Shrinking the Blob by Oleander

Shrinking the Blob, the debut album from Sacramento's Oleander, came out on July 29, 1997, on the independent Fine Records. The band, named after the poisonous shrub that lines the highways of Northern California, had been together since 1995, and this is where they worked out their thick, brooding grunge on their own dime.

A lot of it turned out to be a rough draft for bigger things. Several of these songs were re-recorded for February Son, their major-label debut in 1999, including "Why I'm Here", the hit that put them on the map and kept them on the countdowns. "Jimmy Shaker Day" got another life too, turning up again on 2001's Unwind.

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