Steel Wool Is Rough On The Surface, Easy On The Ears

Most people know steel wool as a coarse scrubbing pad of metal strands that can cause skin irritation.

Unlike the scrubber, Steel Wool the band doesn’t irritate the ears, though its raspy vocalists and raucous guitars somewhat resemble actual steel wool.

Rather, the Seattle band, which plays the Big Dipper on Saturday, fosters a banner garage sound that has gained it a loyal following in the Northwest.

Steel Wool is the result of its four members - bassist-guitarist-vocalist Steve Dukich, guitarist-electric pianist/vocalist Jon Wright, guitarist-vocalist Sean Hollowell and drummer-vocalist Dave Pelo- spending too much time in record shops during their formative years. Their sound indicates they’ve absorbed everything they’ve ever heard.

On its two eMpTy Records full-length albums- 1993’s “Simple Men Who Like Working With Their Hands” and 1994’s “Lucky Boy”- Steel Wool concocts music that’s punk and garage rock on the surface. Yet, on top of the clamor, the band eloquently compounds old country music, delta blues, early rockabilly and Flipper-style sludge punk.

In other words, Steel Wool is no doubt the band that hip kids are listening to on the range these days.

The quartet formed in 1990, after Big Yuck Mouth, the band three of its members were part of, broke up.

If that name sounds familiar, it’s because Big Yuck Mouth was a punk band from Spokane before it migrated to Seattle. Dukich, Pelo and Hollowell are all former Spokanites.

Lately, the foursome has been working on songs for a future album, which Dukich says is “probably as all over the place as all of our other stuff.”

The band will appear on two upcoming compilation albums, one called “Live at the Crocodile,” which also features Mudhoney and the Young Fresh Fellows.

Steel Wool’s eMpTy colleagues, the Fumes, also will be on the bill.

Boycott, which plays the Big Dipper tonight with the Makers and Clabberhag, will open.

Music starts at 9:30 p.m. The cover is $4.