Half Man

"Half Man began life as the solo acoustic project of Free Kittens and Bread frontman Chase Spruiell. After spending lonely days and nights touring on his own and after the solo LP “The Great Blind Ambition,” Half Man has grown into a full band. Half Man, whether solo or full band, allows Spruiell to explore his more Americana side.”
-Jersey Beat

Half Man was created as the solo acoustic project of Free Kittens and Bread frontman Chase Spruiell. Fostered from the Americana and folk music that encompasses the Texas region of which he was raised, Half Man brings a refined perspective to his craft as a songwriter. For years, Chase Spruiell has toured ceaselessly in his musical endeavors to cultivate a sense of perspective in his work that pays homage to his influences and establish his own in his artistry. Half Man previously released a solo LP, The Great Blind Ambition, and recently released a new album, Room To Grow.

Chase grew up in small towns in north Texas and moved around as a child.  The longest time spent in any town was in Princeton, TX for four years, where he was able to stay rooted in one place and graduate from high school. When he was 17 years old, he uncovered his first obsession with a band - Against Me! and he secretly  romanticized rockstardom. Inspired by Against Me! He bought his first guitar, a Squire and learned to play. His first band was Hazelwood, named after the street his father lives on. They covered  a lot of Against Me’s! songs and eventually wrote  their own songs. Chase didn’t grow up in a musical family, and his life until he was 23 years old was purely and strictly about basketball. Both of his parents played in college on scholarships, and went on to become teachers and coaches. Chase also also attended college on a basketball scholarship. “I graduated college in 2012 and I was working at Half Price Books in Plano, TX. I had no idea what I was doing with my life. I was in a slump, on antidepressants but I was still depressed. I remember driving home from work one night and I had just started listening to Bob Dylan around that time. I put on Another Side of Bob Dylan for the first time and heard “My Back Pages,” and I bawled my eyes out. I have never been affected by a song so deeply. It was shortly after that I decided to move to Austin and become a musician.”

Room to Grow was recorded at Fire Station Studios in San Marcos, TX, by Jake Waters and mixed and mastered by Jo Ellis. Recently Chase has begun to perform with a backing band mostly comprised of his band, Free Kittens and Bread with Gabe Garcia on drums and Kaci Taylor on bass. “The album’s first song, “New Year Headlock,” is about becoming so reclusive and depressed that I don’t even know how to function as a human being anymore. The album’s title, “Room To Grow,” is a stance against that. Basically expressing the hope that I will be able to overcome this, and I will be able to grow up and out of these holes I dig myself into. In a way, depression really drives me. Getting so low that I become sick of myself. That really drives me to become a better person rather than give in to sadness and do nothing about it. It’s my only true form of expression. It’s my art baby. I want it to be heard and consumed purely and properly.” Chase also takes inspiration from Leonard Cohen John K. Samson, Eminem, Townes Van Zandt, John Darnielle, Charles Bukowski, Kurt Vonnegut, The Mountain Goats and more.

Half Man will be performing in Austin and touring this spring. Check out their Facebook page for tour dates and other important updates.

Half Man links and info:
https://soundcloud.com/user-115936301/sets/room-to-grow-1/s-2AIvO
https://halfmansongs.bandcamp.com
http://facebook.com/halfmanmusic
https://twitter.com/chasedspruiell
https://www.instagram.com/chasespruiell/

Press: 
http://www.jerseybeat.com
http://dyingscene.com/news/half-man-streams-new-full-length-room-to-grow/