Welcome

The story of Stereo Drive-By began in Clinton, New York in the early 90's, when 2nd graders Keir "Mack" Spellman and Sean Bassett discovered a shared love of music. It wasn't long before the two found themselves playing guitars and taking after musical icons such as the Beatles, Weezer, and Dave Matthews Band.

Upon arriving at Clinton High School in 2001, Spellman and Bassett started their first band called PJ Marclar with a couple other friends. "We were kind of a joke," Spellman laughed, "but we had fun rocking out so I think people liked us"

Fellow Clintonian Brian Bigler was a local guitar hero around this time. "Brian was two years ahead in school and I can remember watching him and his brother play at parties," recalls Spellman. "Those guys could really tear it up. Sean and I used to have a blast listening to them. They sure as hell could jam and rip solo's. They were unbelievably talented. Once they graduated we tried filling their spot but those were some big shoes to fill".

Sean and Mack split up after high school, Bassett heading to Philadelphia to attend St. Joe's, while Spellman went east to Boston to play basketball at Emmanuel College. Shortly after landing in Boston, Spellman was introduced to roommate and fellow hoopster Andy Crawford, who quickly became his new partner-in-crime. "We got along great and those who know us might say we have loud personalities," Mack joked. "When you get the two of us in a room together it's usually a wild time, especially if there's beer involved."

Spellman soon discovered that Crawford was a terrific drummer who had played in a few bands in high school himself. The two got the itch to start a band together and after graduating from Emmanuel in 2009 they formed Stereo Drive-By with two others. "We started playing shows at any bar that would have us," said Crawford. "We played some terrible weekday gigs in places that were dead and I'm going to blame Mack for that," Andy laughed. When the other two members left the band, Mack convinced Sean Bassett to move to Boston and join them. The band's lineup filled out nicely when Spellman and Bassett got reacquainted with Brian Bigler who, through a stroke of luck, was also living in the Boston area.

Over the past few years, Stereo Drive-By has begun to build up a rabid local fan base by consistently playing high-energy live shows featuring a mix of covers from the 90's, classic rock, pop songs done with a twist, and stunning Mack Spellman penned originals. In 2010, the band released their first CD of all-original material, "Hurricane Baby," which quickly began to garner airplay at local college radio stations and further enhanced SDB's reputation as a band on the rise.

"I believe that honesty is the key to creating great art," said Spellman. "With honesty comes passion, and to me, that's what life is all about. The songs I write are often simple and fun, but they're all written with particular memories in mind, and hopefully they evoke similar passions and emotions in listeners. That's what Stereo Drive-By is all about, well that and partying and probably making some bad decisions." Spellman laughed.

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