Anodyne formed during the summer of 1997 in Boston, MA. The original members were Thos Niles (drums), Mike Hill (guitar/vocals), Mike Davis (bass) and Ayal Naor (guitar/vocals). The early music was defined by long, noisy improvisational jams punctuated by intense metal/hardcore songs. The output from this line-up was captured on the long-out of print s/t 7-in and some obscure compilations. After touring throughout the northeast and Canada with bands such as Isis, Drowningman, Cable and Jesuit, Anodyne captured the attention of Escape Artist Records; at that time a fledgling hardcore label releasing seminal works by Isis, Burn It Down and Time in Malta. Bass duties were transferred from Mike Davis to Joshua Scott and Mike Swanson joined on drums before the band entered the studio to record "Quiet Wars", their debut for Escape Artist Records. The band hit the road on a 5-week US tour to support their new release.
At the conclusion of the Quiet Wars tour, the band relocated to New York City. Swanson and Naor remained in Boston and the band was without a drummer for a period of time. Dave Witte (Burnt by the Sun, Discordance Axis, Human Remains, The Skies Denied, Melt Banana) briefly filled in on on drums. His stint as Anodyne's drummer was captured on the "Red was Her Favorite Color" 7-in released by Happy Couples Never Last.
Joel Stallings joined the band, solidifying the Anodyne line-up as Mike Hill (guitar/vocals), Joshua Scott (bass) and Joel Stallings (drums). This line-up was to record the "Berkowitz" 7-in for Alone Records, Keelhaul/Anodyne split for Chainsaw Safety Records, the Outer Dark LP for Escape Artist Records, the DefCon 4/Anodyne split for Ammonia Records and the "Salo" EP released as a 10-in EP by Insolito Records and as a CDEP by Init Records. Anodyne also contributed "Life of Pain" for the Initial Records Black Flag Tribute "Black on Black."
Currently, the band is out on its first European Tour. The new Anodyne LP "Lifetime of Grey Skies" has been recorded and is slated for a June 2004 release on Level Plane Records.
Source: http://www.anodynehq.com/