Makers 101

In preparation for loading up the Finicky Time Portal, I thought a brief history of the Makers was appropriate. The Makers formed in Spokane, WA in the early 90s. The original line-up were Michael and Donnie Maker (brothers) on vocals and bass guitar, Tim Maker on guitar and Jay Maker on drums. Donnie has always been the primary composer while Michael has penned the vast majority of the lyrics. The early band was extremely rough and tumble and reflected a straight out of the garage mindset that flew in the face of the big rock and grunge that was popular in the Northwest in those days. Early albums All Night Riot, The Makers, and Howl reflected this stripped down, short song stompabout attitude.

Later, Tim left the band and was replaced by Jamie, who had played with me in the Young Brians. After the Brians split, Jamie put in short stints in Frenchie and Guitarded before joining the Makers. Jamie's skills were immediately pressed into excellent use, and his first album with the band, Hunger heralded the beginnings of a new direction. While the song blueprint hadn't changed yet, the guitar textures were changing.
With their next album, Psycopathia Sexualis, the Makers made major strides towards integrating some glam and psychadelia into the proceedings. While songs like "Are You on the Inside or the Outside of Your Pants" retained the punky garage energy, the production began to take on a professional sheen. Other songs like "Love That is Strange" took the band in new directions entirely.

The Makers hit paydirt with their next album, the Sub Pop release Rock Star God. The album (which received a very favorably written 3.5 star review in Rolling Stone) featured an amazing array of rockers (Looking for a Supergirl, There's Got to be a Better Way Down) ballads (Texture of a Girl, Someone Else's Son) and Who-inspired pop (Give Me Back Yesterday). Add in a variety of instrumentation (acoustic guitars, marimba, strings, Hammond B3) and a cameo from Jello Biafra on "Too Many Fuckers on the Streets" and you've got an absolute classic. Michael's lyrics are amazing and his voice is pushed to the forefront in all its Bowie/Jagger/Nick Cave splendor.

The band stumbled slightly with the next Sub Pop release, Strange Parade. The sprawling, psychadelic album has plenty of high points, and the performances are very strong, but as a whole seems to drag a little. At this point Jay left the band and was replaced by a couple of other drummers until the band met up with Aaron, their current skins-basher. Also, Tim rejoined the band, adding a two-guitar attack for the first time. After parting ways with Sub Pop, the band signed to Kill Rock Stars and quickly released Stripped, which primarily featured re-recordings of some of their earliest songs, plus a new single "Hot Kiss". 2005 saw the release of the fantastic Everybody Rise! Described by producer Jack Endino as "Pet Sounds on a budget", the album saw a return to tight pop songwriting, big guitar rockers, and more experimentation. Check out Michael's falsetto Prince homage "Ordinary Human Love" and the amazingly catchy, bouncy "Run With Me Tonight".

So what now? Distressingly, Donnie has apparently decided to retire from the biz. The hope is that Michael will do a solo album, with our good friend Jamie handling guitar duties. Still, the Makers have never enjoyed the sales or respect they deserve. They heavily influenced bands like the Vines, the Hives and the Strokes. Plus, you will never see a better live act. I'll post stuff at regular intervals For The People, and I'll start with the masterpiece of Rock Star God.