Guru Not Grunge

The Screaming Trees - Iron Guru (Remixes)

I've previously ripped most of Sheffield's Screaming Trees vinyl back catelogue but overlooked this 12" remix set. Compared to Tangiers and Asylum, this industrial dance track is likely their weakest output, but as we are archiving their discography, it deserves to be heard. 

Ripped from a 12" vinyl single released on Native Records (12NTV 35) in 1988 to high quality lossless FLAC audio.

A. Iron Guru (The Funky God Mix)
B. Iron Guru (The Mooney 72 Mix)

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Screaming Trees - Beaten By The Ugly Stick

Screaming Trees - Asylum

Screaming Trees - A Fracture In Time

Screaming Trees - Tangiers

Success - World Crash

Success - World Crash

And here is that difficult second album. Alan Fish resumed production duties from Singleton and the band adopted a more electronic dance sound. The bass level was turned down considerably and the samples are much less controvertial.

The album is saved by the Tangiers single and heavier tracks such as Burning By Dergrees and Outside. The rest is fairly standard and quite meek electropop which does not suit Swancott's limited vocal style.

Co-conspirators such as Meat Beat Manifesto had moved into the territory vacated by Screaming Trees, and the reincarnation into Success was a failure. I'm not going to place a complete downer on this album because the band were trying to find a new audience in the difficult late 80's when alternative music began to lose identity & direction as major labels were on the hunt for indie acts to transform into popstars.

World Crash : ripped from a 12" vinyl album released on Native Records (NTVLP 39) in 1989
A1. Tangiers
A2. Hit The Floor
A3. Burning By Degrees
A4. Little Man
A5. World Crash
B1. Dynamic
B2. Outside
B3. Shock Of Change
B4. Reverse Polarity
B5. Heavenly Bodies

Re:Upped

Screaming Trees - Tangiers

I'm not too sure which came out first, this or New Order's Touched By The Hand Of God but the two records are remarkably similar. Screaming Trees had stopped sampling by the time they recorded Tangiers, perhaps somebody from a major label legal department had whispered in their ear. This is a great single with a driving newbeat sound and a more commercial edge with catchy hooklines and toned down vocals.

This was to be the band's final release as Screaming Trees, as they had renamed themselves as Success for the subsequent (and difficult) second album.

Tangiers : ripped from a 12" vinyl single released on Native Records (12NTV 34) in 1988

A1. Tangiers

A2. Fade Out

B1. MbAaIsNsLlIiNnEe

Re:Upped

Screaming Trees - A Fracture In Time

A Fracture In Time, the band's debut LP, was to follow in the same vein with indie funk dance pieces interlaced with pompous orchestral strings, pop samples, film soundtracks, throbbing bass lines, a grand piano and a horn section. Vocalist Mark Swancott screams in anarchy over the whole proceedings in true Lydon style. Even on the slower, softer Balance, he sings of his pain and agony over subtle strings interlaced with timely James Bond soundtrack sampled horns and harps.

Stephen Singleton (former ABC sax playing fringe) continues production duties and Alan Fish plays the part of master sampler. The follow-up single to Asylum, Iron Guru is also featured on the album but titled as Gurued Up. There are a few skips on the weakest track, Coliseum but no matter how many times I clean up the vinyl and re-record the track, I cannot remove them. A ripper's best friend, Cool Edit Pro has helped tidy that track up to make it listenable.

A truly remarkable album which makes for great listening from beginning to end. If you haven't heard of Sheffield's Screaming Trees, here is their finest moment in full lossless vinyl glory.

A Fracture In Time : ripped from a 12" vinyl album released on Native Records (NTVLP 29) in 1987
A1. Fractured Time 1
A2. Asylum
A3. Understand
A4. Balance
A5. Coliseum
B1. Gurued Up
B2. Fractured Time 2
B3. The Big Hitter
B4. M1L3S
B5. Don't Be Afraid
B6. Fractured Time 3

Re:Upped

Screaming Trees - Asylum

Very likely one of the finest 12" singles ever to come out of Sheffield. Enginereed and mixed by Hula's Alan Fish, recorded by Screaming Trees and their buddies Workforce at Vibrasound and produced by former ABC fringe (!) Stephen Singleton.

This was released a few months after The JAMMs launched 1987 on an unsuspecting world, the new craze for well placed subtle sampling of commercial artistic properties is duly used and abused on an indie-dance-funk single for the first time. Madonna meets William Burroughs and Grandmaster Flash, Janet Jackson does Cameo, the Beastie Boys and all points between. Clearly Native Records never sought legal clearance on what Screaming Trees were doing. Thankfully, for the label's sake, the single never crossed over into the mainstream.

Asylum : ripped from a 12" vinyl single released on Native Records (12NTV 24) in 1987
A1. (Beyond) Asylum
B1. Take Them To The Tree
B2. Laughter And Lamentation

Re:Upped

Screaming Trees - Beaten By The Ugly Stick

Another great label of this era were Rotherham's Native Records, and the best band on the label were Sheffield's Screaming Trees. This lot turned out more of the hard industrial funk we expect from the Steel City and kept a close affiliation with the city's other hardcore act Hula.

Beaten By The Ugly Stick was their second EP on the label with two versions of Build On Ice and the stunning Damage Report. Alan Fish's bass heavy production will make your floor shake and your ears bleed. The band were to slightly soften/mellow their sound (though not by much) on subsequent releases.

Regular readers will be pleased to note that Sheffield's Screaming Trees are in no way connected to the American "rock band" of the same name.

Beaten By The Ugly Stick : ripped from a 12" EP released on Native Records (12NTV 10) in 1986
A1. Build On Ice
B1. Build On Sand
B2. Damage Report

Re:Upped