In 1991, grunge kicked down the door to the lazy music genre rock and roll had become. Suddenly, big hair was out and flannel was in. Nirvana led the way in the 1990s with their album Nevermind, and it's game-changing single, "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Right alongside them was Pearl Jam, with their own huge album, Ten. Rounding out the top four grunge bands were Soundgarden, who became the biggest band in the world with Superunknown, and Alice in Chains, who made their own history with Dirt. These are the albums we all know, but there were so many great classic albums which came out during grunge's short reign. Whether it be one of the big four, or smaller Seattle bands who never quite made it to the mainstream, these eight albums deserve a second listen.
During the 1991 grunge takeover, Soundgarden was right there with their album, Badmotorfinger. It wasn't their first. The Seattle group had actually been around since the 80s, debuting with 1988's Ultramega OK. The first album was a band finding their voice. They did just that with their major-label debut, 1989's Louder Than Love. Two years before everyone knew them, Soundgarden became important names in Washington state with singles like "Loud Love" and "Hands All Over." It's a thick, dirty album, a mixture of heavy metal and blues. Sounding like a love letter to Black Sabbath, Louder Than Love is led by the impossibly beautiful voice of Chris Cornell.
Green River didn't make it big like other grunge acts. In fact, they had just one album, 1988's Rehab Doll. Released through the iconic indie label Sub Pop, Green River was made up of future heavyweights. Frontman Mark Arm is best known as the lead singer of Mudhoney, while Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament would later form Pearl Jam. Rehab Doll is a moment in time, a blistering 28 minutes of foundation for the grunge movement. Check out their best song, the anti-war "Swallow My Pride" to see what they're all about. With a slicker sound than most grunge acts of the time, it's easy to see why so many members of the band became rock stars.
When Nirvana was first starting out in late 80s Seattle, they toured with another up-and-coming band named Tad. A staple of the early scene, Tad's third album, Inhaler, is a grunge masterpiece, even if it failed to push the band to superstardom. Led by lead singer and guitarist Tad Doyle, Inhaler was the band's major label debut. On it, they did what worked for Nirvana, adding pop to their heavier sound. With ear-blasting songs like "Throat Locust" and "Grease Box", this is one of the most energetic albums of the era.
Stone Temple Pilots got a lot of grief during the 90s for being San Diego grunge wannabes. STP were no posers. Mainstream popularity found them because of just how damn good they were. After the mega success of their 1992 debut, Core, the band was back in 1994 for their follow-up, Purple. Despite coming out two months after the death of Kurt Cobain, which was supposed to have killed grunge along with him, Purple was a huge hit. With radio staples like "Vasoline" and "Interstate Love Song," Stone Temple Pilots showed they didn't stumble into good fortune. Lead singer Scott Weiland was right there with Cobain, Cornell, Layne Staley, and Eddie Vedder as the voice of his generation.
If Chris Cornell awed listeners with how high his voice could get, Screaming Trees lead singer Mark Lanegan amazed with how low his could go. His thick words sound like he's rising right out of the Seattle muck. Their sixth album, Sweet Oblivion, released in September 1992, during the height of grunge, is their masterwork thanks to their one big hit, "Nearly Lost You", which was included on the soundtrack for Cameron Crowe's Singles. With a folky sound mixed with the freeness of 1960s rock, Sweet Oblivion is no one-hit wonder. It's a packed album of underrated greatness, including the catchy "Shadow Season and "Dollar Bill."
Paw didn't come from Seattle. Instead, they were from Kansas of all places, giving their grunge sound a tint of country. It's absolutely frustrating that their 1993 debut album, Dragline, didn't bring the band fame. The opening track, "Gasoline," begins with a riff straight off of an Alice in Chains record, and it's followed by song after song that pulls off the verse-chorus-verse simplicity done best by Nirvana. Lead singer Mark Hennessy is compelling, with a slightly southern accent carrying him from a voice that can go from sounding near bored to screaming with intensity in the same minute.
Pearl Jam was formed in the tragedy of Mother Love Bone's end. Coming out of Seattle, they only released one album, 1990's Apple, which came out five months after the death of their lead singer, Andrew Wood. It's a heavy album because the listener knows they're listening to the last words of a dying man, but even without the heartbreak, Apple is a wonderful collection of songs. It's not a thick grunge sound. With elements of blues and the best of 80s hair bands, combined with a lighter Led Zeppelin sound, this is a confident album. If you've never heard of Andrew Wood, give songs like "Crown of Thorns" and "Stardog Champions" a chance to truly understand a talent who was lost way too young.
Thanks to the seismic attention given to their 1991 album, Nevermind, Nirvana were the kings of grunge in 1992. With a heavy touring schedule and it taking two years for their 1993 follow-up, In Utero, to be released, there needed to be something in the meantime to capitalize on their immense fame. They found it with a collection of B-sides called Incesticide. While these songs may not have been deemed worthy of being on a studio album, they are just as good as anything else the band has done. With a more raw, punk sound, a welcome change from the polished pop of Nevermind, chaotic tracks like "Aneurysm" kick you in the teeth. For our money, though, nothing matches the heartbreak of Kurt Cobain singing as a lonely little boy in "Sliver."
