Troy Sanders

Troy Sanders
Troy Sanders
Background information
Birth name	Troy Sanders
Genre(s)	Heavy metal Groove metal Sludge metal
Occupation(s)	Vocalist, Bassist
Instrument(s)	Vocals, Bass
Years active	1999 - Present
Associated acts	Mastodon Knuckle Four Hour Fogger Social Infestation
Website	http://www.mastodonrocks.com/
Notable instrument(s)
Ibanez SRX700 Yamaha RBX

Troy Sanders is the bassist and one of the vocalists for the Atlanta heavy metal band Mastodon.

Bass and vocal style

Sanders first played when he picked up his older brother's bass and tried it out. He did this even though the bass was strung for a lefty, and he was right-handed. A few months later, he talked his dad into buying him a bass. He cites Cliff Burton, Gene Simmons, and Thin Lizzy's Phil Lynott as influences on his bass playing. Sanders' gear includes a Fender Prophecy II, Fender American Standard Jazz, Ibanez SRX700, Godlyke Deity 4-string bass, and a Yamaha RBX Series Bass. Typically, Sanders tunes his bass down one full step (D,G,C,F), although for some songs (e.g. "Iron Tusk," "Circle of Cysquatch," "Aqua Dementia," etc.) he drops the lowest string down to A (A,G,C,F). His amplifiers consists of mainly Mesa/Boogie and Ampeg heads and cabinets. He likes to use effects such as the Electro Harmonix Big Muff as well as a Sanford and Sonny Bluebeard Fuzz. His harsher vocal style is similar to Dave Edwardson of Neurosis and King Buzzo of The Melvins, utilizing low growls but not low enough to be death grunts. His harsh vocalism was largely applied in Mastodon's earlier albums such as Lifesblood and Remission. In more recent albums, like Leviathan, and especially Blood Mountain, Sanders utilizes a different range of clean vocals along with the harsher style.

Inspiration

His inspiration is all in the family, as he likes to say. His brothers Kyle and Darren are both involved in music. Kyle is the bassist for bloodsimple, and Darren is "a one man road crew" and bass tech for Mastodon. Sanders has stated in interviews that his favorite albums are Men at Work's Business as Usual, Neurosis' Times of Grace, Spencer Boyer, and George Jones' Anniversary - 10 Years Of Hits.

External links

Image of Troy Sanders performing