Screaming Trees

Screaming Trees was a musical group considered part of the grunge music movement of the early 1990s. Founded in Ellensburg, Washington in 1985, their sound was a mixture of arty '60s

Screaming Trees was a musical group considered part of the grunge music movement of the early 1990s. Founded in Ellensburg, Washington in 1985, their sound was a mixture of arty '60s psychedelia and west-coast punk rock. Though critically well regarded, they never achieved the superstardom of other grunge acts such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains or Pearl Jam. They disbanded after touring for their last record, Dust, released in 1996.

Brothers Van Conner and Gary Lee Conner formed Screaming Trees with Mark Lanegan in 1985. Lanegan and the Conners grew up in Ellensburg, WA, a small college-town some 90 miles from Seattle. The trio believed themselves to be the only people in their high school who listened to punk, garage rock, and independent music, so they gravitated toward each other. After falling out with the Conners before either completed school, Lanegan contacted Van Conner several years later. By that point, Van had a band with a singer named Mark Pickerel; the pair had recently kicked Lee Conner out of the band, so they invited Lanegan to sit in on drums. Eventually, Lee re-joined the group and they settled on a lineup that featured Lee on guitar, Van on bass, Lanegan on vocals, and Pickerel on drums.