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All Music Guide:
Upon the breakup of the Boise, ID, punk band State of Confusion, several members elected to head west to the thriving then-underground scene in Seattle, and so guitarist/vocalist Doug Martsch, guitarist/vocalist Scott Schmaljohn, bassist Pat Brown, and drummer Wayne Rhino Flower became Treepeople. An often melodic cross between punk and grunge highlighted by Martsch and Schmaljohn's guitar interplay, Treepeople's sound was never really altered to fit the post-Nirvana Seattle formula, and perhaps consequently, the group never attracted as much attention outside the local scene as many of its contemporaries. The group debuted on the Toxic Shock label in 1989 with Guilt Regret Embarrassment, switching to C/Z for Something Vicious for Tomorrow, which did not appear until 1992 but also included the out of print EP Time Whore. By this time, Tony Dallas Reed had taken over the drum seat; for the next album, 1993's Just Kidding, Reed switched to bass (taking over for new father Brown) and Eric Akre (ex-Christ on a Crutch) took his position behind the drum set. Claiming he was tired of touring, Martsch himself then quit the band, leaving Schmaljohn as the only remaining original member; on Treepeople's final album, 1994's Actual Re-Enactment, the lineup featured Schmaljohn, Akre, guitarist John Polle, and bassist Eric Carnell. Martsch then resurfaced in Built to Spill.
Wikipedia:
Treepeople was an alternative rock band from Boise, Idaho, although it spent most of its time and was officially based in Seattle, Washington. The band was composed of Pat Brown (nee Schmaljohn, Scott's older brother), Wayne Rhino Flower, Doug Martsch, and Scott Schmaljohn. It also included drummer Eric Akre on the critically acclaimed album Just Kidding, 1991. Brown, Flower, and Schmaljohn were ex-members of the Boise punk band State of Confusion, while Martsch came from the Twin Falls, Idaho band, Farm Days. The band gained local notoriety and success in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but after losing members to family complications and other projects, particularly Martsch to Built to Spill, the group disbanded in 1994, having released three albums and a handful of singles. Scott Schmaljohn later played in Stuntman, The Hand, and The Treatment. Schmaljohn also guested on Built to Spill's latest release There Is No Enemy, playing on the song "Pat," a tribute to Pat Brown, who committed suicide in April 1999. Prior to his death, Pat fronted the band Hive. Wayne Flower went on to play in Violent Green and The Halo Benders with Doug Martsch and Calvin Johnson (of Beat Happening, Dub Narcotic and co-founder of K Records).
