Suntribe

Fred Crowell: vocals, keyboards
Ken Barton: lead & rhythm guitar, bass, vocals
Mark Wyman: bass, rhythm guitar, vocals
Jeremy Gregg: percussion

Suntribe: 1993-1995

Suntribe began in the spring of 1993 when four Linfield College students – Fred, Ken, and Jeremy along with another guitarist, Dylan McDanniel – rehearsed without a bassist in the basement of the Music Department building. Liking what they heard, they began writing songs, deciding on a list of covers to play and searching for a bass player. While sitting outside a coffee shop that spring, McDanniel spotted Linfield alumnus and former jamming partner, Mark, who had settled into a journalism career at the local newspaper.

One rehearsal later, Suntribe was born, and the fivesome was already at work on two original songs, “Questions” and “The Game.” By the end of spring semester, the band had eight originals and some incredibly fun gigs under its belt. Not knowing whether the band would be intact after summer vacation, individual members nevertheless kept writing songs, and when everyone returned to McMinnville, Oregon, that fall, Suntribe hit the ground running.

By October, band members resolved to put everything they had into Suntribe. They scraped together enough money for auditorium-quality gear. Wyman quit his job, and Barton and Crowell put their graduate school plans on hold. By November, the band was in the studio for the first time, cutting its 10 completed originals. In January of 1994, the band lost McDanniel, but the four remaining members did more than carry on. The band redefined its sound, with Barton adapting the band’s two-guitar songs into one-guitar songs.

Suntribe recorded and released the CD, “Bury Me,” in 1995, and by the end of that year the quartet had split down the middle. Ken and Mark went on to form Petal in early 1996.

Suntribe Discography

Bury Me (1995)