# Sweet Water (band)

Sweet Water is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington. They were initially known as SGM before changing to Sweet Water in 1990. They were signed to the major labels Atlantic Records and EastWest Records throughout the 1990s, although they went on a hiatus in 1999. The band reformed in 2007.

## History

Originally known as SGM, the majority of the band's members met while students at The Bush School. SGM consisted of Cole Peterson on bass, Paul Uhlir on drums, Rich Credo on guitars, Mike Lawson on vocals, and Chris Quinn on guitars. The initials were meant to convey a different name periodically, such as Shot Gun Messiah, Such Good Music, Spontaneous Generation Men, and so on. SGM had garnered acclaim as second generation punk pioneers in the Seattle scene, playing with Nirvana, The Accüsed, The Rejectors, Melvins, and more. They blended punk rock with thrash metal elements. SGM released the album Aggression in 1988. It was engineered and produced by Jack Endino. Bruce Pavitt of Sub Pop Records later described one of SGM's demo cassettes as "Young, loud and crazy. Better than Soundgarden and Green River put together. Better than Led Zep and the Stooges even."
By 1989, Lawson departed from the band in order to attend college, and after various one-off vocalists and brief tenures, he was replaced permanently by Adam Czeisler. That same year, SGM's song "Power" appeared on the soundtrack to the horror film Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III.
In 1990, Quinn left the band in order to form Truly. The remaining members of SGM then added guitarist Dudley Taft to the lineup, and as a result they formally changed their name to Sweet Water. After recording and self-releasing various demos, Sweet Water released a self-titled album in 1992 on New Rage Records (it was also known as Ter due to the letters on the front of the cover and to differentiate it from the band's next release). It was produced by Don Gilmore.
The band was signed later that year by Jason Flom of Atlantic Records. Sweet Water released their second self-titled album (Sweet Water) in 1993. It was produced by Gilmore again, and mixed by Tim Palmer (known for working with Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam, Tin Machine, and Robert Plant). "Crawl" off of Sweet Water appeared on the soundtrack to the 1993 film Amongst Friends.
The band then shifted labels as they moved to Elektra Records' subsidiary EastWest Records, and they recorded a follow-up record, Superfriends, in 1995. Dave Jerden served as producer. Jerden previously worked with other bands such as Alice in Chains, Jane's Addiction, Anthrax, among others. Jerden described his experience with the band as "Mott the Hoople meets the 90s". Guitarist Taft was fired during the recording of Superfriends although his contributions remained on the album. A new Sweet Water sound took shape with Credo as sole guitarist.
Sweet Water faced complications with their record labels (mainly due to internal mergers and realignments), and as a result they were unable to extensively tour or record. In order to circumvent the legal wranglings, the band changed their name to Parc Boys in 1996. They released an album titled Two Weeks to Live on the independent label Will Records in early 1998. It was produced alongside Martin Feveyear. Later that year, the band reverted to the Sweet Water name.
Jerden returned to produce the band's follow-up album, Suicide, for the EMI imprint The Enclave; however, plans eventually changed, and Suicide was instead released on the label Good-Ink Records in 1999. Suicide featured a few songs that previously appeared on Two Weeks to Live as well. The band spent 2000 to 2006 on a self-imposed hiatus, releasing no new music and playing no shows. 2007 saw their return to the stage and various rock websites reported an album in the works.
In 2009, the band released Clear the Tarmac on Golden City Records, the label run by guitarist Credo. Clear the Tarmac sold well and represented what most fans and critics considered to be a return to form. A video for its single "Rock Steady" garnered national airplay. Notable Seattle drummer Chris Friel (previously a member of Goodness and The Rockfords) replaced Uhlir in 2009.
2012 and 2013 saw more creative output from the band, with the 2012 release of a single entitled "Hey Living" with the b-side "Get High Clover". A music video was created for "Get High Clover". The five-song Dance Floor Kills EP followed in April 2013. Both releases were on the dual Fin Records/Golden City Records imprint, with Fin handling physical product and Golden City handling digital.
In November 2015, Sweet Water returned to the stage with a one-off performance at Seattle's Benaroya Hall. The show was the band's first performance with a full orchestra, and was notable for the unique on-stage collaboration with Seattle singer Shawn Smith. Summer of 2018 saw the release of the "Galer Street" single (with a supporting video) and two sold-out shows at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle with Green Apple Quick Step and Candlebox. In November, the band released the five-song Firebird EP on Golden City Records. They played several west coast shows in support of the release of Firebird.

## Members
### Current members

* Cole Peterson – bass (1985–1999, 2007–present)
* Rich Credo – guitars (1985–1999, 2007–present)
* Adam Czeisler – vocals (1988–1999, 2007–present)
* Chris Friel – drums (2009–present)

### Former members

* Mike Lawson – vocals (1985–1988)
* Chris Quinn – guitars (1985–1990)
* Dudley Taft – guitars (1990–1995)
* Paul Uhlir – drums (1985–1999, 2007–2009)

## Discography

| Album Title | Release Date | Record Label |
| Aggression | 1988 | Medusa Records |
| Ter | 1992 | New Rage Records |
| Sweet Water | 1993 | Atlantic Records |
| Superfriends | 1995 | EastWest Records/Elektra Records |
| Two Weeks to Live | 1998 | Will Records |
| Suicide | 1999 | Good-Ink Records |
| Clear the Tarmac | 2009 | Golden City Records |
| Dance Floor Kills (EP) | 2013 | Golden City Records/Fin Records |
| Firebird (EP) | 2018 | Golden City Records |