Scream (band)
Encyclopedia
Scream is a hardcore punk
band from Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia
active from 1981
to 1990
. As of 2009, the band has reunited to play several shows.
in 1981 by singer Peter Stahl
, his brother Franz Stahl
on guitar, bassist Skeeter Thompson
and drummer Kent Stax
. They are considered one of the benchmark bands in the history of the Washington, D.C. hardcore music movement. Along with bands such as Minor Threat
and Government Issue
, Scream ultimately merged the attributes of the movement, which were blinding speed, heavy political and social connotations in the lyrics, unpretentiousness of attitude, and shunning of commercialism. Their music is faithful to the roots of rock, but spun itself into other genres by employing sounds that predate the raunchiness of grunge, while saluting reggae and speed metal. Scream hated the classification of bands into certain types and considered what they played as simply 'music.' Recording their music in the basement of the now legendary Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, Scream became the first band on the Dischord
label to release a whole album, Still Screaming, as opposed to singles or 12 inch EPs
. Like the hardcore band Bad Brains
, they could play clearly at breakneck speed, but also played mid-tempo songs like "American Justice" and "Hygiene," which were metal-tinged reggae
.
For their second album Scream added another guitarist to their line-up, Robert Lee "Harley" Davidson, to thicken up the sound in the studio and in their live performances. In turn this eventually led to a powerful dual-lead guitar style, with complex guitar tracking, a more powerful live sound and an over-all crunchier sound for their third album. For a few compilation efforts and some live shows they added a keyboard player, Bobby Madden, who was a colleague of Davidson's from the same metal scene.
After the third album Banging the Drum
, Kent Stax left the band for personal reasons and was replaced by local drummer Dave Grohl
, who then played on Scream's 4th album No More Censorship
. The band then toured Europe; with their May 4, 1990 show in Alzey
, Germany
being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.10
. Scream then recorded their fifth and final studio album Fumble
, (which was much later released in 1993 on Dischord Records) and then called it quits in late 1990. Pete and Franz moved to North Hollywood and started rock band Wool
, while Grohl joined Grunge
band Nirvana
. In 1997, Franz Stahl joined Dave Grohl's newly formed group, the commercially successful Foo Fighters
, for a two year stint. During this time Pete Stahl worked as a road manager for both the Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age
, while continuing to record albums with several bands, including the Earthlings?
and Goatsnake
. Skeeter Thompson remained in the D.C. area and continued to work in bands, as did Kent Stax with the Skinhead
/Oi!
-tinged bands: the Suspects, United 121, Spitfires United, and Alleged Bricks. Stax has also committed himself to a family life. Davidson continued in the band Angelstorm, (in Huntsville, Alabama), from 1993–1995 and created the new bands Orangahead, Festival of Fools, (with Madden in 1998) and two different bands both named God Is Dead, (one in D.C. and one in Huntsville, Alabama) from 2002-2005.
The original line-up of the band played a reunion show on December 20, 2009 at the Black Cat nightclub in Washington, D.C. and have been playing several shows in 2010.
On February 7, 2011, the band supported Foo Fighters
on a special show at the Roxy Theatre
in Los Angeles
, when the Foo Fighters showcased their new album Wasting Light
for the first time from beginning to end.
Former members
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band from Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia
Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia
Bailey's Crossroads is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 23,643 at the 2010 census...
active from 1981
1981 in music
See also:* Timeline of musical eventsThis is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1981.-January–April:*January 10 – A revival of the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Pirates of Penzance opens at Broadway's Uris Theatre, starring Linda Ronstadt and Rex Smith.*January 24 –...
to 1990
1990 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...
. As of 2009, the band has reunited to play several shows.
Biography
Scream was formed in Northern VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in 1981 by singer Peter Stahl
Peter Stahl
Peter Marc Stahl is an American vocalist known for fronting the seminal Washington, D.C. punk/hardcore band Scream with brother Franz Stahl. At one stage, Scream also featured Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums....
, his brother Franz Stahl
Franz Stahl
Franz Stahl was the guitarist of the Washington, DC hardcore punk band Scream. Stahl is the brother of Scream lead singer Peter Stahl. Stahl was also briefly a member of Foo Fighters from 1997 to 1999, replacing the band's original guitarist Pat Smear...
on guitar, bassist Skeeter Thompson
Skeeter Thompson
Skeeter Thompson is best known for being the bassist of the DC hardcore band Scream.After their break up, Thompson ended up in Little Rock, Arkansas and played in several of the local bands there including local old school punk band Springgun....
and drummer Kent Stax
Kent Stax
Kent Stax, is the original and current drummer and an original member of the DC hardcore punk band Scream, considered with perhaps the exception of Minor Threat , one of the most influential and successful hardcore punk band to emerge from the music movement, which thrived during the 1980s...
