Released in 1987, Skin Yard was among the earliest records from the Seattle grunge scene, and while the band regularly shared the stage with the other bands associated with that scene, they were, in their very early stages, a unique amalgam of the strange brew that was churning in Seattle then with another influence not typically associated with grunge: the more complex textures and elements of some of the artier bands of the time like King Crimson, Pink Floyd and Killing Joke. Skin Yard's first record stands alone as considerably tighter, more polished and cerebral than the bulk of the heavy music coming out of Seattle at that time. Anchored by the rhythm section of Matt Cameron (later to play in Soundgarden and Pearl Jam) and Daniel House (who had been in a previous band with Matt, a three-piece instrumental outfit called FEEdbACK), the band included up-and coming producer/guitarist Jack Endino and singer Ben McMillan. Skin Yard's early sound is almost impossible to compare to anything then or since. Between Cameron’s razor-sharp precision on the drums, Endino’s savage guitar psychedelia and McMillan’s Bowie-esque croon, Skin Yard quickly became one of the bigger-drawing live bands in Seattle. These recordings have been completely remastered from the original source material and are available digitally for the very first time.
1.
Skins in my Closet (Endino)
2. Reptile (Cameron)
3. Epitaph for Yesterday (House)
4. The Blind Leading the Blind (House)
5. Scratch (Endino)
6.Dear Deceased (House, Endino) 7. Stuck in a Plan (House) 8. Jabberwocky (Skin Yard) 9. Gelatin Babies
(House, Endino) 10. Bleed* (House)
11. Out of the Attic* (House,
Endino -- CD only bonus track) 12.. Skinstruction (Cameron, Endino-- CD only bonus track)
13. Red Tension (House, Endino -- CD only bonus track)
14. The Birds
(House -- CD only bonus track)
15. She Shook Me Cold (Bowie -- Recorded Live - CD only bonus
track)
All lyrics by McMillan
Those
who played
Other
Albums
Ben
McMillan: vocals, sax on 6.
Jack
Endino: guitar
and slide, fuzz-wah-slide bass on 11.
