Combustor’s Combustible Rock

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Clancy Carroll has been Milwaukee’s sonic historian for the past quarter century. He documented the local punk and postpunk scenes of the late ‘70s/early ‘80s through a series of albums on his Splunge Communications label, including the History in 3 Chords compilation and the lost album by the Haskels, the scene’s flagship band.

However, Carroll’s involvement in music began as a musician. This month he roars back with a new band, their self-titled album released on Splunge. For Combustor, he regroups with pair of old friends from the Starship, Milwaukee’s early ‘80s Downtown punk hub: bassist Bobbie Mitchell from the second version of The Haskels and drummer Marc Graves, who subbed for several shows in The Haskels 2.0. Mitchell and Graves were also both members at different times in one of Carroll’s bands, The Dominoes. Also heard on four tracks is another old Starship comrade, bassist Johnny Washday; on one track, Kevn Kinney sings backup.

“Bobby and I have been talking about doing something for years,” Carroll says. “But we were trying to do a good job raising families—adulting. Right now, adulting sucks. I’m at a point where I remember that music was the main thing I wanted to do.”

Lots of history is encoded in Combustor’s lineup and is audible on the album. “Bent” and “Rails” reflect back on ‘70s hard rock with expressive guitar playing rising from a steady, driving beat. “Katie Dropped an F Bomb” is punk pure and simple. The harshly astringent tones of “Accelerate” point to the industrial of Ministry. “One More Siren” suggests funk influences with lyrics delivered in near-rap cadences. The pace-setting bass on “Supercool” may remind longtime Milwaukee music fans of another Starship band, the guitar-less trio called Oil Tasters.

And there is one song that dates from that era, “Tightrope,” a punk-on-the-metal-edge number first heard in Carroll’s c. 1980 band The Ones. 

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Combustor was ready to roll when the pandemic shut down the world. “We started rehearsing acoustically at the end of 2019 and moved into a rehearsal space the week COVID hit. That put everything on full stop,” Carroll recalls. By 2022 Carroll and Graves were ready to begin recording but—with Mitchell still hesitant about COVID—several tracks were laid with Johnny Washday filling in on bass. The album was coproduced by Paul Kneevers who added keyboards to several tracks, including the partly synth-powered “Week of Suck (AKA The Squeeze).” “I’m a very accommodating player,” Mitchell says of his role. “I try to figure out what would help a song. I think Clancy’s songs show curiosity and empathy for what’s actually happening in our world.”

“I’m definitely more focused on craft,” Carroll says, comparing his new songs to the numbers he wrote in the ‘80s and ‘90s. “I’m focused more on melody and finding twists and hooks. My lyrics include a good dose of end-times—“Accelerate” is about falling off the edge of a cliff. The last half decade has been difficult for many people, emotionally. But I’m trying to convey some positives.”

Although everyone in Combustor is in his 60s, they’re not dad rock or yacht rock or any other cul de sac where musicians go to die. “Our motives are more pure than when we were in our 20s,” Carroll remarks. Going for gold, the brass ring, the label signing, none of that really matters, albeit if one of their songs clicks somewhere … “You never know? What about a European festival tour?” Carroll asks.

Combustor’s album is available on LP, CD, Bandcamp and Spotify. Their debut and album release show is scheduled for May 20 at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn with The Swivels opening.