In 1996, I was 11 years old, living in Town n’ Country, and obsessed with my Nintendo 64, Brian McKnight, and Boyz II Men. Needless to say, I had zero time for alternative rock. I completely missed out on bands like Nirvana, Alice In Chains, and Pearl Jam — hell, I probably thought that Soundgarden was a level on Zelda.

Luckily, I’ve had some time to catch up, and while I wasn’t around for Spiller’s first round of success, I’m glad I’m present for their current curtain call. “Stereo In Japan” off Spiller’s Gold Leader LP is a particularly enjoyable high point and finds guitarist Marcus McCourd laying crunchy, thick-as-molasses chugging riffs on top of dizzying synth all while delivering lyrics about making it big overseas. The song is a sonic relic from a long time ago, but it still feels as sunny and fresh ever. On Saturday, the St. Pete-based outfit emerges from the ashes of a breakup that occurred about a decade ago, with Palantine’s Vinnie Cosentino joining on drums. Preview and download songs off Gold Leader at Soundcloud.

Details: Spiller Reunion with The Semis, Michael Christmas, Sat., April 7, New World Brewery, Ybor City, $7, thxmgmtlive.com.

This article appears in Apr 5-11, 2012.

Read his 2016 intro letter and disclosures from 2022 and 2021. Ray Roa started freelancing for Creative Loafing Tampa in January 2011 and was hired as music editor in August 2016. He became Editor-In-Chief...