A new band has hit Ukiah with a bang! Members from both Ukiah High and South Valley have come together to make thrash metal music under the name SPLYNTER. 

SPLYNTER has four members: Wade Clark, the guitarist, Aiden Clary, the bassist, Ezra Cabral on drums, and TJ Feliz, the vocalist. 

SPLYNTER first came together in 2023 but had some bumps in the road when trying to solidify its core members. Clark explained that Cabral, Feliz, and another Ukiah High student, Will, wanted to start a metal band. However, Will and the other members had a falling out along with another potential bassist. Eventually, Clark met Clary at South Valley, and after a small audition, Clark knew, “He was just the guy for the job.” For a time, SPLYNTER did not have a vocalist, but Feliz returned to the band, after an extended absence, to help out with vocals.

Finding a name for their band proved difficult until Cabral came up with the name SPLYNTER. Clark recalls, “The first bassist wanted Havoc [but]  there was already another band [by that name]. Ezra threw out splinter, and we were like, well, let’s spell it with a Y.” Cabral came up with the name during marching season at the high school: “It was [during] marching band and I had split literally down the middle one of those thick marching sticks. . . like an inch to half an inch thick of wood, and I split it straight down the middle, and so that was just ringing my mind. So I was like, why not splinter?”

Last school year was when SPLYNTER started to write music. Their writing process has evolved over time. When they first started, they would have Clark come up with a riff, Cabral adding drums, and then adding bass to it later. Now, “if we have the time, we set [aside] an hour to half an hour during practice, to actually sit down and write new material, and with everyone together, it really just fits, like a big puzzle.” They all agreed that, “We’re at a point now where we’re just busting out songs like it’s nothing.” 

Cabral is part of Ukiah High’s marching band and jazz ensemble, which helps when writing songs for SPLYNTER. He uses his concert band and music theory knowledge for the more technical aspects of songwriting.

SPLYNTER mainly makes thrash metal but isn’t limited to just one genre, as they enjoy branching into other kinds of metal. 

Their songs aren’t without meaning either. Clark states,“‘Peace Through Genocide’ our first song, that’s just about war and people being killed for peace, and people just lying about it and spreading false propaganda and saying, ‘oh well, it’s okay while we’re over here and we celebrate, [while] people in other countries are dying.’”

All of the members take inspiration from a variety of artists and different music genres, and have all grown up surrounded by music. 

Clark takes inspiration from bands like Metallica and Killswitch Engage: “It’s the hope in their words, every time he lets out his voice. It’s like you can just feel it in your soul.”

Cabral likes to incorporate his deathcore metal inspirations into SPLYNTER’s music, with bands like Angel Maker, Slaughter to Prevail, and To the Grave, just to name a few.

Feliz grew up with all kinds of musical influences, not just metal. He shares, “My sister is playing alternative rock. My brother’s playing rap. My dad is playing country, [and] my mom would play whatever’s on the radio, so, like mostly pop, and my other sisters started getting into more modern rap.” His family’s different genre preferences and history with music, having multiple singers, and his grandfather also being a part of a band in the past, inspire him. When Feliz started to make music, he felt, “a piece of me was just made visible, and I would start to even find myself.”

Being the more punk out of the members, Clary said he takes his inspiration from bands like Green Day and other 90’s alternative punk artists. 

Earlier this year, SPLYNTER had their first gig at South Valley High School when they only had instrumentals and a very short 15-minute set. Cabral described it as, “Super nerve-wracking, because we only had 3 songs for a set…But we got out there, and we played.”

Over this past summer, another local band, Wevillism, contacted SPLYNTER. Cabral had known a majority of Wevillism’s members through personal relationships, and according to Cabral, “When they heard that I was in a metal band, they asked, ‘Do you want to play with us for a show?’ I was like ‘heck yeah!’” Since then, SPLYNTER has played several shows over the past 6 months.

You can find SPLYNTER on multiple social media sites and stream their most recent demo recordings on SoundCloud. 

Ukiah High celebrates Native American Heritage Month by hosting speakers, teachers, and craftsmen in classrooms on November 12th and 13th. All students, teachers, and staff members are invited to join in a lunchtime celebration on Wednesday the 12th.

Ms. Frith, a Native American Counselor on campus and organizer of the event shares why it is so important: ¨it is a whole missing piece of history. In a lot of ways, the history that we’ve taught over the years has been very much written from a certain perspective. Our school is really making an effort to highlight history from different perspectives. It gives students an opportunity to recognize some of the local history, that really isn’t from too far in the distant past. I think it’s very important for people to have more understanding because it gives them more of a connection to this place in which they live. They need to understand how people were living on this land before colonization. The land is very abundant here and people have lived here for thousands and thousands of years. We were living a certain lifestyle here before colonization and modern society emerged.” 

