Zach Hill

Last updated

Zach Hill
Zach Hill 2012.jpg
Hill in 2012
Background information
Birth nameZachary Charles Hill
Born (1979-12-28) December 28, 1979 (age 44)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • visual artist
  • record producer
  • screenwriter
  • film director
Instruments
  • Drums
  • vocals
  • piano
  • sampler
  • guitar
  • bass
  • keyboards
  • trumpet
  • cornet
Years active1995–present
Labels
Member of
Formerly of

Zachary Charles Hill (born December 28, 1979) [1] is an American multi-instrumentalist and visual artist. He is best known as the drummer and co-producer of the groups Death Grips, and the I.L.Y's, and as the drummer of math rock band Hella.

Contents

Early life

Zach Hill was born in Sacramento, California on December 28, 1979. He spent most of his adolescence at his father and uncle's press printing shop, where he was first exposed to classic rock music. [2]

Hill claims that he "started hearing voices in his head telling him to play the drums" when he was about 14 or 15 years old, and bought his first drum set with money he raised with a friend from a garage sale. [3] He dropped out of high school at age 15 and moved to Nevada City, California, where he started the band Legs on Earth with Julian Imsdahl, Spencer Seim, and cousin Josh Hill. Hill later moved to San Francisco, California where he played drums in the band Crime in Choir before starting Hella in 2001. [4]

Art

In addition to music, Hill is also a visual artist. He published a fully illustrated book, Destroying Yourself is Too Accessible, which included the Zach Hill and Holy Smokes album Masculine Drugs released in 2004 on TNI Books and Suicide Squeeze Records.

The Sacramento, California, art space Fools Foundation ran an exhibition of Hill's art, titled "Poltergeist", from April 1 to April 29, 2006. Parts of the exhibit are visible in the photos accompanying Hill's article in the August 2006 issue of Modern Drummer and on the Fools Foundation website. [5]

Film

Hill was said to be working on an original feature film in 2013, which was confirmed to feature late actress Karen Black in a leading role. [6] However, she had died before the film could come into full fruition. A shortened excerpt of the footage was posted on the Death Grips YouTube account in October 2015 in a 15-minute video entitled "Bottomless Pit". It has been rumored that either Death Grips or Hill's side-project, the I.L.Y's, would be involved with the soundtrack of the film as well. [7]

Discography

Solo releases

as Xach Hill

With Hella

Albums

  • Hold Your Horse Is (2002)
  • The Devil Isn't Red (2004)
  • Church Gone Wild/Chirpin' Hard (2005)
  • There's No 666 in Outer Space (2007)
  • Tripper (2011)

Extended plays

  • Leather Diamond (2001)
  • Falam Dynasty (2002)
  • Bitches Ain't Shit but Good People (2003)
  • Total Bugs Bunny on Wild Bass (2003)
  • Acoustics (2004)
  • Concentration Face & Homeboy (2005)
  • Acoustics (2006)
  • Santa's Little Hella (2013)

DVDs

  • Portals (2008)

Split albums

with Dilute
  • Live (2003)
with Four Tet
  • Split Seven Inch Divorce Series 1 (2004)

With Flössin

With Holy Smokes

as Zach Hill & Holy Smokes
as Holy Smokes

With Team Sleep

With Mick Barr

With Marnie Stern

With Bygones

With Wavves

With Omar Rodríguez-López

as El Grupo Nuevo de Omar Rodriguez Lopez

With Death Grips

Hill (right) and MC Ride performing as Death Grips. Zach Hill.jpg
Hill (right) and MC Ride performing as Death Grips.