. They are considered one of the benchmark bands in the history of the Washington, D.C. hardcore music movement. Along with bands such as Minor Threat
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. The band was relatively short-lived, but had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene, both stylistically and in establishing a "do it yourself" ethic for music distribution and...
and Government Issue
Government Issue
Government Issue was an American hardcore punk band from Washington, D.C. active from 1980 to 1989. The band experienced many changes in membership during its nine-year existence, with singer John Stabb as the only consistent member in an ever-fluctuating lineup that at various times included...
, Scream ultimately merged the attributes of the movement, which were blinding speed, heavy political and social connotations in the lyrics, unpretentiousness of attitude, and shunning of commercialism. Their music is faithful to the roots of rock, but spun itself into other genres by employing sounds that predate the raunchiness of grunge, while saluting reggae and speed metal. Scream hated the classification of bands into certain types and considered what they played as simply 'music.' Recording their music in the basement of the now legendary Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, Scream became the first band on the Dischord
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles...
label to release a whole album, Still Screaming, as opposed to singles or 12 inch EPs
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
. Like the hardcore band Bad Brains
Bad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
, they could play clearly at breakneck speed, but also played mid-tempo songs like "American Justice" and "Hygiene," which were metal-tinged reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
.
For their second album Scream added another guitarist to their line-up, Robert Lee "Harley" Davidson, to thicken up the sound in the studio and in their live performances. In turn this eventually led to a powerful dual-lead guitar style, with complex guitar tracking, a more powerful live sound and an over-all crunchier sound for their third album. For a few compilation efforts and some live shows they added a keyboard player, Bobby Madden, who was a colleague of Davidson's from the same metal scene.
After the third album Banging the Drum
Banging the Drum
Banging the Drum is an album by Scream released in 1986 through Dischord Records.-Track listing:#"Banging the Drum" – 0:55#"People People" – 5:15#"I.C.Y.U.O.D." – 4:38#"Nod to the East" – 0:59#"Mineshaft Burning" – 3:33#"The Rhythm Beating" – 4:20...
, Kent Stax left the band for personal reasons and was replaced by local drummer Dave Grohl
Dave Grohl
David Eric "Dave" Grohl is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter for Foo Fighters; the former drummer for Nirvana and Scream; and the current drummer for Them Crooked Vultures...
, who then played on Scream's 4th album No More Censorship
No More Censorship
No More Censorship is an album by Scream released in 1988 through RAS Records . It is the first Scream album to feature Dave Grohl on drums, who went to be a part of many successful bands, most notably Nirvana and Them Crooked Vultures as a drummer, and Foo Fighters as guitarist and vocalist.No...
. The band then toured Europe; with their May 4, 1990 show in Alzey
Alzey
Alzey is a Verband-free town – one belonging to no Verbandsgemeinde – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the fourth-largest town in Rhenish Hesse, after Mainz, Worms, and Bingen....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.10
Your Choice Live Series Vol.10
Your Choice Live Series Vol.10 is a live album by Scream released in 1990 through Your Choice Records. It was recorded live at the Oberhaus in Alzey, Germany on May 4, 1990.The band also performed the song "A No Money Down" that was left off this album and appears on the It's Your Choice...
. Scream then recorded their fifth and final studio album Fumble
Fumble (album)
Fumble is the fifth and final studio album by American hardcore band Scream, recorded December 1989 at Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, and released in July 1993 through Dischord...
, (which was much later released in 1993 on Dischord Records) and then called it quits in late 1990. Pete and Franz moved to North Hollywood and started rock band Wool
Wool (band)
Wool were a rock band from Washington, D.C. , specialising in a rough-hewn but melodic brand of punk-based hard rock from 1990-1996.-History:...
, while Grohl joined Grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
band Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
. In 1997, Franz Stahl joined Dave Grohl's newly formed group, the commercially successful Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
, for a two year stint. During this time Pete Stahl worked as a road manager for both the Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, United States, formed in 1997. The band's line-up has always included founding member Josh Homme , with the current line-up including longtime members Troy Van Leeuwen and Joey Castillo , alongside Michael Shuman and...
