photo by Michael Briggs
we’re #pleased to announce the long-awaited release of our friend MAUSOL3UM’s new EP, (get well soon). this is MAUSOL3UM’s first official music release, though they have been getting into shenanigans with the spiderweb crew contributing their unique style of music, visual art, & humor since 2023. (get well soon) was recorded at Civil Audio with Michael Briggs december 2025 with support from spiderweb salon’s songwriting scholarship. they are accompanied on these tracks by their talented friend maxby on bass.
find the EP and listen for free on MAUSOL3UM’s bandcamp! we hope you enjoy the sincere lyricism & dreamy melancholy of these queer anthems..and save the date to catch MAUSOL3UM live at SPEEDBUMP lil d at spiderweb HQ on may 23!
learn more about MAUSOL3UM and (get well soon) in this exclusive interview:
MAUSOL3UM! tell us a little bit about your journey with music.
I grew up constantly being exposed to music, with several instruments in my house and most of my family singing; music became an outlet. I remember being as young as seven wandering around my house, just singing what I felt because I didn't know where else to put it. Writing and singing has always felt like home. Instrumenting is something I more so had to work for to be happy with. This used to frustrate me but now I feel more accomplished when I manage to write something I would want to listen to.
can you give us a little background about your songs on this EP?
Torn is one of my oldest songs that I still play. I wrote everything but the very end bit when I was 17, I was moving back into my mom's place after living with my dad for a year, my relationship with my mom was hard and I was at a fork in the road of if I wanted to trust again or not. The end bit was added on in later years when I finally found the words for what I was feeling.
Problem Child was made from me being miserable, figuring out that the only way to “get better,” was by coming out, doing so, and not being supported by my SO and not being supported by the state i live in.
Two steps back is about hating yourself for being disabled and then realizing that your disability is not what you should hate, but instead how lack of accommodations and ableism is the default. Like, I have narcolepsy and a slew of other things going on, narcolepsy is gonna be hard regardless, but hating myself for that isn't gonna make it easier. There are people in power actively deciding to not make life for people with disabilities easier, in some cases people in power are stripping away disability protections. I am not the enemy.
how did you get involved with spiderweb salon and what has that experience been like?
I came to a pride open mike hosted by spiderweb. I was taken back with how welcoming the community was/is. So I kept coming to their events, and before I knew it spiderweb became a very important part of my community.
what were your anticipations for recording? How did you prepare?
Whenever I'm excited for something I try not to build it up in my mind as something specific. I feel like it helps me enjoy the moment more when you don't have any expectations to wrestle with. In terms of how I prepared, it was just a lot of practicing, recording myself, listening to the recordings, recognizing what I liked and didn't like and repeating that until I got one take I deemed good to listen to over again and to practice with.
what was your studio experience / process working with Micheal from Civil Audio?
Micheal was great, I feel like his energy was very calming which was a good thing since I was incredibly nervous. I have really bad imposter syndrome so having someone who makes a living off of music listening to me live was something I built up in my head, like if it wasn't good enough he would kick me out or something… But that obviously didn't happen, 10/10 person and ultimately a great experience. The process went by quicker than I expected. I didn't have the most clear vision on what I wanted the end product to sound like- im really thankful that he was open to my vagueness and made sure I was happy with everything. He also let me play around with his box of shaker instruments and omnichord.
who else is involved in these songs and recordings, and what was their role?
My friend Maxby is the bassist for a Denton local band, Patchworked. I asked him to hop on bass for me and gave him creative freedom with that. I just wanted the songs to sound fuller and knew he and Micheal had the ear to make it good.
who needs to hear these songs / who is your intended audience?
My intended audience is queer people, disabled people, and anyone who has mommy issues.
is there anything you would like to share about your creative process regarding these tracks?
I have a couple different processes i do. Sometimes it starts with noodling on my instrument until I find smth I like and then singing from the heart. Until I say something that really resonates, I write that down and build off of those lyrics and chords. I don't know what it is about writing this way but I tend to write songs in like a day and a half when I do it this way. Sometimes it starts just with lyrics, usually stemming from a phrase or hook I can't get out of my head, like with Problem Child, I had the hook stuck in my head for years until I finished the song. A fun fact is that all of my songs on the EP were originally written for ukulele.
what are your interests and passions outside of music?
I really like visual art, I went to school for it for a year and then dropped out, but I was an art kid growing up, so any time I need a last minute gift for someone I lean on that skill. I'm also a slut for budgeting, like I budget in excel, im planning on going back to school for accounting soon.
what or who are some of your influences as a musician/artist/writer?
Paris texas, spoon, and Zack fox are always in my rotation, but honestly I mess with a lot of different music, I swear I have a sea Shanti in one of my playlist.
what else do you hope to accomplish creatively within the next year?
I hope to just keep writing. I'm not sure about the time line but I definitely want to release more music. This process has been great and so validating that people actually believe in me enough to support me!