Albums

Mixtapes

Extended plays

With Spoek Mathambo

With the I.L.Y's

With Undo K From Hot

Other bands and collaborations

Release detailsReleaseArtistAdditional information
  • Released: 1999
  • Label: Para-Sight
  • Formats: CD
Lasers and Saviors Legs on Earth
  • Released: January 1, 2001
  • Label: Perishable
  • Formats: CD, LP
10 Songs Friend/Enemy
  • Released: June 25, 2002
  • Label: Omnibus
  • Formats: CD, LP
Crime in Choir Crime in Choir
Chapel of the Chimes Xiu Xiu
  • Released: November 4, 2003
  • Label: 5 Rue Christine
  • Formats: CD
Nervous Cop Nervous Cop
  • Released: November 18, 2003
  • Label: Jade Tree
  • Formats: CD
Maryland Mansions Cex
  • Released: 2005
  • Label: Mash Down Babylon
  • Formats: CD
ApothekeApotheke
  • Released: January 17, 2005
  • Label: Frenetic
  • Formats: 2CD
Thank Gods It's Friday/Louisiana PurchaseToughguy Fantasy/Arctic Boys
Howard Hello Howard Hello
  • Released: February 21, 2006
  • Label: Temporary Residence Limited
  • Formats: CD, LP
They Mean UsThe Ladies
  • Released: October 24, 2010
  • Label: Temporary Residence Limited
  • Formats: CD, LP
DistressedDamsel
  • Released: 2007
  • Label: self-released
  • Formats: CD-R
Flannel Graduatewith No Age
  • Released: August 14, 2007
  • Label: self-released
  • Formats: CD-R
Greener GrassingThem Hills
  • Released: August 31, 2007
  • Label: self-released
  • Formats: Digital
"Untitled"with Ben Weinman
  • Released: 2008
  • Label: aRCHIVE
  • Formats: 2DVD
Mick BarrMick Barr
  • Released: April 14, 2009
  • Label: Warp
  • Formats: CD/2LP
Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian Prefuse 73
  • Released: May 4, 2009
  • Label: Warp
  • Formats: CD
Ice Capped at Both EndsDiamond Watch Wrists
  • Released: October 20, 2009
  • Label: Porter
  • Formats: CD, LP
Aggressively HumbleChll Pll
  • Released: October 28, 2009
  • Label: Important
  • Formats: CD, LP
Non Meters Volume OneRisil
  • Released: April 11, 2010
  • Label: Sundial
  • Formats: Digital
eclecticraftAaron Molho
  • Released: June 15, 2010
  • Label: Porter
  • Formats: CD, LP
Who Do You Think You Aren't?with Robby Moncrieff
  • Released: October 10, 2010
  • Label: Life's Blood
  • Formats: 2x7"
Split Mason Lindahl/Ellie Fortune/Raleigh Moncrief/Zach Hill
  • Released: October 10, 2010
  • Label: Lex
  • Formats: 3LP+3CD
Unearthing Alan Moore & Mitch Jenkins
  • Released: February 7, 2011
  • Label: Joyful Noise
  • Formats: 2LP
Oh Brother Joan of Arc
  • Released: July 5, 2011
  • Label: self-released
  • Formats: Digital
Many Moodswith Delicate Steve
  • Released: August 6, 2011
  • Label: Altered Beats
  • Formats: Digital
Initium Sol Invicto
  • Released: August 27, 2013
  • Label: Jackpot
  • Formats: LP
Drumgasm Weiss/Cameron/Hill
Dissociation The Dillinger Escape Plan additional drums on "Dissociation" [13]
  • Released: May 5, 2017
  • Label: Joyful Noise
  • Formats: LP, Digital
Nervous Cop (EP)Nervous Cop
Alto Arc EPAlto Arc (George Clarke, Isamaya Ffrench, Danny L Harle & Trayer Tryon)additional production on "Yeva's Lullaby"
  • Released: September 1, 2023
  • Label: self-released
  • Formats: Digital, 7"
Never (EP)with Lucas Abelasequencing and envelope generation

Other appearances

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References

  1. "ZODIAC DRUM KILLER Zach Hill on Blurt Online". Blurt-online.com. December 9, 2008. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012. Retrieved October 18, 2011.
  2. Lara, Coco. "Zach Hill". Coco's OCD.
  3. Dawson, Michael (August 2006). "Earthship Shreddin' To Hella And Back" (PDF). Modern Drummer: 62–75.
  4. King, Tony. "Midtown Monthly: Interview with Zach Hill". Sargent House.
  5. "April 2006". Foolsfoundation.org. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2011.
  6. "Bottomless Pit - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  7. Pelly, Jenn (May 10, 2013). "Death Grips to Soundtrack Feature Film Directed and Written by Zach Hill, Working on New Album". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
  8. "Volthree, by SHRED EARTHSHIP". Hathenter. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  9. Yoo, Noah (May 1, 2021). "Death Grips' Zach Hill Shares Debut Single from New Band Undo K From Hot". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  10. "Dumb Little Fucker". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
  11. "Remnants Of Chris, by Undo K From Hot". Undo K From Hot. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  12. xiu xiu. "Chapel Of The Chimes by Xiu Xiu". bandcamp. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  13. "Dissociation, by Dillinger Escape Plan". Dillinger Escape Plan. Retrieved December 26, 2016.