Wool

Emerging from Washington, D.C., the group Wool delivered a gritty yet tuneful take on punk-infused hard rock during a short span in the 1990s. Functioning essentially as a D.C. hardcore supergroup, the outfit came together in the early part of the decade after vocalists Peter Stahl and guitarist Franz Stahl departed Scream to join forces with former Government Issue drummer Peter Moffett and bassist Al Bloch. Their initial release arrived as the independent EP Budspawn on External Records in 1992, a rollicking set that fused the quartet’s punk roots with anthemic hard rock leanings and drug-induced psychedelia. After Moffett stepped aside for new drummer Chris Bratton, the band secured a deal with London Records amid the punk-friendly atmosphere of 1993 and issued the album Box Set the following year. That effort built upon the prior EP’s foundation with surprisingly accessible pop elements that might have fit comfortably beside the era’s Stone Temple Pilots or Green Day releases, though it failed to generate any notable hits. Commercial indifference and limited exposure ultimately led to the group’s dissolution in 1995, at which point Franz Stahl accepted an invitation from his ex-Scream colleague Dave Grohl to replace Pat Smear in the Foo Fighters.