Uncle Green

Atlanta-based Uncle Green embodied the classic template of a jangly Southern power pop outfit, with vocalists/guitarists/songwriters Matt Brown and Jeff Jensen joined by bassist Bill Decker and drummer Pete McDade. R.E.M. served as the primary touchstone, yet the group also absorbed inspiration from earlier power pop sources such as the Beatles and Squeeze alongside more recent acts including Trip Shakespeare, the Posies, and Matthew Sweet. Several members were only 15 at the time of formation, and Uncle Green issued its first two releases on the modest New Vision imprint—Get It Together in 1987 and 15 Dryden the following year—before advancing after inking a deal with the independent DB label. Brendan O’Brien produced 1989’s You, a clear leap that allowed Brown and Jensen to sharpen their lyric-writing instincts while tightening compositional discipline and arrangement choices. Refinement continued on 1991’s What an Experiment His Head Was, an effort that secured a contract with Atlantic. Once more under O’Brien’s direction, the band tracked Book of Bad Thoughts, its most aggressive outing to date and, in the estimation of some listeners, its strongest. Radio’s increasing openness to the style proved insufficient for broader alternative acceptance, however, and after Atlantic ended the arrangement the members dissolved Uncle Green in 1994. They promptly reconvened under the same personnel as the marginally more alt-rock-oriented 3 Lb. Thrill, signing with O’Brien’s Sony-affiliated 57 imprint and releasing Vulture in 1995.