, while continuing to record albums with several bands, including the Earthlings?
Earthlings?
Earthlings? are a psychedelic rock band based in Joshua Tree, California. The band includes members from Queens of the Stone Age, Desert Sessions, Eagles of Death Metal, Kyuss, Masters of Reality, Goatsnake, The Twilight Singers, Gutter Twins, Yellow#5, Legal Weapon, Sea Hags, Modifiers, Orquesta...
and Goatsnake
Goatsnake
-Biography:Goatsnake was formed in 1996 after the disbanding of The Obsessed. After The Obsessed's disbanding, the rhythm section consisting of Guy Pinhas on bass and Greg Rogers on drums began jamming with guitarist Greg Anderson )))...
. Skeeter Thompson remained in the D.C. area and continued to work in bands, as did Kent Stax with the Skinhead
Skinhead
A skinhead is a member of a subculture that originated among working class youths in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, and then spread to other parts of the world. Named for their close-cropped or shaven heads, the first skinheads were greatly influenced by West Indian rude boys and British mods,...
/Oi!
Oi!
Oi! is a working class subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads and other working-class youths ....
-tinged bands: the Suspects, United 121, Spitfires United, and Alleged Bricks. Stax has also committed himself to a family life. Davidson continued in the band Angelstorm, (in Huntsville, Alabama), from 1993–1995 and created the new bands Orangahead, Festival of Fools, (with Madden in 1998) and two different bands both named God Is Dead, (one in D.C. and one in Huntsville, Alabama) from 2002-2005.
The original line-up of the band played a reunion show on December 20, 2009 at the Black Cat nightclub in Washington, D.C. and have been playing several shows in 2010.
On February 7, 2011, the band supported Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
on a special show at the Roxy Theatre
Roxy Theatre
The Roxy Theatre is located in the historic downtown section of Clarksville, Tennessee in the United States. Standing on a corner of the Public Square it offers live theater shows to the public offering a wide variety of selection in the spirit of literary theater...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, when the Foo Fighters showcased their new album Wasting Light
Wasting Light
Wasting Light is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band Foo Fighters, released April 12, 2011, on RCA Records. It was produced by Butch Vig and described by the band's lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl as their "heaviest album yet." The title is taken from the lyrics of the...
for the first time from beginning to end.
Band members
Current members- Peter StahlPeter StahlPeter Marc Stahl is an American vocalist known for fronting the seminal Washington, D.C. punk/hardcore band Scream with brother Franz Stahl. At one stage, Scream also featured Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums....
– lead vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present) - Franz StahlFranz StahlFranz Stahl was the guitarist of the Washington, DC hardcore punk band Scream. Stahl is the brother of Scream lead singer Peter Stahl. Stahl was also briefly a member of Foo Fighters from 1997 to 1999, replacing the band's original guitarist Pat Smear...
– guitar, backing vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present) - Skeeter ThompsonSkeeter ThompsonSkeeter Thompson is best known for being the bassist of the DC hardcore band Scream.After their break up, Thompson ended up in Little Rock, Arkansas and played in several of the local bands there including local old school punk band Springgun....
– bass, backing vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present) - Kent StaxKent StaxKent Stax, is the original and current drummer and an original member of the DC hardcore punk band Scream, considered with perhaps the exception of Minor Threat , one of the most influential and successful hardcore punk band to emerge from the music movement, which thrived during the 1980s...
– drums, percussion (1981–1986, 2009–present)
Former members
- Dave GrohlDave GrohlDavid Eric "Dave" Grohl is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter for Foo Fighters; the former drummer for Nirvana and Scream; and the current drummer for Them Crooked Vultures...
– drums, percussion (1986–1990) - Robert Lee Davidson – guitar, backing vocals (1984–1989)
Studio albums
- Still ScreamingStill ScreamingStill Screaming is an album by Scream released in 1983 through Dischord Records.-Track listing:#"Came Without Warning"#"Bedlam"#"Solidarity"#"Your Wars/Killer"#"Piece of Her Time"#"Human Behavior"#"Stand"#"Fight/American Justice"#"New Song"...
(1983) Dischord RecordsDischord RecordsDischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles... - This Side UpThis Side UpThis Side Up is the second album by Washington, D.C. band Scream, released in 1985 on the Dischord Records label.-Track listing:#"Bet You Never Thought"#"Things To Do Today"#"This Side Up"#"Gluesniff"#"Still Screaming"#"A No Money Down"...
