Quite a few side projects containing members of renowned Seattle-based rock bands appeared through the ’90s. Most failed to expand past a small cult following comprised mainly of fans of their main bands, but there were a few exceptions to rule, especially Temple of the Dog and Mad Season. The latter outfit included members of Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and the Screaming Trees. The band’s roots go back to the summer of 1994, when McCready checked himself into a Minneapolis, MN, rehab center to battle a drinking/substance problem. It was there that McCready met local musician Saunders, and when he returned back to Seattle, called up Staley, who was also at the time attempting to battle problems with substances. With Martin rounding out the lineup, an undeniable chemistry between all four musicians was discovered at their very first jam session, resulting in bits of music that would eventually become fully realized songs. Changing their name to Mad Season, the quartet set up shop at Seattle’s Bad Animals recording studio, co-producing the subsequent sessions themselves along with Pearl Jam’s sound engineer, Brett Eliason.
Mad Season gave fans a taste of their upcoming album by performing a pair of songs on Pearl Jam’s Self-Pollution Radio program. The resulting album, Above, was officially issued in March, featuring a mix of melancholy ballads and hard rock. The album proved to be a gold-certified hit, just missing the U.S. Top 20, while its leadoff single, ‘River of Deceit,’ became a major rock radio hit. Despite a smattering of supporting live dates and talk of further writing/recording, Mad Season would ultimately prove to be a one-off project. Reportedly, songs were penned for another Mad Season album, which ultimately went unrecorded. The band then supposedly thought about replacing Staley with Lanegan (and changing their name to Disinformation), but no songs were recorded, resulting in the musicians going their separate ways for good. Sadly, this proved to be the final word on Mad Season as both Saunders and Staley would eventually die from drug overdoses.