The Silos - Biography
By Bob Fagan
The Silos were among the very first bands playing what would later come to be described as Americana. They presented themselves without irony, their songs dealing with everyday events like babysitting and washing dishes. The Silos performed in somewhat of a minimalist style, borrowing equally from the quieter side of The Velvet Underground and their near-contemporaries, Boston-area bands The Neats and The Del Fuegos. They have remained together to the present day, although the only constant member has been the de facto leader Walter Salas-Humara. Salas-Humara is something of a rarity in the pop music world: A Cuban rock ‘n’ roller. He had previously been a member of Florida band The Vulgar Boatmen, whom The Silos would tour and on occasion exchange members with over the years.
In 1985, Salas-Humara joined forces with friend and fellow Floridian musician, Bob Rupe, and recorded songs with a variety of friends. Thinking his difficult-to-pronounce last name might be troublesome for potential record buyers, he modified the “Salas” half to “Silos.” The recording About Her Steps (1985 Record Collect) was an eclectic collection of songs revealing a wide range of influences, from The Neats-go-country of “Wanted Signs” to the echoes of Television in the groove of “Shine it Down.” The drone-like “Start the Clock” was built around a repetitive riff bearing more than a passing resemblance to The Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane,” (with part-time member Mary Rowell’s violin channeling John Cale’s viola), while “A Few Hundred Thank You’s” was in a quiet, confessional singer-songwriter mode. Rupe’s guitar was restrained and always in service to the song, often reminding the listener of George Harrison’s tasteful, melodic work with The Beatles. With a simplicity and spaciousness similar to The Vulgar Boatmen, the album offered calm quiet vocals, few guitar solos, and a non-ironic sincerity.
The follow-up album, Cuba (1987 Record Collect), was similar lyrically, with the band continuing to branch out in more directions, all the while maintaining their refined approach to the material. Lead track “Tennessee Fire” was all tension and release, moving through a series of melodies and highly effective, engaging dynamics. Salas-Humara allowed himself more passion in his vocals, closing out the song with some genuine rock ‘n’ roll screams. The video for the song was frequently played on MTV, and the record was chosen Album of the Year by in the Rolling Stone critics’ poll for 1985.
During live performances, the band rocked harder. Fans of The Silo’s more tender, lyrical side were occasionally surprised and dismayed to find Salas-Humara behind the drum kit for encores, singing unexpectedly explicit lyrics about anal sex and bestiality over a Chuck Berry-ish backing.
The Silos’ third album, the eponymous major label release The Silos (1990 RCA), followed the example of the Cowboy Junkies’ The Trinity Sessions, which was recorded live with no close-miking, in a church with superlative natural acoustics. Rupe took over vocal chores for “Anyway You Choose Me,” singing in a gruff voice reminiscent of Gregg Allman, while Salas-Humara played the Harrison-esque lead part. The song was released as a flexi-disc; the album as a whole had markedly less success than its predecessor.
Rupe left the band following The Silos release, going on to join Cracker as a bass player and later turning up with Sparklehorse. Drummer John Galway recorded with the Florida band, Charlie Pickett and the Eggs; he died in 1995. Violinist Mary Rowell would eventually go to work in the orchestra at Radio City Music Hall. Salas-Humara had recorded his first solo album a few years earlier, entitled Lagatija (1988 Record Collect), an effort that showed some movement toward a harder rocking sound with his impassioned vocals matching the more aggressive music. Since Rupe’s departure Salas-Humara continued to record both with The Silos and as a solo act.
Dropped by RCA after the relative lack of success of The Silos, Salas-Humara has since recorded for a variety of small independent labels. He has been a participant in a number of side projects with other musicians, most notably with Alejandro Escovedo in The Setters, whose sole release—Dark Ballad Trash (1996)—met with some critical acclaim.
The release of Susan Across the Ocean (1994 Watermelon Records) found Salas-Humara working again with original Silos’ member, Mary Rowell, and a large cast of guest musicians, including Caitlin Von Schmidt, formerly the lead singer and songwriter for Arizona-based band River Roses (who also happens to be the daughter of folk icon, Eric Von Schmidt).
In 1998, after a layoff of several years, Salas-Humara returned to recording and live performance with a stripped-down backing band consisting solely of Drew Glackin (bass and pedal steel guitar) and Konrad Meissner (drums and percussion). This lineup, the longest lasting in the band’s long career, recorded half-a-dozen albums between 1998 and 2007. Boston’s Neats had moved towards a classic hard rock sound; similarly, these later Silos’ albums sacrificed some of their trademark strum and jangle in favor of fuzz tone and edgier electricity. Their most recent release was 2007’s Come on Like The Fast Lane (2007 Bloodshot Records).
The sudden and unexpected death of Glackin in January of 2008 brought the band to a halt. However, after some time had passed, Salas-Humara and Meissner began assembling yet another version of The Silos. They appeared at the 2009 SXSW—where they’ve been perennial performers—and are slowly working on recording a new album, to be released on Bloodshot Records later in 2009.
Twenty-seven years after they emerged in the forefront of the Americana/alt-country movement, The Silos remain an influential band in those genres and a very popular live act as well.