Ms. Frith emphasized the importance of teachers signing up saying: “I really want teachers to contact me and start getting signed up. I have a good amount of people signed up but I would love to get more. The people that we have coming in are truly amazing people. On November 12th during lunchtime in the large tri, we’re going to have some dancers, which is going to be really beautiful, and then we’re going to have some different booths from some tribal education centers. We’ll have tables set up for kids to do basket weaving and make their own necklaces. 

 Buffie Campbell, the teacher of the Pomo Language Program at Ukiah High, learned from her mother to be a Pomo Dancer, Pomo regalia maker, Pomo basket weaver, and Indigenous food and medicine gatherer. Buffie’s cultural knowledge, passed down from her mother and father, has given her a desire to share old ways to the youth and elders, and everyone in between. 

Ms. Campbell spoke to the celebration’s importance: “Native American Heritage Month is important because it brings awareness to people who might not know and might not have any exposure to the Native community in this area that we all live in. There are a lot of Native American people in this area. There are over 20 tribes in Mendocino, Lake, and Sonoma counties, and a lot of these people are living with you in your area, working with you.” 

She finished with a strong message to all people at the high school and in the greater community: “I want everyone to know that we are walking among you. We’re sitting in the same classrooms as you, working with you, and living with you. I know that a lot of people have friendships with Native people, and maybe you didn’t know that. That’s okay, because you really shouldn’t be so focused on labels. Not just this month, every month, every day, we’re here practicing our cultures within our own community, here at the school, remembering where we came from and the proud people that we are.”

Presenters are joining us from various tribes across Mendocino County and beyond to share aspects of their rich and vibrant cultures:

Nick Garcia is from Redwood Valley Rancheria. He is a local ¨Money Maker,¨ singer, regalia maker, and storyteller. He will be sharing the history and current uses of Pomo ‘Money’ and traditional economy as well as leather medicine bag making. 

Julian Maldonado shared some of his backstory: “As a young boy I spent a lot of time with my uncle Ramon Billy Sr. who taught me about our Pomo culture and tribal government. I am a traditional Pomo dancer and a Roundhouse dancer. I make regalia for the male dancers, feather skirts, flicker bands and back pieces. I also make clapper sticks for the singers. I prepare the dancer arbor and dance grounds for cultural gatherings. I enjoy gathering our traditional foods and medicinal plants and teaching others how to prepare them. I have served as the Chairperson for the Title VI Native American Parent Committee at Ukiah High School District for over 20 years. I also have shared my Pomo culture and history at UUSD for 25 years. I am honored to teach youth the Pomo traditions and ways of life of my ancestors.”

Corine Pearce spoke about her origin: “I am from the Redwood Valley Rancheria Tribe. I have been a basket weaver for 40 years. I grew up in a native home active in community and traditions. My mother ensured that I was exposed to, and participated in all parts of my culture so that I could learn and pass down the knowledge. I am a traditional dancer, singer, and regalia maker. I have taught many aspects of Native culture including basketry, food processing, traditional games, local and general native history, songs, instrument making as well as environmental protection in a variety of settings, from classrooms (k-12), Museums, cultural centers, tribal gatherings, as well as out of my own school and wellness center. In 2017, I released my first book, Pomo Cradle Baskets: An Introduction. I was a featured artist on the PBS program Craft in America and worked with the LA school district to create a native art education component for their curriculum. I travel the globe teaching and sharing Art and Native Culture, but being close to home and sharing with the local community is where my heart lies.”

Vaugh Pena is an enrolled member of the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians with descendants from Navajo. He has been working in Information Technology for the Pinoleville Pomo Nation for the past three years, supporting the community’s technology needs and helping improve digital access and cybersecurity awareness. He is also passionate about learning and teaching Native American cultural activities, traditional hand dancing, and hand game playing, helping to keep traditional practices alive, and sharing them with others. 

Jacqueline Sanchez gave herself a quick introduction, saying, “My name is Jacqueline Sanchez, I am a member of the Susanville Indian Rancheria. I am an active beader and artist. I am Paiute and Shoshone. I graduated from UC Berkeley in 2005 with degrees in Native American studies and ethnic studies. I am currently working on my Masters in History with an emphasis in Education from Grand Canyon University. I have volunteered in Youth Sports since 2007 and currently work with youth career counseling. I volunteer now as an assistant coach at the Ukiah High School for the girls’ basketball program. I was an assistant and head coach at Mendocino College for 10 years before stepping down. I want to give back to the community and lead by example.” 

Monique Sonoquie is a cultural educator from California with 30 years of experience in local food and art. She will be sharing what local plants are used to make tea, giving taste tests and sharing local foods.   

Theo Whitehurst is a Wailaki/Cherokee and is an enrolled member of the Round Valley Indian Tribes. Theo has been teaching workshops in schools and community events for over 10 years and works to promote sustainability, traditional ways, and respect for the land.

Additionally, Buffie McQuillen will share about local Native American history, and Nicole and Barbara Graumann will speak on acorn processing and traditional foods. 

Happy Native American Heritage Month, and see you on Wednesday!