In 1989, singer and guitarist Thomas Flowers met bassist Doug Eldridge; both of whom were employees of a Sacramento eatery. They played with several local bands together before meeting guitarist Ric Ivanisevich who joined them in a rehearsal. Chuck Combs the original drummer left, leaving the position to Fred Nelson Jr, a co-worker of Flowers' and Eldridge's. The quartet formed Oleander in 1995 and soon released an eponymous EP on the indie label Fine Records. This would be followed by a full-length album, "Shrinking the Blob", in 1997.