Skull Valley began life in 1997 playing extended live sets in chill rooms at Arizona raves. Skull Valley consisted of Tom Chasteen and a rotating cast of collaborators; most notably George Nardo on slide guitars and Eddie Ruscha on vocals and guitars. Combining influences from dub, rock, and dance music, Skull Valley brought organic instrumentation and live vocals into sample-based music. This kind of musical production was ahead of its time for 1997 and was more or less unique until the likes of Innerzone Orchestra and Amorphous Androgynous made waves on the scene a couple of years later to cross boundaries in their own respective ways.