Okay. Apparently, grunge is now 20 years old. Of course, grunge purists and musos will argue the toss over a whole host of dates which could signal the first flush of grunge, but everyone is agreeing on this one because it’s easier, okay?
And basically, like all grunge chat, it circles around Nirvana, who were smart enough to mix their fondness for pure pop and fuzz pedals, leaving a legacy that was, sadly for Kurt Cobain, filled with jocks like Limp Bizkit, who he so obviously loathed.
However, it goes without saying that there was so much more to grunge than Nevermind and Cobain’s suicide. Let us have a look back shall we?
Nirvana kicked off their career with Bleach -? the go-to album for barefaced liars who say it’s their favourite because they want to appear like they liked ’em first or, indeed, they’re just being purposefully awkward – which was pretty much ignored by the world ’til Nevermind hit the shelves.
Such was the fervour to get more Nirvana in the system, that everyone started to buy everything with their name on it, which included a brief spike in sales for the ’60s psychedelic band with the same name, but alas, a very, very different sound.
The way Nirvana captured a feeling – not necessarily with words, as Cobain was prone to penning impenetrable lyrics – hadn’t been seen in the UK since The Smiths peddled their own brand of disaffected, cod-poetic rock. While Mozza & Co wistfully yearned out of grubby kitchen windows, Cobain seems to extol the virtues of slumping Z shaped under motorway bridges, sniffing glue.
Alas, we all know how the story ended, with Cobain killing himself shortly before a tour of the UK while everyone was still utterly enchanted by Cobain’s magnus opus, ‘In Utero’.
However, much more impressive than Nirvana’s musical output, was their willingness to drag everyone along with them. Most bands make friends with celebrities and vanish into the world of A-Listers with their parties and cocaine wraps.
Nirvana were still keen to promote the scene that spat them out. Mudhoney, Babes In Toyland, L7, The Melvins and Sonic Youth were much more likely to crop up in interviews with the band, rather than some tall tale of hanging around with Bruce Willis in San Tropez.
Despite their huge success (something that Cobain actually wanted, regardless of the what myth might tell you), somehow, this noisy ragtag bunch of misfits still looked and sounded like those bozos in a garage band talking to a local fanzine, rather than conducting an interview with MTV.
And in many ways, that was the thing that people really loved about this unassuming group. They didn’t play too well and they sure as hell didn’t look like stadium filling superstars… they were just three likeable spivs in a noisy rock group who just happened to write a whole buncha great tunes.
While you’ll be able to immediately recall your favourite Nirvana tracks, it’s worth taking a look back at the grunge scene as a whole. Sure, there were turkeys like Stone Temple Pilots, but there were great things in-and-around it. Inextricably tied-up with Riot Grrl and the US Punk that came before it like H?sker D? and the Pixies, grunge opened a door which let a whole gang of noise-wielding idiots through the door.
So here’s a Spotify playlist featuring Sonic Youth, Melvins, Mudhoney, Hole, Babes In Toyland, Huggy Bear, Bratmobile, Soundgarden, Sebadoh and more.
Enjoy.
Click here to check our super grunge playlist on Spotify.
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Brandt Hardin says
Kurt changed my life with his insightful and surreal music and lyrics. I only wished he could have stuck around to make more to listen to for future generations. I was compelled to compose a portrait of him In Memoriam recently on the anniversary of his death on my artist