Dust: Expanded Edition

Rolling Stone (1/23/97, p.44) - Ranked #7 on Rolling Stone's list of the "Ten Best Albums" of 1996. Rolling Stone (7/11-25/96, p.86) - 4 Stars (out of 5) - "...Screaming Trees have finally made the album they've always had in them..." Spin (8/96, p.96) - 7 (out of 10) - "...the knack Lanegan shares with his late friend Kurt Cobain--for writing a tasty pop hook despite himself--shines throughout. Real '60s psychedelia rarely sounded this explosive..." Entertainment Weekly (7/12/96, p.58) - "...Mark Lanegan's fluent baritone lofts lyrics about thorns, halos, Jesus, prayer, the Gospel, love, and death--all above a powerful fire and brimstone of guitar chords, pounding drums, and an occasional gossamer sitar or organ. The result is spirited and spiritual..." - Rating: A Q (8/96, p.127) - 3 Stars (out of 5) - "...they continue to keep faith with sonic swirl and murk....the most successful moments tend to be when they ease up and give Mark Lanegan's languid voice room to manoeuvre..." Option (11-12/96, p.128) - "...it's the big ol' rock'n'roll masterbrew we always knew the Trees were capable of. The band can still scream-and kick and flail; the Conner brothers can still throttle the sweet bejesus out of their guitars; and Barrett Martin is still a drum-thwacker to reckon with..." Melody Maker (12/21-28/96, pp.66-67) - Ranked #13 on Melody Maker's list of 1996's `Albums Of The Year.' Melody Maker (7/6/96, p.43) - Recommended - "...It sounds like distilled thunder. It sounds as if the elements have been harnessed--for you, in service of your anomie--and fed through a mixing desk. It's a silken, baritone rumble, a cruise-controlled cyclone. Frankly, it's a marvel..." Village Voice (2/25/97) - Ranked #38 in the Village Voice's 1996 Pazz & Jop Critics' Poll. NME (Magazine) (12/21-28/96, pp.66-67) - Ranked #6 in NME's 1996 critics' poll. NME (Magazine) (7/6/96, p.36) - 9 (out of 10) - "...It's rock, kids, with all the grandiose ambition we should routinely demand but so rarely gets delivered....DUST is Seattle's saving grace; the sound of rock 'n' roll in heaven..."

In many ways, Screaming Trees missed their opportunity. They released Sweet Oblivion just as grunge began to capture national attention and they didn't tour the album extensively, which meant nearly all of their fellow Seattle bands became superstars while they stood to the side. After four years, they returned with Dust, their third major-label album, and by that point, the band's sound was too idiosyncratic for alternative radio. Which is unfortunate, because Dust is the band's strongest album. Sure, the rough edges that fueled albums like Uncle Anesthesia are gone, but in its place is a rustic hard rock, equally informed by heavy metal and folk. The influence of Mark Lanegan's haunting solo albums is apparent in both the sound and emotional tone of the record, but this is hardly a solo project -- the rest of the band has added a gritty weight to Lanegan's spare prose. Screaming Trees sound tighter than they ever have and their melodies and hooks are stronger, more memorable, making Dust their most consistently impressive record. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine