Preston Lea "Trey" Spruance III (born August 14, 1969) is an American composer, producer, and musician who co-founded the

experimental rock Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, wit ...

band Mr. Bungle. He is also leader of the multi-genre outfit

Secret Chiefs 3 Secret Chiefs 3 (or SC3) is an American experimental rock group led by guitarist/composer Trey Spruance (of Mr. Bungle and formerly, Faith No More). Their studio recordings and tours have featured different lineups, as the group performs a wide ...

. Originally a guitarist and trumpeter, in the early 90s Spruance began playing vintage

electronic organ An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the pump organ, harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has si ...

analog synthesizer An analog synthesizer () is a synthesizer that uses Analogue electronics, analog circuits and analog signals to generate sound electronically. The earliest analog synthesizers in the 1920s and 1930s, such as the Trautonium, were built with a var ...

s, saz, santur, electric sitar, tar, and various other string and percussion instruments. In the mid 90s he founded Forking Paths Studio where his production techniques were applied to Mr. Bungle and

records among many others. Since 2007 Spruance's

has been a very active live entity, performing well over 500 shows in more than 50 countries. Spruance's playing and composition style is influenced by many diverse genres of music, such as surf rock, Anatolian folk,

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

film music A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

, Afghan rebab music, ska,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

space rock Space rock is a music genre characterized by loose and lengthy song structures centered on instrumental textures that typically produce a hypnotic, otherworldly sound. It may feature distorted and reverberation-laden guitars, minimal drummin ...

jazz 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, h ...

and Japanoise.

Musique concrète Musique concrète (; ): " problem for any translator of an academic work in French is that the language is relatively abstract and theoretical compared to English; one might even say that the mode of thinking itself tends to be more schematic ...

and foley work also play a large role in his recordings.

Career

Spruance was a founding member of Mr. Bungle, along with Mike Patton and Trevor Dunn. He has focused on his band

for the last 15 years (though it began in 1996), and its seven "satellite" groups first introduced on the 2004 album '' Book of Horizons''. Though once secular, Spruance began exploring religious and philosophical themes in Mr. Bungle and Secret Chiefs 3 in the mid-1990s, after joining the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

. In 2013, he arranged his music for the 61-piece Traditional Russian Orchestra of Krasnoyarsk and performed with them in Kansk, Siberia, alongside other members of Secret Chiefs 3. He has performed regularly with John Zorn and has arranged two releases of works from Zorn's Masada Songbooks for Secret Chiefs 3: " Xaphan" in 2007, and " Beriah". He contributed guitar and tubular bells to two albums by the drone metal band Asva, with whom he toured the US and Europe. He also recorded with Patton and Faith No More on their 1995 album '' King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime''. In 2016, Spruance composed a three movement string quartet titled "Séraphîta" for San Francisco's Kronos Quartet. The piece was premiered by Kronos at the Haydnsaal at Schloss Esterházy in Vienna, and at SFJAZZ Center in the USA. Kronos has also performed the piece at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

and for an engagement with the Alonzo King LINES Ballet. In Australia "Séraphîta" has been performed by the Black Square String Quartet.

As a producer

Besides his own bands, Spruance has also worked as a producer for others. In 2020 he produced "Alphaville" for NYC avant garde black metal group Imperial Triumphant, and is currently producing their next record. He produced the album ''Death After Life'' for Oakland, CA death metal group Impaled. Production duties for other bands include Neil Hamburger,

Dengue Fever Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease caused by dengue virus, prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas. Asymptomatic infections are uncommon, mild cases happen frequently; if symptoms appear, they typically begin 3 to 14 days after i ...

, The Tuna Helpers, Faxed Head, Tub Ring and many others.

Record label

Spruance is the founder of Web of Mimicry, which has released albums from a variety of different bands, including

Cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, Fat32, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Brazzaville,

Matt Chamberlain Matthew Chamberlain (born April 17, 1967) is an American session drummer, record producer and songwriter. He has played with various artists, including Pearl Jam, Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, David Bowie, Tori Amos, Morrissey, The Wallflow ...

, and ASVA, amongst others.

Discography

Mr. Bungle * ''The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny'' (1986) * ''Bowel of Chiley'' (1987) * ''Goddammit I Love America!'' (1988) * ''OU818'' (1989) * '' Mr. Bungle'' (1991) * '' Disco Volante'' (1995) * ''

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

'' (1999) * '' The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny Demo'' (2020)

* '' First Grand Constitution and Bylaws'' (1996) * '' Second Grand Constitution and Bylaws: Hurqalya'' (1998) * '' Eyes of Flesh, Eyes of Flame'' (1999) * '' Book M'' (2001) * '' Book of Horizons'' (2004) * '' Path of Most Resistance'' (retrospective and rarities album) (2007) * '' Xaphan: Book of Angels Volume 9'' (2008) * '' Traditionalists: Le Mani Destre Recise Degli Ultimi Uomini'' (2009) * '' Satellite Supersonic Vol. 1'' (2010) * ''Book of Souls: Folio A'' (2013) * "Perichoresis" (2014) Faxed Head * ''Uncomfortable But Free'' (1995) * ''Exhumed at Birth'' (1997) * ''Chiropractic'' (2001) Faith No More * '' King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime'' (1995) Weird Little Boy * '' Weird Little Boy'' (1998)

Band membership

* Mr. Bungle * Faxed Head (as "Neck Head") *Noddingturd Fan (also NT Fan) *Scourge * Asva *The Three Doctors Band *Plainfield *The Bon Larvis Band * Faith No More

References

External links

The Trey Spruance Gallery
– a comprehensive list of Spruance's live and recorded projects
Web of Mimicry

Mimicry Records
– Spruance's record label
Official Site of Secret Chiefs 3
– official website containing member line-up and photos. {{DEFAULTSORT:Spruance, Trey 1969 births Living people American rock guitarists American male guitarists American people of Hungarian descent Record producers from California Eastern Orthodox Christians from the United States Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy People from Eureka, California Place of birth missing (living people) Guitarists from California Faith No More members Mr. Bungle members American multi-instrumentalists 20th-century American guitarists