oundsmiths Michael Ely and Spider Taylor have been creating, working and living together for over thirty six years. Their long-standing relationship comes through in their music, as they are very much "in tune" with one another.

In 1979 they founded the L.A. experimental rock/punk band "Hey Taxi!" and in 1981 they founded the celebrated and controversial L.A. post-punk alternative rock band "Red Wedding." During their 5-year tenure as Red Wedding released two EPs and they shared the stage with bands such as Killing Joke, X, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Psi Com, The Gun Club, The Bangles, The Romantics, 45 Grave, Bow Wow Wow, Specimen, The Sparks, Romeo Void, Suburban Lawns and countless other bands. Even though mainstream success eluded them, their vinyl releases fetch high prices on eBay, and Red Wedding continues to garner new fans all over the world.

In 2002, after a sixteen-year hiatus, Michael & Spider decided to make music again. Calling themselves Smoke & Mirrors, their first outing, "The Perfume of Creosote: Desert Exotica Part 1" was released in 2003 by Aural Fixation Records to rave reviews. Combining their love of old school exotica (e.g., Martin Denny and Les Baxter) with alternative rock, lounge music, psychedelia, and music for film, the result is a unique brew of instrumental "soundscapes" that showcases their composing talents and surprises the listener with its scope and variety.

Their second release, 2004's "Deities," took Michael and Spider in an entirely different direction. This double-CD release was influenced by the Hindu gods and goddesses and runs the gamut from sensual guitar-driven and meditative pieces to driving, pop-infused contemplative works to bombastic film-score inspired epics. As with their first release, the variety heard in these the tracks is staggering. Yet it all comes together to form a cohesive work and reviewers have praised its flow and atmosphere. In 2008 a single disc version of Deities will be released containing alternative tracks.

In 2005 they turned to Lewis Carroll's "The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland" for inspiration in creating "White Roses Painted Red." As with their two previous releases, the variety of this discs shines brightly. From orchestral pieces to field recordings to ambient to psychedelic and surf guitar and everything in between, WRPR is a living, breathing testament to Ely and Taylor's uncanny ability to bring their influences to life through music. This CD was re-released in 2007 using their own names Michael and Spider on Lavender Records.

In addition to the aforementioned works, Ely and Taylor have composed for film and are always happy to be involved in new projects. The producer of "Walking with Freedom" gave them a weekend to compose a campy remake of "Happy Trails" after another band dropped out at the last minute, and Ely and Taylor came through with flying colors. Their version was used in the film (a documentary chronicling one man's 2,173 mile journey across the Appalachian Trail) which screened unofficially at Sundance 2005. They have also composed music for three other documentaries as well as a track entitled "Dreamcatcher" for the Human Space Exploration Initiative, although it ended up not used in the final promotional DVD. In early 2008, Michael and Spider's song "Hanuman, The Monkey God" from their Deities CDs was picked up by Touchstone Pictures for background use in the release of the hip hop dance film "Step Up 2 The Streets."

If you are in need of music for a film and or commercial project, please contact Michael and Spider through Lavender Records at lavenderrecords@q.com about licensing existing tracks. Their film score / soundscape catalog consists of over 140 highly original tracks with a new collection of tracks to be released in 2008. One may also contact Michael and Spider about composing new music for specific projects. Filmmakers on limited budgets may request Michael and Spider tracks at reasonable prices (or perhaps for free with their permission and by simply by filling out a short agreement).