Mark Arm

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Mark Arm is an American singer and songwriter, best known as the frontman of the grunge band Mudhoney. He was born Mark Thomas McLaughlin on February 21, 1962, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and grew up in Kirkland, Washington. As a kid, he was in the Boy Scouts and later finished Bellevue Christian High School. He earned an English degree with a focus on creative writing from the University of Washington in 1985.

Early life and start in music
Arm began making music in Seattle in 1980, starting a band in high school called Mr. Epp and the Calculations. Their first shows and a small collection of recordings put them on the local scene. The band later evolved and helped him meet other musicians who would shape the early Seattle sound.

Green River and the roots of grunge
Arm and guitarist Steve Turner joined with Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, and Alex Vincent to form Green River. The band released a few early records before breaking up. Green River helped lay the groundwork for the grunge movement that would explode in the next decade. Some members went on to form Pearl Jam and other Seattle bands.

Mudhoney and influence
Arm, Turner, drummer Dan Peters, and bassist Matt Lukin formed Mudhoney. They released the hit single Touch Me I’m Sick in 1988 and issued several influential albums, including a self-titled release and Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge. Mudhoney stayed with Sub Pop for many years and helped define the grunge sound. The band continued to release music well into the 2000s and 2010s, including Since We’ve Become Translucent (2002), Under a Billion Suns (2005), The Lucky Ones (2008), Vanishing Point (2013), Digital Garbage (2018), and Plastic Eternity (2023).

Other projects
Arm has worked on many side projects. He released The Freewheelin’ Mark Arm in 1990, played in Bloodloss, and was part of the Monkeywrench, a Seattle supergroup. He contributed to the Velvet Goldmine soundtrack as Wylde Ratttz and to Alice in Chains’ Sap EP. He also played with The New Strychnines, a project that revived classic Sonics songs. In 2004, he toured with MC5, and he contributed vocals to a Melvins track in 2013.

Personal life and other work
Arm is married to Emily Rieman. Outside of music, he has worked as the Sub Pop warehouse manager and previously worked at Fantagraphics Books.

Legacy
Mark Arm helped shape the sound and spirit of grunge. As the leader of Mudhoney and a key figure in early Seattle rock, his work influenced many bands that followed.