About
Pivotal Part of the 90's Baton Rouge Alternative/College Rock Scene
Meantree was part of the vibrant early 1990's alternative/college rock scene that formed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana centered around the campus of LSU. From 1991-1994, they extensively toured the Southeast US college circuit and played shows with The Connells, Better than Ezra, Cowboy Mouth and the Reverend Horton Heat.
Their unique sound came from their diverse backgrounds. Chris Garrison (vocals, guitar, harmonica & organ) was a solo acoustic artist from Texas who played shows at the now defunct Murphy's in Baton Rouge. He, Pat Fellows (guitar, vocals) and Blye Hunsinger (drums & percussion) were mutual friends with Better than Ezra. They briefly played with bassist Tom Drummond of BTE when Ezra took a much needed break after the death of founding guitarist Joel Rundell; however that was not to be as Ezra reformed and went on to mainstream and college rock super stardom. They invited Brad Mooney (bass & organ) from the local progressive favorite Gravity Jones to sit in for a show. He had so much fun that he decided to hang around for a while.
Their varied musical tastes and backgrounds came together in the unique sound that is Meantree.
Fortunately they had the opportunity to capture their energy in the studio. In early 1993, they released a cassette - "Whit Pitcher." Later that year, they repackaged the album as a CD, dropped the title and added a new track - "B-Rock." In the intervening years, the members of the band have experienced quite a few life events in the form of marriages, careers, children, advanced degrees, outside business ventures, solo projects and new bands. Although they now live in different parts of the US, they have reunited on occasion since 1994.
In 2021, they decided to remaster their namesake album and publish it across multiple platforms. In April 2022, they reunited to record their long awaited follow-up album Chocolate.