Legacy Recordings — the catalogue division of
Sony Music Entertainment — will release a newly expanded deluxe edition of
"Above", the first and only album to be completed by Seattle-based rock supergroup
MAD SEASON.
Formed in 1994,
MAD SEASON is vocalist
Layne Staley (
ALICE IN CHAINS), guitarist
Mike McCready (
PEARL JAM), drummer/percussionist
Barrett Martin (
SCREAMING TREES) and bassist
John Baker Saunders (
THE WALKABOUTS,
LAMONT CRANSTON BAND).
The deluxe edition of
MAD SEASON's
"Above" is a three-disc set comprised of two CDs and one DVD. It includes the original studio album and a host of extras such as previously unreleased tracks from the band's unfinished second album with new lyrics and vocals by
Mark Lanegan (
SCREAMING TREES), full audio plus the first official DVD release of
MAD SEASON's last show ever performed — "Live At The Moore", an unreleased full concert video of the band's New Year's Eve performance from now-defunct Seattle club RKCNDY, a full-color collector's booklet and more.
The deluxe edition, and a separate digital configuration, will be available Monday, April 1. In addition, there will be a 12-inch 2LP expanded edition vinyl available on Record Store Day, April 20. Content featured in the
"Above" deluxe edition will be available through
iTunes with audio mastered for
iTunes and a separate standalone longplay video.
MAD SEASON "Above" deluxe edition
CD1 – "Above"
01.
Wake Up 02.
X-Ray Mind 03.
River of Deceit 04.
I'm Above 05.
Artificial Red 06.
Lifeless Dead 07.
I Don't Know Anything 08.
Long Gone Day 09.
November Hotel 10.
All AloneBonus tracks:
01.
Interlude (previously unreleased)
02.
Locomotive (lyrics/vocals by Mark Lanegan)
03.
Black Book Of Fear (lyrics/vocals by Mark Lanegan)
04.
Slip Away (lyrics/vocals by Mark Lanegan)
05.
I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier (remix)
CD2 - Live At The Moore
Previously unreleased full audio set of "Live At The Moore" performance from Seattle, Washington, April 29, 1995. Includes
"Wake Up",
"Artificial Red",
"I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier",
"I'm Above" (featuring
Mark Lanegan).
DVD - Live At The Moore + Bonus Footage
Full video set of the "Live At The Moore" performance from Seattle, Washington performance, April 29, 1995. Remixed and remastered for 5.1 sound, and newly edited by director
Duncan Sharp. Plus, more bonus footage, including a full concert of the band's performance from New Year's Eve 1995 at RKCNDY in Seattle, and both performances from the Seattle-based
Self-Pollution Radio specials, one newly edited.
In 1994, four Seattle-based musicians decided to embark on a side-project that took them into new and different musical territory. Formed by
Mike McCready,
Layne Staley,
Barrett Martin, and bluesman
John Baker Saunders, the group went on to form
MAD SEASON, which made one seminal album in the history of Seattle rock. That album,
"Above", was released in 1995 and immediately struck a resonate chord with the public that sent the album into gold status within a few weeks. It is the only complete album of
Layne Staley's introspective and mystical lyrics, which were highlighted by additional vocals from
SCREAMING TREES vocalist
Mark Lanegan and Seattle-based saxophonist/percussionist
Skerik.
MAD SEASON was essentially Seattle's version of an extremely heavy blues band, anchored by the deep swinging rhythm section of
Barrett's drums and
Baker's bass lines, with
Layne's haunting melodies and
Mike's stadium-size guitar riffs soaring over the top. This unusual chemistry made the band absolutely unique in an era of post-grunge. In the almost 20 years since the original release of
"Above", new generations of music listeners have discovered the dark and lasting beauty of
MAD SEASON.
In 1996, work began on a second
MAD SEASON album with
Mike,
Barrett and
Baker writing and recording the basic tracks for 15 new songs. Unfortunately, because of declining health,
Layne wasn't able to make any of the recording sessions and the album was shelved. Fate subsequently took each musician in a different direction:
Mike back to
PEARL JAM and
Barrett back to
SCREAMING TREES. Tragically, both
Baker (1999) and
Layne (2002) passed away.
In 2012, the two remaining band members,
Mike and
Barrett, along with
"Above"'s original producer
Brett Eliason, convened in Seattle to sift through the original magnetic tapes from that second album's sessions to revisit the unfinished songs. They called on
Mark Lanegan to pen lyrics and sing on three of the best of those songs, including one co-written by
Peter Buck of
REM, which will be featured on the forthcoming reissue honoring the legacy of
Layne and
Baker.

