Drummer, Jeff “Oly” Olson has left The Skull for a second time.
Olson formed the band in 2012 with fellow doom metal pioneers and Trouble mates vocalist Eric Wagner and bassist Ron Holzner; six months after their formation, Olson checked out while hoping for a Trouble reunion, only to return the lineup in summer 2013, which also featured Sacred Dawn’s Lothar Keller on guitar.
More musical chairs followed, with one-time Pentagram guitarist Matt Goldsborough added last year as the group recorded and released their debut, For Those Which Are Asleep, in November.
Olson tweeted: “I loved jamming with @TroubleTheSkull, but it’s time to depart and wish the band all the best! Looking forward to my next chapter.”
The split is an amicable one, according to The Skull.
The band posted: “We would like to congratulate Jeff on his promotion at Allagash Brewery. The bummer is, He can’t tour with us anymore and was forced to step aside. We wish him all the best in everything that he does. Brew On Jeff.”
Olson has made a name for himself as a brewer at Allagash, which released a pilot beer last year called Red Howes; it’s an Imperial Stout brewed with cranberries and was named after his grandfather who built cranberry bogs in Massachusetts.
