Scream is a hardcore punk band from Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia, United S… Read Full Bio ↴Scream is a hardcore punk band from Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia, United States active from 1981 to 1990. In 2009 the band reunited, and as of January 2012 it was on tour in Europe.

Scream was formed in Northern Virginia in 1981 by singer Peter Stahl, his brother Franz Stahl on guitar, bassist Skeeter Thompson and drummer Kent Stax. They are considered one of the benchmark bands in the history of the Washington, D.C. hardcore music movement. Along with bands such as Minor Threat and Government Issue, Scream ultimately merged the attributes of the movement, which were blinding speed, heavy political and social connotations in the lyrics, unpretentiousness of attitude, and shunning of commercialism. Their music is faithful to the roots of rock, but spun itself into other genres by employing sounds that predate the raunchiness of grunge, while saluting reggae and speed metal. Scream hated the classification of bands into certain types and considered what they played as simply 'music.' Recording their music in the basement of the now legendary Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, Scream became the first band on the Dischord label to release a whole album, Still Screaming, as opposed to singles or 12 inch EPs. Like the hardcore band Bad Brains, they could play clearly at breakneck speed, but also played mid-tempo songs like "American Justice" and "Hygiene," which were metal-tinged reggae.

For their second album Scream added another guitarist to their line-up, Robert Lee "Harley" Davidson, to thicken up the sound in the studio and in their live performances. In turn this eventually led to a powerful dual-lead guitar style, with complex guitar tracking, a more powerful live sound and an over-all crunchier sound for their third album. For a few compilation efforts and some live shows they added a keyboard player, Bobby Madden, who was a colleague of Davidson's from the same metal scene.

After the third album Banging the Drum, Kent Stax left the band for personal reasons and was replaced by local drummer Dave Grohl, who then played on Scream's 4th album No More Censorship. The band then toured Europe; with their May 4, 1990 show in Alzey, Germany being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.10. Scream then recorded their fifth and final studio album Fumble, (which was much later released in 1993 on Dischord Records) and then called it quits in late 1990. Pete and Franz moved to North Hollywood and started rock band Wool, while Grohl joined Grunge band Nirvana. In 1997, Franz Stahl joined Dave Grohl's newly formed group, the commercially successful Foo Fighters, for a two year stint. During this time Pete Stahl worked as a road manager for both the Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, while continuing to record albums with several bands, including the Earthlings? and Goatsnake. Skeeter Thompson remained in the D.C. area and continued to work in bands, as did Kent Stax with the Skinhead/Oi! -tinged bands: the Suspects, United 121, Spitfires United, and Alleged Bricks. Stax has also committed himself to a family life. Davidson continued in the band Angelstorm, (in Huntsville, Alabama), from 1993–1995 and created the new bands Orangahead, Festival of Fools, (with Madden in 1998) and two different bands both named God Is Dead, (one in D.C. and one in Huntsville, Alabama) from 2002-2005.

The original line-up of the band played a reunion show on December 20, 2009 at the Black Cat nightclub in Washington, D.C.

On February 7, 2011, the band supported Foo Fighters on a special show at the Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles, when the Foo Fighters showcased their new album Wasting Light for the first time from beginning to end.

Current members

Peter Stahl – lead vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present)
Franz Stahl – guitar, backing vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present)
Skeeter Thompson – bass, backing vocals (1981–1990, 2009–present)
Kent Stax – drums, percussion (1981–1986, 2009–present)

Former members

Dave Grohl – drums, percussion (1986–1990)
Robert Lee Davidson – guitar, backing vocals (1984–1989)

It
Scream Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Now come on listen honey
I'm talkin' to you
Just need an answer
Tell me what ya want to do
Now relax and take it easy
Stop all your jive
Don't leave me hangin'
Baby let me come inside

She's such a teaser the way she walks
I follow right behind
I want to push push push it in ya honey
You burn me up inside

Give it up why don't ya give it up
Don't give me reasons honey won't you
Live it up
Live it up

You got me tongue-tied baby and you're lookin' amused
Give me a signal tell me that you want me to
You got me rock hard honey, from your straddlin' smile
Don't keep me waitin', baby I don't like that style

She's still the teaser, the way she talks
It hooks me everytime
I want to push push push it in you honey
Oh God she blows my mind

Give it up, why don't ya give it up
Don't give me reasons, honey won't you
Live it up

Give it up, why don't ya give it up
Don't think about it, baby won't you live it up

She's such a teaser, the way she walks
I follow right behind

I want to push push push it in ya honey
Oh God she blows my mind

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Scream’s song It are about a man who is trying to convince his lover to have sex with him. He tells her to relax and stop playing games, while making it clear that he is sexually attracted to her. He follows her around, wanting to push himself into her and feeling aroused by her straddling smile. The use of words like “teaser” and “jive” suggest that the man perceives the woman as playing hard to get and not being straightforward with him, leading to his frustration. He begs her to give it up and live it up, indicating that he wants to move forward with their relationship and experience the pleasure of sex with her.

While the lyrics of this song have been criticized for their explicitness and objectification of women, they also speak to the complex dynamics of sexual relationships and the difficulty of communication around intimacy. The man’s desire for the woman is palpable, but he struggles to understand her signals and responses. Meanwhile, the woman’s feelings and desires are left unspoken, leaving the man to guess and pursue her. This tension is something that many people can relate to, highlighting the emotional complexities of sex and love.

Line by Line Meaning

Now come on listen honey
The singer is trying to get the attention of their lover in a playful way.

I'm talkin' to you
The singer wants to communicate with their lover and is now directly addressing them.

Just need an answer
The singer wants their lover to make a decision or express their desires.

Tell me what ya want to do
The artist is asking their lover to be honest about their intentions and desires.

Now relax and take it easy
The artist wants their lover to feel at ease and comfortable with them.

Stop all your jive
The singer wants their lover to stop playing games and be straightforward.

Don't leave me hangin'
The singer is expressing a desire for their lover to fully engage with them.

Baby let me come inside
The artist is requesting sexual intimacy with their lover.

She's such a teaser the way she walks
The artist finds their lover's movements and behavior enticing and alluring.

I follow right behind
The artist is pursuing their lover with desire and interest.

I want to push push push it in ya honey
The singer is expressing a desire for sexual penetration with their lover.

You burn me up inside
The artist is expressing strong feelings of desire and passion for their lover.

Give it up why don't ya give it up
The singer is encouraging their lover to be more forthcoming and expressive of their desires.

Don't give me reasons honey won't you live it up
The singer is encouraging their lover to enjoy life and indulge in their desires without hesitation or reservation.

You got me tongue-tied baby and you're lookin' amused
The singer is expressing feeling shy and awkward around their lover and notices that their lover finds this amusing.

Give me a signal tell me that you want me to
The artist is requesting a clear signal or indication from their lover that they desire intimacy.

You got me rock hard honey from your straddlin' smile
The artist is expressing sexual arousal from their lover's smile, implying that it is suggestive of physical intimacy.

Don't keep me waitin' baby I don't like that style
The singer is impatient and eager for intimate physical contact.

Oh God she blows my mind
The singer is expressing excitement and intense pleasure regarding their lover.

Lyrics © Walt Disney Music Company, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JOHN P ALDERETE, BRUCE A BOUILLET, JOHN CORABI, JOHN NICHOLAS CORABI, WALT WOODWARD

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS