 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Skin Yard" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(April 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Skin Yard | |
|---|---|
 Publicity photo 1988 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Seattle,Washington, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1985–1992 |
| Labels | |
| Past members | Ben McMillan Jack Endino Daniel House Matt Cameron Steve Wied Jason Finn Greg Gilmore Scott McCullum Barrett Martin Pat Pedersen |
| Website | skin-yard |
Skin Yard was an Americangrunge band fromSeattle, Washington, that was active from 1985 to 1992.[1] The group never gained a mainstream audience but were an influence on several of their grunge contemporaries, includingSoundgarden,Screaming Trees, andGreen River.
The band was formed in January 1985 byDaniel House andJack Endino, who were subsequently joined by Ben McMillan andMatt Cameron. Skin Yard played its first official concert on June 7, 1985, opening for theU-Men.[2] A few months later, Skin Yard contributed two songs to the now-renownedDeep Six compilation. In addition to featuring the first commercial recordings of Malfunkshun, Melvins, Soundgarden, and Skin Yard, this album was the first to showcase the early grunge sound. In 1987, Skin Yard released theirself-titled debut album and their firstsingle, "Gelatin Babies".
Shortly after these releases, drummer Matt Cameron left the band to join Soundgarden, after which the band went through a series of drummers. He was initially replaced by Steve Wied, followed byGreg Gilmore; however, both drummers lasted only two shows. In the fall, Jason Finn joined but left after eight months for personal reasons. Scott McCullum filled the vacancy in May 1987 and he remained for two years, during which time the band recorded and released their second album,Hallowed Ground (1988). However, McCullum left and the band took a fourteen-month hiatus after a U.S. tour quoted as being "the tour from hell".
Skin Yard returned in 1990 with their third album,Fist Sized Chunks, and their final drummer,Barrett Martin. In 1991, as grunge was breaking into the mainstream, the band released their fourth album,1000 Smiling Knuckles. That same year, original bassist Daniel House left the band to spend more time with his family. He was replaced by Pat Pedersen, who stayed with the band for the recording of their final album,Inside the Eye, which featured the single "Undertow". After the recording was completed, Skin Yard decided to disband, and the album was released shortly after.
Prior to the breakup, Ben McMillan and Scott McCullum had started the bandGruntruck as a side-project and continued to perform with the band after Skin Yard's demise. By the time Gruntruck disbanded, they had released two albums and one EP. Ben McMillan died fromdiabetes in 2008 at the age of 46.
Pat Pedersen and Barrett Martin worked with Jack Endino on his solo albumEndino's Earthworm. Endino also released two other solo albums,Angle of Attack andPermanent Fatal Error. Endino has largely switched from working as a performer to working as a music producer. He produced several albums by the grunge bands Soundgarden (a band including original Skin Yard drummer Matt Cameron) andMudhoney; more recently[when?] he has produced albums by artists such asHot Hot Heat andZEKE.
Daniel House, as owner and president ofC/Z Records, continued to release records until 2001 when he released the Skin Yard rarities album,Start at the Top.
Barrett Martin joined Screaming Trees and drummed on their albumsSweet Oblivion andDust. Screaming Trees went on hiatus and finally broke up in 2000. Martin has also toured withR.E.M. During the late 1990s, Martin formed the grungesupergroupMad Season withAlice in Chains singerLayne Staley,Pearl Jam lead guitaristMike McCready, and bassistJohn Baker Saunders. Mad Season released one album before breaking up in 1999.
Jason Finn, who was replaced by McCullum in Skin Yard, went on to drum for the bandLove Battery until 1995 and the bandThe Presidents of the United States of America until their breakup in 1998.
In 2017,Metal Injection ranked Skin Yard at number 8 on their list of "10 Heaviest Grunge Bands".[3]
Original lineup
Later members
| Title | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Skin Yard | 1987 | C/Z Records |
| Hallowed Ground | 1988 | Toxic Shock Records |
| Fist Sized Chunks | 1990 | Cruz Records |
| 1000 Smiling Knuckles | 1991 | Cruz Records |
| Inside the Eye | 1993 | Cruz Records |
| Start at the Top | 2001 | C/Z Records |
| Year | Title | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | "Bleed" | Skin Yard | C/Z Records |
| 1988 | "Stranger" | Hallowed Ground | Toxic Shock Records |
| 1989 | "Start at the Top" | Start at the Top | Sub Pop |
| 1991 | "1000 Smiling Knuckles" | 1000 Smiling Knuckles | Cruz Records |
| 1991 | "Psychoriflepowerhypnotized" | 1000 Smiling Knuckles | Rave Records |
| 1993 | "Undertow" | Inside the Eye | Cruz Records |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
