Confluence

Confluence’s juxtaposition of circular guitar figures, angular leads and tight drum and bass grooves against Ian Gassman's plaintive singing suggest an unlikely meeting of soul and math rock.

The project began in 2012 as, for lack of a better word, the confluence of the various musical incarnations of longtime friends Gassman, Spenser Leighton, Alan Hubbard and Brett DeWire. With the release of their debut EP and a subsequent series of singles, the band became an all-consuming endeavor. Along with festival appearances and tours throughout the Northwest and Midwest, the quartet shared the stage with the likes of Maps & Atlases, Radiation City, Typhoon, AAN, And So I Watch You From Afar, The Tontons, TTNG, Mylets, and Into it. Over it.

The peaks, valleys and and abrupt dynamics of Confluence's songs provide an apt metaphor for the band's journey over the past few years. Turmoil struck in 2014 with the arrest of Hubbard during a fall tour through the Midwest and the departure of DeWire from the group. For a while, the amps were silent, the guitars fell out of tune and the drums gathered dust.

Now, the sound of Confluence’s rebirth is marked by a fresh face and a fresh perspective. The addition of Montoneros frontman Gaston Leone has brought more detailed guitar interplay and cavernous textures that work well with Gassman's frenetic voice. Lyrically, Gassman has a lot to say, whether he's ruminating on the balance between cynicism and optimism, despair and hope, reassurance and uncertainty.

In 2017, Confluence will release the remainder of their old catalog as they hit the studio to capture their new sound.