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JAN 29.08

GRUNTRUCK'S BEN MCMILLAN PASSES ON

As Blabbermouth.net reported yesterday, Benjamin Scott McMillan, legendary vocalist for Gruntruck and Skin Yard, died in his hometown of Seattle, Washington at age 47 after an eight-year battle with diabetes.

Roadrunner Records released two albums from Seattle-based Gruntruck: 1991's Inside Yours and their 1992 follow up Push. The latter was, up to that point, Roadrunner's highest-selling non-metal album due to the track "Crazy Love" being featured on MTV's Beavis & Butthead.

Roadrunner's Monte Conner (A&R) and Kathie Merritt (Sales) had the following to say in response to Ben's passing.

Monte Conner:

All of us here at Roadrunner are very saddened to learn of Ben McMillan's passing. Gruntruck's second album "Push" is still one of my all-time favorite Roadrunner releases, and it still sounds as great today as it did back in 1992. Songs like the swaggerig riff-fest 'Tribe," "Crazy Love" (a Beavis and Butthead mainstay back in 1993) and the epic "Above Me" (which really featured Ben's unique voice) are three of the strongest songs Ben and the band ever wrote. "Push" was quite a trailblazing record for Roadrunner as it was our biggest selling non-metal record to date in 1993. This is not to say that Gruntruck didn't haul a very large amount of ass, but they were one of our first forays into something more mainstream. Let's all crank this ass-kicking MP3 of "Tribe" while we remember Ben McMillan and the great music he made.

Kathie Merritt:

It's sad to hear that Ben McMillan has passed away. During his Gruntruck days at Roadrunner , Ben was a breath of fresh air, a guy who seemed to handle himself well with the industry folks, but never seemed to really enjoy the Industry part of the Music Industry. I recall after a day of running him & Tommy around a music convention in LA what a pleasure it was to work with them, they had both been through the ropes , so they handled the media very well. But both seemed much happier at the end of the day to be hanging in the bar with other band guys, just talking music. During a time when everyone in Seattle was painting themselves "Pearl Jam plaid" and going grunge, Gruntruck bucked the trend and made more punk edged music with a groove. "Beavis and Butthead" brought the band's music to the MTV audience and that opened up the music to radio, they will forever be remembered as part of that marketing phenomenon. But Ben's music with SkinYard and Gruntruck will always have a place in the history of the Seattle music scene, that guy could rock. And "Above Me" was such a cool tune....RIP Ben.

A pair of photos from the convention Kathie mentions are located here.

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COMMENTS

02.08.2008 Matt Vaughan wrote...

Kathie and Monte, Matt Vaughan here in Seattle. Very kind words from you two indeed. Ben was a confident and artistic guy, one who adored his family, and was always great with the fans. His influence ran deep in the Seattle music scene. Ben was an artist first. He sold his paintings and painted t-shirts at Pike Place Market during his Skin Yard and early Gruntruck days, if you didn't have a Ben McMillan t-shirt, you hadn't lived in Seattle. Jack Endino and him became friends early on and between the two of them, they influenced a sound that bands would strive for and in many cases, would eventually accomplish, many of course would become very successfull, Soundgarden being the first to come to mind.

Ben was all about bringing people together, he was always wanting to put on a good show and talk to people afterwards. He didn't mind cramped cars, backrooms, and apartments, he felt good and comfortable in those surroundings. The times he did have a tour bus or a big hotel room, you could see the frown come upon his face. It isn't that he didn't think he deserved it, he just felt more claustrophobic in those surroundings, like someone was playing a joke on him. Gruntruck was on the periphery of stardom. I do think there was some bitterness there on why this band and not his, but at the same time, Ben liked being the underdog. Gruntruck weren't like the rest, they commanded respect, but it was also the band that you could have a smart conversation with or talk about monster movies. Ben could be stubborn, not one who budged very easily, but when he was in his element and he knew it was good, you could only shake your head because he was right. During those early 90's, as far as Seattle was concerned, Gruntruck was the truest of em all and Ben made sure of that. I guess that's why Pearl Jam requested Gruntruck to open for them at their first public performance or why Alice In Chains said if Gruntruck isn't on our tour, we don't tour or why the Screaming Trees thought they should be opening for Gruntruck rather than the other way around . Ben was a statesmen and one who personified the Seattle sound, lyrics, and demeanor. There was nothing pretentious about him or any of his comrades in Gruntruck/Skin Yard. If anything, it's why they never reached superstardom and it's also why their fans were so loyal, they wanted Ben and Gruntruck for their own, it was their tribe, their likeness. Ben is above us all, cracking that smile and giving us a wink. A lovely man.

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02.02.2008 Maggie McMillan wrote...

Hello, all....Ben's Mom here just to say thankyou and to give you a couple of corrections: Ben passed away on 1-25-08 (not the 29th), and also his name is Ben (not Benjamin - he probably would've hyphenated that, knowing him....). We so much appreciate your comments about him, to know him also in your words. It's consoling. Thank you again. - from Maggie.