ROCK IN DETROIT’S
JULY/AUGUST 2025
BAND OF THE MONTH:
CARBON DECOY
Carbon Decoy is one of the hottest rising bands in the Detroit rock scene. Combining doom and garage, their music is both intense and hypnotic. Their album release show is at the Old Miami July 17. Rock in Detroit recently spoke to Carbon Decoy’s guitarist, Earl Mudd.
ROCK IN DETROIT: So what’s a Carbon Decoy? It sounds like a cool band name, but is there a story behind it? If you’re the decoy, who or what is the real target?
CARBON DECOY: Carbon Decoy doesn’t have a deep meaning to it at all really, it was something Casey and Jared came up with that sounded good and rolled with it.
ROCK IN DETROIT: How about a quick run through of the present line-up. Have there been any changes?
CARBON DECOY: The line up was just Casey and Jared on bass and drums when they formed in 2020 and I hopped on in the summer of ’21 on guitar.
ROCK IN DETROIT: How did you originally meet up?
CARBON DECOY: Casey and Jared and schoolmates from elementary on up. Casey and I have been playing in bands together for a decade, so when they needed guitar, they called me.
ROCK IN DETROIT: What bands had you and Casey been in? Can you name a few?
CARBON DECOY: Casey and I had bands that were kicking the can around Jackson and surrounding areas playing shows together in backyards, dives and any greasy spot in between. I joined his band “Unknown Crowe” in late 2017. We recorded a full length album in 2020 and disbanded.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Does Carbon Decoy have a philosophy, musical, political or otherwise?
CARBON DECOY: I can speak for all the guys when I say that our general musical philosophy is just being true to ourselves and the music while trying to have a little fun while we’re at it. We want people to feel welcomed and a part of the community when they come to a Carbon Decoy show. Everyone is owed that.
ROCK IN DETROIT: It’s all about community and building an inclusive scene. Buy how do you do that? You don’t seem like a “Everybody put your hands together” band.
CARBON DECOY: In a lot of ways that are more intricate then others but it boils down to the golden rule. Treat others how you would like to be treated, full stop. Promoting safety and practicing kindness. Sharing bills and promoting others in a DIY way. Michigan has such a fruitful scene it’s unreal.
ROCK IN DETROIT: You have over 1800 followers on both Instagram and Facebook–that’s a pretty strong following for a local band. What’s your secret for building a fan base?
CARBON DECOY:That’s Jared 100%. He handles the social media hubs and we’re better off for it. He is a wiz at what he does. He’s Carbon Decoy’s secret weapon.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Describe the sound of Carbon Decoy in three words. (You are not allowed to use Intense, Heavy and Loud because those are my words for you.)
CARON DECOY: I would use the words lysergic, monotonous and fast.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Sabbath or Zeppelin?
CARBON DECOY: Sabbath for sure.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Black Sabbath must be one of the most influential bands ever. What secret did they reveal to the world?
CARBON DECOY:Absolutely and for good reason they’re the best. I’m stoked they were all able to get together one last time. I don’t know, I would say that loud amps save lives. I hear the Peavey guys say “Who needs tone when you can have volume?” Well, Tony had both!
ROCK IN DETROIT: What other bands would you say have influenced the sound of Carbon Decoy?
CARBON DECOY: The list is endless really. Were a conglomerate of a bunch of different music that we all listen to, but a few I could list are Melvins, All Them Witches and Osees. We’re also lucky enough to be inspired by bands we can call friends so that’s really cool.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Care to drop a few names?
CARBON DECOY: Absolutely! Just to name a few Cherry Drop, Glass Chimera, Ficus, Slumlord Radio, Mazinga, Caveman Bam Bam and Elroy, the Velvet Snakes, levitator, Burning Freedom the list can go on all of these bands are barn burners and continue to inspire me not only as a musician but a person as well.
ROCK IN DETROIT: What covers have you played and why did you choose them?
CARBON DECOY:As a band we’ve only played one cover and it was Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath and we’ve only done it once. We chose it because it’s a a great song, super dynamic and fun to play.
ROCK IN DETROIT: You have a record release coming up. Tell us about the record. Where/when was it recorded? What was the hardest and easiest thing about it? Do you have a favorite track?
CARBON DECOY: The record was recorded in The Tempermill studios in Ferndale last November. Erik our engineer there recorded, mixed and mastered the whole thing and he did an amazing job. He made us feel like we were right at home there. It was recorded over 4 days and I think the hardest part was just racing against the clock, we are a band of modest means, any studio time is expensive so we really just put our noses to the grindstone with the time we had. The easiest part for me was just the actual recording process, not to say it wasn’t difficult or challenging some times I just had so much fun doing it I didn’t care about the obstacles. My favorite track on the album is a song called “Castle East” because it’s very Sabbath inspired and the name is fun play off of the song monster mash. [Listen to “Castle East” below.]
ROCK IN DETROIT: What does the future hold for Carbon Decoy? What’s the biggest challenge rock bands face these days and what’s you’re strategy for meeting it?
CARBON DECOY: I’d like to say the future is bright for carbon decoy, we’ve had a bunch of fun getting to play out and put out records with our friends so if we can keep doing that, then really bright. I would say one of the biggest obstacles any band faces today is just distribution and funding for basic band expenses. It’s a real DIY scene now and we are all for that, but it sometimes comes out of pocket financially and emotionally. Consistency is the name of the game. Don’t be afraid to go bust in a far away city because it’s bound to happen more then a few times.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Anything else you want the world to know about Carbon Decoy?
CARBON DECOY: We’re just three friends who love art and are lucky enough to have an audience for ours. We’re super stoked to be out here doing what we’re doing.
ROCK IN DETROIT: Rock on!
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