year’s end and signaled a shift toward capturing the band’s intense live approach, complete with the ritual burning of the drum kit. On that release Laney played drums while Davis handled keyboards; after Davis briefly sat out a short tour, Sean Husick filled the drum chair, only for Davis to rejoin soon after. In fall 1999 the now five-piece lineup—Husick as permanent drummer, Newton adding keyboards and vocals, and Davis contributing across several instruments—tracked Frigid Forms Sell (Lovitt/Jade Tree) at Salad Days in Washington, D.C., with producer Brian McTernan (Cave-In, the Explosion).

Davis remained behind while the others completed two U.S. tours and one European jaunt, after which the rest of the group relocated to Chicago. Jade Tree subsequently signed the band, and McTernan returned to the console for Anaesthesia, tracked in March 2001. That summer the group visited Japan; Husick then departed to launch a solo career and was succeeded on drums by Noah Leger.