(1985) Dischord Records - Banging the DrumBanging the DrumBanging the Drum is an album by Scream released in 1986 through Dischord Records.-Track listing:#"Banging the Drum" – 0:55#"People People" – 5:15#"I.C.Y.U.O.D." – 4:38#"Nod to the East" – 0:59#"Mineshaft Burning" – 3:33#"The Rhythm Beating" – 4:20...
(1987) Dischord Records - No More CensorshipNo More CensorshipNo More Censorship is an album by Scream released in 1988 through RAS Records . It is the first Scream album to feature Dave Grohl on drums, who went to be a part of many successful bands, most notably Nirvana and Them Crooked Vultures as a drummer, and Foo Fighters as guitarist and vocalist.No...
(1988) RAS RecordsRAS RecordsRAS Records, also known as Real Authentic Sound, is a reggae record label.-History:RAS Records was founded in 1979 by Doctor Dread. In his travels to Jamaica he created a network within the reggae artist community there. By the early to mid 1980s RAS had signed artists such as Black Uhuru, Inner... - FumbleFumble (album)Fumble is the fifth and final studio album by American hardcore band Scream, recorded December 1989 at Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, and released in July 1993 through Dischord...
(1993) Dischord Records
Live albums
- Live at Van Hall (1988) Konkurrel Records
- Your Choice Live Series Vol.10Your Choice Live Series Vol.10Your Choice Live Series Vol.10 is a live album by Scream released in 1990 through Your Choice Records. It was recorded live at the Oberhaus in Alzey, Germany on May 4, 1990.The band also performed the song "A No Money Down" that was left off this album and appears on the It's Your Choice...
(1990) Your Choice RecordsYour Choice RecordsYour Choice Records was a German independent record label founded in 1988 by producer Tobby Holzinger. The label specialized in independent punk music, including live releases of German and other international acts... - Live at the Black CatLive at the Black CatLive at the Black Cat is a live album by Scream released in 1998 through Torque Records. It was recorded live at The Black Cat in Washington, D.C. on December 28, 1996 at a Christmas reunion show...
(1998) Torque Records - Complete Control Recording SessionsComplete Control Recording Sessions (Scream EP)Complete Control Recording Sessions is a live EP by Scream. It was recorded at Dave Grohl's Studio 606 in February 2011. It is the second in SideOneDummy's series The Complete Control Sessions. It was released digitally and on vinyl on August 16, 2011...
(2011) SideOneDummy Records
Singles
- Walking by Myself/Choke Word (1986) Jungle Hop Records
- Mardi Gras/Land Torn Down (1990) DSI Records
Compilation appearances
- Bouncing Babies (1984) Fountain of Youth Records – "Ultra Violence/Screaming"
- Flipside Vinyl FanzineFlipside (fanzine)Flipside was a punk rock fanzine published in Los Angeles, California from 1977 to 2000.As one of the first and longest running US punk rock fanzines, this publication extensively chronicled the world of independent and underground music during this era. Known for its highly opinionated cast of...
(1984) Gasatanka/Enigma RecordsEnigma RecordsEnigma Records was a popular rock and alternative American record label in the 1980s. It was initially a division of Greenworld Distribution, an independent music importer/distributor, which it split-off from in 1985 to become its own company...
– "Fight" - Another Shot for Bracken (1986) Positive Force Records – "Green Eyed Lady"
- F.R. 5 (1986) Fetal Records – "Solidarity"
- Viva Umkhonto! (1987) MordamMordam RecordsMordam Records was a Sacramento, California record distribution company for independent record labels. It was originally founded in San Francisco in 1983 as an independent punk distribution company by Ruth Schwartz...
/Konkurrel Records – "Feel Like That" - State of the UnionState of the Union (album)State of the Union: D.C. Benefit Compilation is a compilation album, compiled by Mark Andersen, that was released on Dischord Records. It catalogued the DC sounds of the late 80's, and was created for the American Civil Liberties Union and Community for Creative Non-Violence. All proceeds from...
(1989) Dischord Records – "Ameri-dub" - It's Your ChoiceIt's Your Choice (album)It's Your Choice is a compilation album of unreleased live performances, mostly in the punk genre. It was released in 1991 through Your Choice Records.-Track listing:#So Much Hate - "Bankrobber"...
(1991) Your Choice Records – "A No Money Down" (live) - 20 Years of Dischord (2003) Dischord Records – "Fight/American Justice" and "Search for Employment"