Screaming Trees’ Van Conner Dies Just 11 Months After Singer Mark Lanegan

Van Conner, a bassist and co-founder of the legendary Northwest alternative band Screaming Trees, has died. Conner died Tuesday, Jan. 17 “of an extended illness,” his brother and bandmate, Gary Lee, confirmed in a Facebook Post Wednesday. He was 55. His passing comes just 11 months after bandmate and Screaming Trees lead singer Mark Lanegan died in February 2022 at 57.

Sharing a throwback picture of himself and his brother, Gary Lee informed fans of the tragic news, writing, “Van Conner bassist and song writer of Screaming Trees died last night of an extended illness at 55.” He went on to explain, “It was pneumonia that got him in the end.” Gary Lee remembered his brother as “one of the closest friends I ever had and I loved him immensely,” adding, “I will miss him forever and ever and ever…”

The Wednesday post came after Gary Lee revealed in a Jan. 5 post that his brother was “hospitalized with a liver infection” and had been “suffering from an array of health problems since late 2021.” Detailing his brother’s health struggled, he revealed that Conner was unable to walk after being in a coma following “emergency stomach surgery” prior to Christmas 2021. Conner, according to his brother, “got Covid which resulted in a blood clot in his lung” during his recovery. The blood clot left his lungs “badly damaged,” with Gary Lee sharing at the time, “he has been confined to a hospital bed at home for several months and has not seemed to be making any progress towards recovery.” In a Jan. 9 update, he shared that “Van seems to be making progress, his liver is not completely shot but it was touch and go for a few days last week.”

Conner and Gary Lee formed Screaming Trees in Washington alongside in 1984 alongside drummer Mark Pickerel and vocalist Mark Lanegan. Considered to be part of the early wave of Pacific Northwest rock bands in the emerging grunge rock scene in the 1980s and 1990s, Screaming Trees released their debut album, Clairvoyance, in 1986. It was followed by Even If and Especially When and Buzz Factory through SST Records. After signing with the major label Epic Records in 1990, Screaming Trees released their major label debut, Uncle Anesthesia, in 1991. The album included their first major hit, “Bed of Roses.” Their 1992 album Sweet Oblivion shot the band to mainstream popularity with its single “Nearly Lost You.”

After Screaming Tees broke up in 2000, Conner joined the band Valis with his Patrick Conner, per Pitchfork. He also played as a session musician, and in 2018, he released a solo album, Coming Back Again.