| Steel Pole Bath Tub | |
| Background: | group_or_band |
| Alias: | S.P.B.T., Steelpole Bathtub |
| Origin: | Bozeman, Montana, United States |
| Genre: | Noise rock, hardcore punk |
| Years Active: | 1986–2002 (reunion: 2008) |
| Label: | Boner, Slash, Alternative Tentacles, Lookout!, Mans Ruin, Sympathy for the Record Industry, Zero to One, Sento, Your Choice, Genius Records |
| Associated Acts: | DUH, Milk Cult, Tumor Circus, Mr. Epp & The Calculations, Duh |
| Website: | steelpolebathtub.com |
| Past Members: | Mike Morasky Dale Flattum Dorothy Kent Nate Howe/Jim Beach |
Steel Pole Bath Tub is an American rock band, formed in 1986 in Bozeman, Montana, United States, by Mike Morasky (guitar/vocals) and Dale Flattum (bass/vocals).
Morasky and Flattum moved the band to Seattle, Washington, where Kent (drums) joined the band. The band lived in Boulder and Littleton, Colorado in 1987 and 1988[1] before relocating to San Francisco, California.[2]
The band became known for their chaotic, noisy style and frequent use of television and movie samples, with several 7" singles and albums on Boner Records, becoming a mainstay of the San Francisco music scene.[3]
Before being signed to Slash Records and releasing their major label debut in 1995,[4] their signing to Slash was part of a mid-1990s free-for-all signing bonanza of alternative rock bands, particularly bands from the Northwestern United States in the wake of the surprising commercial success Geffen Records had with Nirvana,[5] many of which ended in creative and ownership conflicts. Steel Pole Bath Tub and Slash's relationship was no different. The band opened for Faith No More during most of the King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime American and Canadian tour from April 20 to May 24,1995.[6] [7]
The only album released on Slash contained few samples, which had previously been a staple of the band, at the insistence of Slash's legal department.[4] The band hoped their second album for Slash would be a cover of The Cars' first album in its entirety, but the label would not allow that idea, and then deemed the demos the band submitted (which contained three Cars covers) unlistenable and refused to release them.[4]
The band would not release any more significant material until the rights to the music they recorded for Slash reverted to them in 2002.[4] In 2002, the band released those recordings as the album Unlistenable, the title a play on a Slash executives comments on the material,[4] and reformed to play the Beyond the Pale festival at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco in November 2002, where they co-headlined with Neurosis and Tarantula Hawk.[8]
They reunited to play a show at the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland, Oregon, on September 4, 2008, as a part of MusicFestNW. The group's song "Train to Miami", from the album The Miracle of Sound in Motion, was featured in a November 2008 television advertisement for the PC and Xbox 360 game, Left 4 Dead.[9] Mike Morasky is also responsible for writing and performing the songs by the fictional band, Midnight Riders, in the game's sequel, Left 4 Dead 2.
On August 11, 2023, Steel Pole Bath Tub released their first music since 2002 in the form of "The Skulls Tape", a re-release of an early cassette. The band also once again reunited, this time at Rockefeller's in Houston, TX to perform at a reunion celebration for the rock club Emo's on September 9, 2023. Noah Landis joined the band for keys, samples, and sound effects throughout the set. The songs "Black Eye Fixer", "Action Man Theme", and "The Seventh Hour of the Seventh Day" also featured children of the original band members on keys and percussion.
Straddling the punk, noise, art and grunge scenes, Steel Pole Bath Tub was a touring staple. Between the years 1986 and 1997, SPBT shared the stage with dozens of bands, including The Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth, Firehose, Meat Puppets, Neurosis, Christ on Parade, Jawbreaker, Operation Ivy, Econochrist Melt Banana, Crash Worship, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 and Ethyl Meatplow. They were also closely associated with the Seattle scene, playing often with such acts as Mudhoney, L7, Tad, and Hole, and touring Europe with Melvins, as well as performing a string of early tour dates with Nirvana. Steel Pole Bath Tub toured the United States incessantly and traversed Europe and Japan several times.
The band joined with Jello Biafra[10] to form the group Tumor Circus, releasing a self-titled album in 1991.
Milk Cult, with Morasky and Flattum (and sound man Eric Holland) using the names The Bumblebee and C.C. Nova, released four albums between 1992 and 2000. Their last album, Project M13, was the result of an invitation from the French Government to be guests of the La Friche Art Collective in Marseille.[11]
Novex, a Dale Flattum and Kent project, recorded with Vern and Justin at the Unwound farm, which was released as Kleptophonica (2002).[12]
The Hand is a side project including Dale Flattum and Zak Sally of Low.