Dazzling Killmen was an American

math rock Math rock is a style of Alternative rock, alternative and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush (band), Rush. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (including irregular stopping and starting), cou ...

band from the

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

area. Formed in 1990, the group issued four singles and two full-lengths before officially ending in 1995, with a majority of it released through the independent label

Skin Graft Records Skin Graft Records (officially capitalized SKiN GRAFT Records) is an independent record label specializing in no wave and noise rock, originally based in Chicago, Illinois. The label is largely responsible for spawning "now wave" genre, an updat ...

. Taking influence from

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

and

jazz music Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, hymns, m ...

, the band has been noted by critics to have helped influence genres such as math rock and

post-metal Post-metal is a music genre rooted in heavy metal music, heavy metal but exploring approaches beyond metal conventions. It emerged in the 1990s with bands such as Neurosis (band), Neurosis and Godflesh, who transformed metal texture (music), te ...

Biography

The group, named after a character from Lucas Samaras' "Crude Delights", formed in 1990, and was composed of jazz students—drummer Blake Fleming, bassist Darin Gray, vocalist/guitarist Nick Sakes, and later on guitarist Tim Garrigan, who joined the group initially as a guest musician for the "Medicine Man" 7-inch single. Gray, Fleming, and Garrigan all previously performed in their high school band. The group has named bands such as

Ultraman The , also known as ''Ultraman'', is a Japanese science fiction media franchise owned and produced by Tsuburaya Productions, which began with the television series '' Ultra Q'' in 1966. The franchise has expanded into many television shows, fi ...

, Black Flag,

Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Min ...

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born 'Don Glen Vliet'; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as the M ...

Big Black Big Black was an American punk rock band from Evanston, Illinois, active from 1981 to 1987. Founded first as a solo project by singer and guitarist Steve Albini, the band became a trio with an initial lineup that included guitarist Santiago Dur ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

, and

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century musi ...

influences for their personal sound. With their early singles and 1992 debut LP '' Dig Out the Switch'', Dazzling Killmen caught the attention of the Chicago-based noise rock label

, who proceeded to release the band's next few singles as well as their second and final full-length '' Face of Collapse''. The group would later break up in the fall of 1995, immediately prior to a planned tour of Japan with Jim O'Rourke. Today, its members are better-known for their later projects - Nick Sakes has been in bands Colossamite, Sicbay, and xaddax. Darin Gray was in You Fantastic!, Grand Ulena, Brise-Glace, and has performed and recorded with Jim O'Rourke and with

Glenn Kotche Glenn Kotche (born December 31, 1970 in Roselle, Illinois, United States) is an American drummer and composer, best known for his involvement in the band Wilco. He was named the 40th greatest drummer of all time by Gigwise in 2008. Prior to ...

in On Fillmore. Blake Fleming was in Laddio Bolocko,

The Mars Volta The Mars Volta is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 2001. The band's only constant members are Omar Rodríguez-López (guitar, producer, direction) and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (vocals, lyrics), whose partnership forms the core of the ban ...

and Electric Turn to Me. Tim Garrigan, now based in Brooklyn, is in Skryptor and a solo artist.

Legacy

Dazzling Killmen has been cited as an influence by musicians such as

Ben Weinman Benjamin A. Weinman (born August 8, 1975) is an American musician, most notable for being the lead guitarist and primary songwriter of the mathcore band the Dillinger Escape Plan (DEP). He is the founder and sole constant member of the DEP, he i ...

The Dillinger Escape Plan The Dillinger Escape Plan is an American metalcore band. The band was formed in 1997 in Morris Plains, New Jersey by guitarist Ben Weinman, bassist Adam Doll, vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, and drummer Chris Pennie. The band's use of Consonance and ...

, Jes Steineger of Coalesce, Mike Taylor of Pg. 99, KEN mode,

Knut Knut ( Norwegian and Swedish), Knud ( Danish), or Knútur ( Icelandic) is a Scandinavian and German first name, of which the anglicised form is Canute. In Germany both "Knut" and "Knud" are used. In Spanish and Portuguese Canuto is used which ...

, and The Nation Blue. The group's music has been stated to of helped influence the development of multiple genres of music, with Brad Cohen writing for Clryvnt stating that the band "helped usher in myriad movements, including

, math metal and progcore, all the while defying classification." Robin Jahdi named ''Face of Collapse'' as one of the best

albums ever released, also stating that Dazzling Killmen "were ostensibly

noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...

" and that they had left behind a "fantastic – if largely unknown – legacy in the form of 'Face of Collapse''" In 2013, ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' magazine named Blake Fleming as among the 100 best drummers in alternative music.

Discography

Albums

*'' Dig Out the Switch'' CD/LP (1992, Intellectual Convulsion Records) *'' Face of Collapse'' CD/LP (1994,

)

Singles

*"Numb/Bottom Feeder" 7" (1990, Sawtooth Records) *"Torture/Ghost Limb" 7" (1991, Crime Life Records) *"Mother's Day Split" 7" (1991, Skin Graft/Sluggo Records) *"Medicine Me" / "Poptones" 7" + Comic Set (1993, Skin Graft Records)

Live albums

*''Lounge Ax'' CS (1993, Skin Graft Records)

Compilation albums

*'' Recuerda'' CD (1996, Skin Graft Records)

References

External links

Skin Graft Records Page for the Dazzling Killmen
*

Allmusic entry AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the data ...

{{Authority control Musical groups established in 1990 Musical groups disestablished in 1995 Musical groups from St. Louis Math rock groups American post-hardcore musical groups