Adopting the moniker in his teens as a play on his initials and the name King Tut, Thomas wouldn't begin playing as Tuff until 2006, when he self-released an album via CD-R between playing with freaky folk revivalists Feathers and J. Mascis' stoner metal band Witch. His full-length debut, Was Dead, arrived in October 2008 for the Colonel label, introducing his anthemic lo-fi sonics to the masses. Touring with Hunx & His Punx and Witch, and releasing an album with his off-kilter power pop band Happy Birthday, put the Tuff project on the back burner until 2011, when a split single with Hex Dispensers arrived. A year later, he teased his follow-up album with the Wild Desire single for Suicide Squeeze before offering the full monty, simply called King Tuff, which made the jump to the revered Sub Pop label and found Tuff expanding the musical palette to show his yen for retro-pop melodies. He returned in 2014 with third album Black Moon Spell, a fuzzy eruption of glam rock and funky garage pop produced by the Go's Bobby Harlow. ~ Chrysta Cherrie