Splashh

Splashh

Company type	Indie rock band
Industry	Music
Founded	2012 in Hackney, East London, England
Defunct	2018
Headquarters	Hackney, East London , England
Area served	United Kingdom, United States, Australia, New Zealand
Key people	Sasha Frantz Carlson (lead vocals, guitar), Taddeo "Toto" Vivian MacDonald (guitar, synthesizer), Thomas Beal (bass guitar), Jaie Gonzalez (keyboard, synthesizer)
Products	Music albums and singles

Splashh was an indie rock group with Anglo-Australian roots, established in 2012 in Hackney, East London. The band consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Sasha Frantz Carlson, guitarist and synthesizer player Taddeo "Toto" Vivian MacDonald, bassist Thomas Beal, and synthesizer musician Jaie Gonzalez.

Although the band originated in London, none of its members were native to the city: Carlson came from Auckland, New Zealand; Vivian was born in Italy but grew up in Byron Bay, Australia; Beal hailed from Shifnal, Shropshire, England; and Gonzalez was Australian.

In June 2018, Splashh announced they would be taking an indefinite break.

Comfort (2012–2013)

In December 2011, Sasha Carlson—previously involved with Pineapple Head and Colours—suggested forming a band alongside Toto Vivian, whom he had met in London during 2010. After relocating from Australia to London in February 2012, Carlson began collaborating with Vivian in Hackney. They completed their lineup by recruiting Tom Beal on bass, formerly of INTL and Ripchord, and drummer Jacob Moore from Auckland's The Checks. This lineup was solidified ahead of their debut live performance on 2 May 2012.

During 2012, Splashh secured a deal with Luv Luv Luv Records and released three singles in the UK: "Need It," "Vacation," and "All I Wanna Do." Their first album, Comfort, was launched in the United States on 4 June 2013 through Kanine Records and later in the UK on 2 September 2013 via Luv Luv Luv. Although Richard Fearless of Death in Vegas produced the album, much of its content consisted of early home-recorded demos by Vivian and Carlson. Vivian later revealed that their sophomore album would represent a collective band effort, showcasing a more collaborative creative process.

Throughout 2013, Splashh embarked on extensive tours and appeared at prominent festivals such as Field Day, Benicassim, Liverpool Sound City, Best Kept Secret in the Netherlands, Midi Festival in France, Hultsfred in Sweden, as well as Reading and Leeds Festivals. Additionally, they completed a comprehensive US tour in April 2013 supporting The Generationals and Blood Red Shoes.

Honey + Salt – abandoned project (2013–2016)

In November 2013, Carlson moved to New York City and started working with producer and multi-instrumentalist Jaie Gonzalez while performing as Splashh in Brooklyn through late 2013. By February 2014, Vivian and Beal had rejoined the group to develop their second album, which Carlson described as incorporating more synthesizers and loops compared to their initial release. On 1 March 2014, the band announced that drummer Jacob Moore had left without disclosing specific reasons.

Throughout 2014, Splashh conducted intermittent US tours presenting new songs at events including SXSW and CMJ Festival in New York City. New compositions introduced during this period included "646," "Comeback Soon," "Under The Moon," "Pure Blue," "Feel It 2," and "Colour It In." On 29 September 2014, the music video for "Colour It In" was released via SoundCloud. Before CMJ 2014, Australian drummer Angus Tarnawsky from Brooklyn joined the band; Tarnawsky is known for his work with Apache Beat and touring with Temples, Brian Chase, and Au.Ra.

Splashh returned to perform live in the UK for the first time since late 2013 during March 2015. Their comeback single "Pure Blue" was issued as a 12" record in November 2015 through Luv Luv Luv. Recorded at Vivian's home studio in London, it featured Dominic Boyce of Peace on drums and was mixed by New York-based producer Nicolas Vernhes.

Between 2014 and early 2016, the band divided their time between London and New York while crafting their second album Honey + Salt. Vivian highlighted their desire to experiment with synth-driven dance music styles more deeply, while Carlson mentioned they had grown increasingly uninterested in their previous musical approach.

Waiting a Lifetime (2016–2018)

On 4 May 2016, the group entered into a contract with Cinematic Music Group and commenced work on their sophomore album, Waiting a Lifetime, in New York City. They chose to set aside two years of previous material to revisit their garage rock guitar sound. This record was the first to include bassist Beal and drummer Gonzalez in both instrumental performance and songwriting. The album was recorded at Vernhes' Rare Book Room studio, finalized by June 2016, and subsequently released on 14 April 2017 through Cinematic Music Group alongside Pod / Inertia Music for the Australian and New Zealand markets.

Members

• Sasha Frantz Carlson – lead vocals, guitar, tambourine (2012–2018)
• Taddeo "Toto" Vivian MacDonald – guitar, backing vocals, synthesizer (2012–2018)
• Thomas Beal – bass guitar (2012–2018)
• Jaie Gonzalez – keyboard, synthesizer (2013–2018)
• Jacob Moore – drums (2012–2014)

Studio albums

• Comfort (2013)
• Waiting a Lifetime (2017)

Singles

• "All I Wanna Do" (6 June 2012)
• "Need It" (13 July 2012)
• "Vacation" (26 April 2013)
• "All I Wanna Do" (re-release) (24 May 2013)
• "Feels Like You" (5 July 2013)
• "Pure Blue" (25 September 2015)
• "Rings" (25 October 2016)
• "Waiting a Lifetime" (20 January 2017)