History
Perhaps not commonly known in the collective unconscious of the American public, often a band exists as a metaphor of sorts (if this idea can be classified as such) for the hopeful enlightenment of an otherwise unsuspecting audience. Said audience may be out for a night of carousing with their friends, and this night could include live music -- nay, it shall include live music. At a time like this, a band must focus all its energy on a lifetime of practice simply to elevate their original songs above the din of requests for overcooked oldies. Say, for the sake of argument, the setting is the state of Maine and the band is Spilled Milk.
The band plays like a tried-and-true knitting pattern, their instruments a complex weave of construction and invention. Anchored by the rock solid rhythm section of Mike Arnold (drums) and Nate Hall (bass), the band executes Doug Hoyt's songs like they were chestnuts from a dogeared fakebook, with Michael Rancourt's keyboards fluttering throughout the mix like forgotten love letters from Garth Hudson. The band is at once familiar and alien, studied in American roots rock but looking forward to contemporary trends.
Their debut release, Two, showcases the band in sober moments of clarity and a distinguished grasp of their craft. We've posted some streaming MP3s of two album tracks below; you can always buy Two here at the OSF Store. Spilled Milk also has a song on the first volume of the OSF Quarterly series (Skunk Baxter would be proud...if the boys would get down to work and come up with a missile defense plan, he'd be really impressed).