Sweet Tooth formed as an Anglo-American power trio in the late 1980's with an already notable pedigree. Drummer Scott Kiehl had relocated from his native Chicago to hook up with the UK act Slab, bringing with him his jazz drumming background. Dave Cochrane had originally formed Head of David (subsequently covered by Fear Factory who had a minor hit with 'Dog Day Sunrise') with Justin Broadrick in Birmingham back in 1984.
Sweet Tooth came into existence after Cochrane departed Head of David and Kiehl quit Slab. Calls for Broadrick to join them were answered and Sweet Tooth was born in mid 1989. After a set of dark and dirty rehearsals, the band entered Falconer Studios in London in March 1990 with noted producer Grant Showbiz (Smiths, The, Fall, The, Billy Bragg) and recorded the few tracks that make up 'Soft White Underbelly.' Released in August of 1990 the record met with critical if not commercial success, its mixture of weird jazz structure and harsh sound layers encrusted with a top heavy sound proving too much for some. However, as is the way with these things, Broadrick's subsequent rise with Godflesh and other projects meant that Sweet Tooth has now become a cult item for many of the man's admirers.