Although it wasn't the only label they would call home,
Das Damen was, in many ways, the quintessential SST band.
Triskaidekaphobe (fear of the number 13), their third recording for the label, is all about the guitar, and the guitar playing throughout is quite good (
Wayne Kramer from
MC5 assists with what the credits describe as "riff rock"). Unlike
Dinosaur Jr. or
Sonic Youth, however,
Das Damen never quite ventured into the realm of pure noise. Their approach was more like that of
the Screaming Trees or even
the Meat Puppets (i.e., neo-psychedelic guitar rock with a garage chaser). But the New York-based quartet lacked the very ingredient that would help
the Trees go on to even greater success in the '90s: a vocalist with the range and presence of a
Mark Lanegan. Urgent but undistinguished vocals prevent
Triskaidekaphobe from having the impact that it should. The
Marshmellow Conspiracy EP, released the same year, included album tracks "Bug" (possibly as much a tribute to
Mascis and company as "fIREJOKE" was to
fIREHOSE) and an alternate version of "555," along with non-LP tracks "Sky Yen" and "Song for Michael Jackson to $ell" (i.e., "Magical Mystery Tour" in disguise). When representatives for
Jackson, owner of
the Beatles' catalog, found out about the deception, SST was forced to withdraw the EP. It was later reissued as a three-track recording.