Phoenix rocker Mike Skullbuster knew he was a poet all along

I love those drawings that depict some clever person’s idea of a human brain, where the ol’ noggin is divided up into the real things we think people think and obsess about. You probably know the ones, I’m guessing, where a stereotypical guy’s brain would be divided into sections with titles like “Sportsball,” “beer” and “boobs.” Maybe a tiny little section with “work” and “cleaning,” too. 

Those make me laugh, and sometimes, when I’m out in public, I play a little game in my head where I check out the people around me and imagine what their brain sections might look like. 

I’ve known Michael “Mike Skullbuster” Roberts for a long time now. Full disclosure, we are friends, and I hope we always will be. I also know he is one highly entertaining, talented, and wise dude, too, and I want everyone to know him a bit better because he’s currently doing some really interesting work with words and music. 

And back around the turn of the century, when I met him at the infamous Mesa rock and roll bar, Hollywood Alley, when our bands first played together, I would never have thought in a million years that a significant section of his brain would bear the title, “Poet.”

He was fronting the excellent band, Smoky Mountain Skullbusters, and I was in a band that was often (and hopefully affectionately) known as “Pinky.” The Skullbusters were muscular, revved-up rock and roll with a stoner-punk influence that came through in all the best ways. They put out three full-length records between 2005 and 2009, all well worth listening to (and available on various streaming services). 

But the band wasn’t exactly known for their sensitive, page-turning lyrics, you might assume when the word “poet” is thrown around. 

“I keep my lyrics very limited. I mean, probably our most popular song in the Smoky Mountains Skullbusters was “Viva la Hell,” and there was one sentence in the whole song, and that’s just how we kinda did it,” says Roberts before adding, “I’ve always liked summing up a feeling in the fewest possible words without overpainting the picture.”

The musical legacy Roberts has created is undoubtedly enough to make him one of the more interesting people on the current scene, even if the fifty-something-year-old man he is today might be considered something of an elder statesman. Roberts was a frequent collaborator of the late Kevin Daly, for example, and considered Daly to be something more than just a mentor.

“(Daly) was the kind of guy that, if you spent five minutes with him, it was just a fucking write-off from there. You won if you got to spend time with him. It was that simple,” says Roberts of his longtime friend.

It was playing duet shows with Daly that started what eventually became Roberts’ current band, Leppard Skynnr. 

“(Daly) really supported me getting back into music (after a long, health-related absence) and those songs we played during some of our duet sets at places like Time Out Lounge turned into songs we made for Leppard Skynnr. We take a lot of pride in that, you know, that the last band Kevin (Daly) was in was with me, Chip (Hanna), and Roy (Valencia). They were the last songs he recorded, and we’re going to put them out soon. We do a song by Kevin to end every show we do,” says Roberts.

There is a genuine feeling of responsibility in how Roberts creates his art, and if you spend any time talking with him about how and why he does what he does, you can’t help but pick up on both his positive creative energy and his deeply rooted sense of doing the right thing. He’s been taking care of other people for a long time in a number of ways and with his poetry and music, he continues to share himself.

As a dad, respected athletic coach, and former educator, Roberts has always been a responsible and sensible dude, but a wisdom is growing within him, and he’s got a voice well worth giving more than a cursory listen.

“The older I get, the more I feel like unless something is making a difference, or I’m giving it everything I have, then I’m not really doing anything at all,” says Roberts. 

Over the last year or so, Roberts has been churning out some really compelling poetry books and recently released his seventh offering, “My Frontier is Back There.” All of Roberts’ work is available on his website, which also includes links to Leppard Skynnr’s upcoming shows. The books also include Roberts’ original paintings and drawings throughout. 

Roberts has been self-publishing his work for now and has no preconceived notions that it will bring him fame, fortune, or both. 

“I like to do this, and if you like to do something, you should do it — especially when you’re lucky enough to have the time, but nobody’s out there looking for the next hot poet. That’s just not the shit,” says Roberts with his customary deep and mischievous laugh. 

Roberts’ work is deeply personal, yet the majority of his poems are short blasts of feeling and thought, not unlike the old Skullbusters’ songs. He touches on the early parts of his life, moving from the Midwest to Apache Junction, and especially on being an adopted son to loving parents, whom he is richly reverent towards in his discussion and poems. 

About adoption, Roberts is planning a future book that he is writing with his mother about how it felt to be both adopted and the one who is doing the adopting.

“Everybody looks like their parents except you. People don’t realize how much that messes with a kid. I’m writing a book to help get some of that off my chest and help my mom get some of it off hers, too,” says Roberts. 

Whether it is music or poetry, though, or even prose, Roberts is committed to leaving his mark, whatever that might be. He’s also adamant that if you want to get out there and make something, you should do it. 

“Poetry, for example, doesn’t have to belong to the elite. It’s always been for working-class people, throughout their day. It’s a way to take a problem, even if it is heavy as hell, and just roll it the fuck away from you,” says Roberts. 

If that’s not poetry, I don’t know what is. 

Leppard Skynnr plays on Friday, January 30, 2026, at Time Out Lounge with Liar’s Handshake. Showtime is 9 p.m. Roberts will have copies of most of his poetry books available at the show.