Doomed Confessionary: Erik Caplan (Thunderbird Divine)
Thunderbird Divine comprises four Philadelphia, Pennsylvania musicians who came together in March of 2017 to collaborate and create riff-heavy psychedelic/stoner/doom in the spirit of artists like Monster Magnet, Hawkwind, Flower Travellin’ Band, The MC5, Grand Funk Railroad and many others. Named after the street moniker of a homeless Vietnam veteran from vocalist/guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Erik Caplan’s childhood neighborhood, the band formed after the dissolution of two long-term Philly stalwart acts, Wizard Eye (Caplan) and Skeleton Hands (drummer Mike Stuart). Keys man Jack Falkenbach appeared out of the ether to join up in 2019, and highly experienced engineer and bassist Joshua Solomon came along just as Thunderbird Divine parted ways with its original bassist, Adam Scott (also of Skeleton Hands) in 2022.
»Magnasonic«, Thunderbird Divine’s first release, appeared on Salt Of The Earth Records and Interstellar Smoke Records in 2019, and its follow-up, »The Hand of Man«, was also released by Salt Of The Earth Records in 2020. The band also released a single recording of The Yardbirds’ »Happenings 10 Year’s Time Ago« in the same year. Their third studio album »Little Wars« is scheduled for release on August 30th, 2024 via Black Doomba Records.
Thunderbird Divine are Erik Caplan (vocals, guitar), Michael Stuart (drums), Joshua Adam Solomon (bass) and Jack Falkenbach (keyboards).
Can you say a few words about your band?
Sure! We’re called Thunderbird Divine. We’re from Philadelphia, and we first got together in
2017. We play psychedelic riff rock.
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
I think our biggest challenge is the same challenge every band faces – other things in life can get in the way of the music. We’re in a good place right now, but that’s been a challenge in the past.
What can you be most proud of so far?
I’m most proud of my band mates and our relationship, both social and musical. We work well together. Not only do we enjoy writing and playing our music, but we also legitimately enjoy each others’ company.
What was your biggest regret?
We’ve lost some relationships over the years, and we do regret those losses. However, those losses have taken us to our present situation, so I suppose we can’t complain too much.
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
I couldn’t narrow it down to just one – we have a great time every time we’re play. Certain events, like Maryland Doom Fest, for example, are always emotional and memorable, but music never fails to feed our souls.
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
After many years of working in music, I can’t say much surprises us anymore. I think, as a very young musician, I expected it to be more glamorous, but that one disintegrated quickly.
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Personally, I don’t listen to a whole lot of heavy music. Much of it frankly bores me. I get more inspiration from music that doesn’t sound anything like ours. So I’ll find myself listening to War, Funkadelic and Santana more often than anything particularly heavy.
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
Most of the advice I’ve gotten has actually come from personal learning experiences. There haven’t been many mentors in my past. I’ve basically learned from experiences, both good and bad.
What are your guilty pleasures?
I don’t feel guilty about anything that gives me pleasure.
Can you say something more about current music scene in Philadelphia?
Philadelphia is a big city with a great deal of musical and artistic diversity. You can find essentially any sort of music here. It’s vibrant and exciting, but it’s a bit insular, and we’ve been known to ignore our best artists until they become more established in other cities.
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
You’ll find us all over the East Coast to the Midwest of the United States.
What are your plans for the future as a band?
Keep enjoying each other and our musical interactions, keep writing, recording and playing the best songs we can create.
How can people best support your band?
Buy a record, download a track, watch our videos on YouTube, buy some shirts, come see us play… come give us hugs.
Do you have any message for your listeners?
Keep listening!
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well