lambchops's Full Review: Sweet Oblivion by Screaming Trees
Let's return to the year 1992. Grunge was king on the radio and you weren't anybody unless you owned at least one flannel shirt (mine was red). The cool bands were from Seattle and tended to lean toward the brooding, angry music as characterized by the genre. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains, and Soundgarden sat at the top of the grunge food chain while other equally talented yet less appealing bands like Screaming Trees were left in the dust.
Screaming Trees was a Seattle grunge band. Their roots were actually 90 miles away in a small town in Washington, but their music was grungy enough to qualify them for the title of Seattle Grunge. Anyway. They were formed in the mid 1980's with the help of Mark Lanegan (vocals), Van Conner (bass) and Gary Lee Conner (guitar). The band eventually picked up Barrett Martin (drums) to complete the lineup. The band struggled for fame and popularity on SST Records where they released three albums between the years 1987 and 1988. These albums, Even If and Especially When, Other Worlds, and Invisible Lantern found limited success in the fading indie scene. It was only after the release of their 1989 album Buzz Factory that their contract with SST expired and the band signed with Epic Records.
In the meantime, Lanegan and the Conner brothers all participated in side projects. Most notable among these was Lanegan's solo effort that also featured Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic. Screaming Trees rejoined and released Uncle Anesthesia as produced by Chris Cornell of Soundgarden fame. Of course, during this time grunge was beginning to go mainstream and Nirvana was the leader of the pack. Despite their close ties to the scene, the band wasn't as easily able to capitalize on the trend. They released the most popular album of their careers in 1992...Sweet Oblivion. The album spawned a MTV and radio hit along with "Nearly Lost You". The song was also featured in the perfect slaker, grunge movie Singles. The band only released one more album after calling it quits officially in 2000.
"Nearly Lost You" is one of the classic tunes of the grunge era. It does rank with "Jeremy" from Pearl Jam, "Teen Spirit from Nirvana, and "Man in the Box" from Alice in Chains among others. The thing about this track that stands out among the sea of Seattle look alikes is definitely Lanegan's vocals. He doesn't have a gravely voice or a forced voice. His words and his sound seem to come with ease. The sound is somewhere between a heavy Spin Doctors and a really jammin' Black Crowes. That comparison aside, this song has a very infectious chorus. It's not nearly as seemingly unhappy as the typical grunge band. As you can tell, I enjoy this song. It seems to always make itself on to any grunge compilation I assemble.
A folky sing along, "Dollar Bill" is also a very good track. It's got great instrumentation with the acoustic guitar, soft drums, and tamborine. Lanegan's voice is at it's best in this slow rock tune. That's also what makes this song special. It's real roots rock. There's nothing at all wrong with a good old fashioned rock tune. I also want to mention "More Or Less". This track very much resembles a grungier Pink Floyd. The musical arrangement is rather complicated. The tune is a mid-tempo rocker with electric guitars and a great drum beat. And, if you've read many of my reviews you'd realize that I have a deep and strong love for any good guitars.
"Winter Song" is also one of the best on the album. It actually is much more of a grunge song than some of the others. The band never really fits the mold as provided by other Seattle rockers, though. This is what their downfall was. If the music had been released in 1995 or 1996, I think the band would have found a much more receptive audience. This song is another mid-tempo rocker with a blues guitar and Lanegan's luscious voice.
The final song I'd like to speak about in depth is the folky, bluesy, rock 'n rolling "No One Knows". I personally enjoy the song quite a bit. It unfortunately sits at the 10th place on the album, and some people may get bored of the band before they get that far. This is another slowish song with great voices and a great sound. It's a must listen. But alas, nobody knows much at all about Screaming Trees. They will never be known for having been a great band. People don't recognize the band name, yet they released a really great single. They will forever be known as one-hit-wonders. I hate putting a truly good, strong band into that category, but that's where they fit so neatly.
Other tracks on the album are as follows: "Shadow of the Season," "Butterfly," "For Celebrations Past," "The Secret Kind," "Troubled Times," and "Julie's Paradise." If you like rock music and music from the early 1990's like the aforementioned grunge gods and other more rootsy rockers, then get this album. It may not be for everybody. I also warn that the grunge sound can get old. Sometimes I find that my mind was wandering while listening to the album.
The Screaming Trees really do deserve better. They should have become popular. I guess Lanegan just wasn't as photogenic as Kurt Cobain or Eddie Vedder. That's really the only conclusion I can come to as to why they never hit it big. I can only award the band 3.5/5 stars. Darned Epinions forces me to give them 4 stars. They aren't just an average 3 star band, they are a bit better.
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