Photo by Carlo Cavaluzzi
If we’re judging supergroups by how much they make sense on paper, it’s time to get excited about experimental-rock juggernaut Gone Is Gone. The newly founded quartet features Mastodon singer/bassist Troy Sanders, Queens of the Stone Age guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen, and At the Drive-In drummer Tony Hajjar along with guitarist/keyboardist Mike Zarin. All of the above musicians have expressed an interest in blending headbanger riffs with technical wizardry in the past, and at least two of them were brought together by another interest: scoring films.
As Rolling Stone reports, Hajjar and Zarin have worked on scores for movie trailers and video games since 2009. When they realized that their compositions needed a little more oomph, Hajjar called up longtime friend Van Leeuwen and Gone Is Gone began to take shape. “The thought behind this band is to combine what most of us know from many years of being in touring/recording entities and our love of scoring,” Hajjar told Rolling Stone. “Mike and I have had the privilege of being part of some amazing movie trailer campaigns and scored the game Splinter Cell: Blacklist together as well. Our goal is to be able to do more of this within this project.”
The hard-rocking quartet certainly didn’t start Gone Is Gone out of boredom. They’ve all had a ton on their plates in recent years, with Mastodon releasing Once More ‘Round the Sun in 2014, Van Leeuwen touring with Iggy Pop and Josh Homme behind their collaboration Post Pop Depression, and Hajjar knee-deep in the preparations for At the Drive-In’s reunion tour.
Still, all signs point to Gone Is Gone releasing a debut EP this summer in partnership with Rise Records/BMG. In anticipation of that EP, they’ve shared sludgy lead single “Violescent,” which you can check out below.
