Sewer Trout
Encyclopedia
Sewer Trout was an influential punk rock
band formed in Sacramento, California
. Their uptempo bass lines and fast-paced songs would serve as a basis and influence for many of the later California pop punk
bands of the 1990s. The band consisted of frontman Jim MacLean (vocals/bass
), his brother Hal MacLean (drums), and Kieth Lehtinan (guitar
), with Erik Benson joining as a second guitarist after meeting Hal at Sacramento State. Although Benson's progressive rock
influences eventually led to the band's break-up and re-joining as the Well Hung Monks.
scene and was first released on Maximum Rock & Roll's Turn it Around comp (1987). The same year saw their first record on Lookout!. A few more followed on Lookout!, Very Small, and their own label, One Shot Flop. (All of their stuff was comped on the From the Forgotten Memories.CD.)
What Sewer Trout brought to Sacramento punk was a complete dedication to the DIY ethic and an inspiration for others to form bands. Their sarcastic, humorous, jangly, poppy, almost-country punk combined with much beer fueled many a party and gave young punk rockers a model to emulate. Another important thing about Sewer Trout, is that they were friends with David Hayes, the brains behind the Lookout, Very Small, and Too Many record labels. Through his labels, Hayes was able to focus a lot of attention on the Sacramento punk scene, often filling his compilations with up to ten Sacramento bands.
On December 1, 2005 a message was posted on the bands Myspace
announcing that Jim MacLean had killed himself; "MacLean took his own life Monday or Tuesday after the Thanksgiving weekend. Jim may be gone, but his music will live forever."
Turn It Around comp 2EP (12", Very Small #510. David Hayes says "it was a Gilman benefit paid
for by MRR, but I disorganized it...", 1987)
Songs About Drinking EP (Lookout!, 1987)
We've Got Your Shorts comp EP (1987)
LETHAL NOISE Volume 2 comp tape (Very Small #2, 1987)
Sewer Trout for President EP (One Shot Flop, 1988)
The Thing That Ate Floyd
comp LP - Vagina Envy - (Lookout!, 1988)
Flawless 10" ep (Very Small, 1989)
Alone in this World comp tape (Bat Guano, 1989)
Very Small World comp LP (Very Small, 1991)
Four Two Pudding - Holiday In Romania - CD (Very Small, 1991)
From the Forgotten memories of Punks Failed Hopes and Dreams Loom...CD (SPA
, 1998)
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band formed in Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
. Their uptempo bass lines and fast-paced songs would serve as a basis and influence for many of the later California pop punk
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
bands of the 1990s. The band consisted of frontman Jim MacLean (vocals/bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), his brother Hal MacLean (drums), and Kieth Lehtinan (guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), with Erik Benson joining as a second guitarist after meeting Hal at Sacramento State. Although Benson's progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
influences eventually led to the band's break-up and re-joining as the Well Hung Monks.
History
Formed in Concord in 1985, Sewer Trout moved to Sacramento with the MacLean brothers and Kieth Lehtinen. Sewer Trout were a fixture of the early 924 Gilman Street924 Gilman Street
924 Gilman Street is an all-ages, not for profit, collectively organized music club usually referred to by its fans simply as "The Gilman." It is located in the West Berkeley area of Berkeley, California about a mile and a half west of the North Berkeley BART station and a quarter-mile west of San...
scene and was first released on Maximum Rock & Roll's Turn it Around comp (1987). The same year saw their first record on Lookout!. A few more followed on Lookout!, Very Small, and their own label, One Shot Flop. (All of their stuff was comped on the From the Forgotten Memories.CD.)
What Sewer Trout brought to Sacramento punk was a complete dedication to the DIY ethic and an inspiration for others to form bands. Their sarcastic, humorous, jangly, poppy, almost-country punk combined with much beer fueled many a party and gave young punk rockers a model to emulate. Another important thing about Sewer Trout, is that they were friends with David Hayes, the brains behind the Lookout, Very Small, and Too Many record labels. Through his labels, Hayes was able to focus a lot of attention on the Sacramento punk scene, often filling his compilations with up to ten Sacramento bands.
On December 1, 2005 a message was posted on the bands Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
announcing that Jim MacLean had killed himself; "MacLean took his own life Monday or Tuesday after the Thanksgiving weekend. Jim may be gone, but his music will live forever."
LPs and EPs
From the Bowels of Suburbia Emerge... tape (ST, 1985)Turn It Around comp 2EP (12", Very Small #510. David Hayes says "it was a Gilman benefit paid
for by MRR, but I disorganized it...", 1987)
Songs About Drinking EP (Lookout!, 1987)
We've Got Your Shorts comp EP (1987)
LETHAL NOISE Volume 2 comp tape (Very Small #2, 1987)
Sewer Trout for President EP (One Shot Flop, 1988)
The Thing That Ate Floyd
The Thing That Ate Floyd
The Thing That Ate Floyd is a compilation album released in December 1988 by Lookout! Records. The album is a compilation of bands from the 924 Gilman St. punk rock scene. It includes bands such as Operation Ivy, No Use for a Name, Crimpshrine and The Mr...
comp LP - Vagina Envy - (Lookout!, 1988)
Flawless 10" ep (Very Small, 1989)
Alone in this World comp tape (Bat Guano, 1989)
Very Small World comp LP (Very Small, 1991)
Four Two Pudding - Holiday In Romania - CD (Very Small, 1991)
From the Forgotten memories of Punks Failed Hopes and Dreams Loom...CD (SPA
SPA
SPA can refer to:* SPA , a 1990s British band-As an abbreviation:* Saddle point approximation, a term used in quantum field theory* Sales and Purchase Agreement, a legal term for selling a company...
, 1998)