MAXIMILLIAN COLBY discography

"Maximillian Colby was an art rock band birthed in the early 1990s. They combined the intensity and attitude of hardcore punk with the beauty and weightlessness of noise harnessed by shoegazer. Never reaching much popularity outside Harrisonburg, Virginia, they were local heroes nonetheless, establishing a unique sound only recognized years later by bands like City of Caterpillar, A Day in Black and White, Circle Takes the Square and Envy; with their artsy song structures, stop-start dynamics, and minimal use of vocals, in this case, shouting. The band never released a true full length or lp, only a few eps, splits, and compilation features. Unfortunately, Maximillian Colby’s exceptional expression of art was cut dramatically short with the sudden death of bassist, Bob Baynor, in 1995. Following their demise, the three remaining members went on to form, most notably, Sleepytime Trio, as well as Supine to Sit, Bats and Mice, and Rah Bras. A discography of their sixteen recorded songs can be found on Lovitt Records."

"It's an ironic shame that all of thee truly innovative bands who tried to move emo into a realm that meant "progressive hardcore punk with poetic (non-political) lyrics" broke up before their influence could permeate deeply. Thus, thee new millenium is left with thee emo that every middle schooler thinks of instead of pure mind-redefiners such as Max Colby.

This was not simple music with a sappy message; there is technicality 'n' rawness in spades throughout this Lovitt-crammed-full Discography. How many acts of ANY kind were genius enough to not only sample Steve Reich's Come Out but also to structure their trademark song "New Jello" in thee same manner as that man's serious compositions? To me this puts Max Colby at thee crossroads between Trout Mask Replica & Madvillainy. These genres like "emo" perhaps should not be too confining because there is too much on here to be viewed as just another overlooked punk group. Their dynamics change more than post rockers with their structured yet insanely mobile songs. In fact, Max Colby are thee forgotten predecessors of that scene, taking Slint 'n' infusing it with punk's immediacy, showing thee direction that both post rock 'n' emo could have gone (AND SHOULD have, dad'bus'it!)."

sometimes a bit on the "plodding" side, but always full of passion. fans of the aforementioned bands need this. 2002 compilation from splits/eps from as early as 1994.