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Four of the five major grunge band lead singers are now gone

Sorcerer

Sorcerer

Member
I could have sworn I read a quote by Cornell that said something along the lines of depression was comforting/fun to him and he wouldn't know how to live without it.
That line really struck me.
 
J

jstripes

Banned
see5harp said:
I'm referring to the "it's hard to explain if you weren't listening at the time" line like I wasn't actual a teenager listening to radio and buying music.
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You were probably 9 or 10 when the grunge explosion happened, though. Unless you were super aware of music in grade 4, of course.
 
V

Violence Jack

Member
My mother wouldn't allow me to listen to grunge music growing up (I could listen to all the R&B and Rap that I wanted to for some reason). But thanks to a friend in middle school who made me some mix tapes, I got hooked on it back in 94. Along with New Jack Swing, Grunge became my favorite period of music, and defined my music tastes going forward.
 
D

Dishwalla

Banned
captive said:
the offspring are more punk than anything.
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Why did you single out The Offspring when Bad Religion(Gurewitz), Rancid(Tim Armstrong), and NOFX(Fat Mike) are all arguably more punk?

I used "alt rock" in the greater sense of the term. 1994, the year punk broke, is one of my favorite years in music.
 
M

Markoman

Member
In hindsight I think the idea that "Grunge" was some sort of rock revolution was way overblown.
Bands like Poison, Motley Crue vanished because of personal differences, drugs, lack of talent to maintain quality, and so on - Grunge was just a final death-blow to them.
People tend to forget that the music business as a whole was a completely different game in 1987-1992.
Guns n' Roses looked like bums way before grunge and they were huge. Metallica was huge. Soundgarden and AiC were signed by majors before Smells like Teen Spirit.
Hell even Suicidal Tendencies had a major record deal in 1990. This was Rock's last stand in regards to mass appeal and the record labels banked on it in advance.
 
J

jstripes

Banned
Dishwalla said:
Why did you single out The Offspring when Bad Religion(Gurewitz), Rancid(Tim Armstrong), and NOFX(Fat Mike) are all arguably more punk?

I used "alt rock" in the greater sense of the term. 1994, the year punk broke, is one of my favorite years in music.
Click to expand...

The Offspring are pop-punk, not true punk.

Markoman said:
In hindsight I think the idea that "Grunge" was some sort of rock revolution was way overblown.
Bands like Poison, Motley Crue vanished because of personal differences, drugs, lack of talent to maintain quality, and so on - Grunge was just a final death-blow to them.
People tend to forget that the music business as a whole was a completely different game in 1987-1992.
Guns n' Roses looked like bums way before grunge and they were huge. Metallica was huge. Soundgarden and AiC were signed by majors before Smells like Teen Spirit.
Hell even Suicidal Tendencies had a major record deal in 1990. This was Rock's last stand in regards to mass appeal and the record labels banked on it in advance.
Click to expand...
Guns'N'Roses may have had a grungy "look", but they peddled arena rock.
 
F

Faiz

Member
Dishwalla said:
Why did you single out The Offspring when Bad Religion(Gurewitz), Rancid(Tim Armstrong), and NOFX(Fat Mike) are all arguably more punk?

I used "alt rock" in the greater sense of the term. 1994, the year punk broke, is one of my favorite years in music.
Click to expand...

For that matter, so was Green Day since you mentioned Billy Joe, initially at least. They came out of Gilman, and Billy Joe even played with Rancid briefly. Hell, Green Day's first show as Green Day was at Operation Ivy's final public performance.

jstripes said:
The Offspring are pop-punk, not true punk.
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Oh god here we go.
 
M

Markoman

Member
jstripes said:
The Offspring are pop-punk, not true punk.


Guns'N'Roses may have had a grungy "look", but they peddled arena rock.
Click to expand...

Of course, I was refering to OP's intro which makes it look like Rock was "all clean", make-up and hair before Grunge happened which imo is a general misconception of that era.
 
C

Crimsonclaw111

Member
Reminder that Heroin is fucked up. Every single one of these dudes used it and it fucking killed them.

The one that bothers me most is Staley... Dude was dead for ages before anybody was able to find him. Nobody spoke to him. He just drank, did drugs, and played video games all day...
 
K

kitchenmotors

Banned
Not sure while Billy is being brought up, while I loved 90s Pumpkins, dude hasn't been relevant for years.

The main 90s rocker still relevant and doing many projects is Trent Reznor. Dude has gone through addiction and came out clean and focused. And still puts on one of the best live shows, ever.
 
F

Faiz

Member
Fercho said:
Blink 182 is Pop Punk?

If Yes, you will put the Offspring in the same category than Blink?
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Who gives a shit. I'll call the Ramones pop punk and it doesn't mean anything because the Ramones are one of the greatest bands of all time.
 
T

timetokill

Banned
100%TrophyMaster said:
I followed Silverchair for awhile--really wish Daniel Johns still rocked out like the old days
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Diorama was their best album though. I don't blame them for trying to ape Pearl Jam so hard as kids when they put out Frogstomp, but at least by Neon Ballroom they were starting to sound like their own band.
 
J

jstripes

Banned
Markoman said:
Of course, I was refering to OP's intro which makes it look like Rock was "all clean", make-up and hair before Grunge happened which imo is a general misconception of that era.
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Oh, rock had that dress down aesthetic going for sure, but the attitude was still bombastic, compared to grunge's intimacy. Anyway, for your best view of the world of rock on the cusp of grunge watch Wayne's World.

Wc7UV94.jpg


Of course, that was about the rock scene in the working class Toronto Chicago suburb of Scarborough Aurora. In my upper middle class suburb on the other side of Toronto, I saw people my age go from preppy shits wearing Vuarnet, Benetton, and sometimes Chip & Pepper to a sea of flannel and thrift store sweaters over the course of a summer. That was the mainstream culture that shifted, which is what OP was probably getting at.

Fercho said:
Blink 182 is Pop Punk?

If Yes, you will put the Offspring in the same category than Blink?
Click to expand...
Yes. Yes I am.

kitchenmotors said:
Not sure while Billy is being brought up, while I loved 90s Pumpkins, dude hasn't been relevant for years.

The main 90s rocker still relevant and doing many projects is Trent Reznor. Dude has gone through addiction and came out clean and focused. And still puts on one of the best live shows, ever.
Click to expand...
Trent Reznor was also the brains behind Beats 1 on Apple Music, funny enough.
 
P

polyh3dron

Banned
Jeff-DSA said:
I miss grunge. You know, when guitar was still loud and in your face, there were good solos, and singers weren't afraid to really belt things out. Drummers actually had energy. Today's mainstream rock space is pretty bad and limp, comparatively.

At least Pearl Jam's new stuff is still listenable and actually fantastic live.
Click to expand...

At The Drive-In just dropped a new album. Fits your criteria IMO.
 
1

100%TrophyMaster

Member
timetokill said:
Diorama was their best album though. I don't blame them for trying to ape Pearl Jam so hard as kids when they put out Frogstomp, but at least by Neon Ballroom they were starting to sound like their own band.
Click to expand...

Oh man I totally agree---Diorama is my favorite album ever with Neon Ballroom a close second. I wish they would have continued in that vein of hard rock mixed with orchestra---so so good.
 
F

Fercho

Member
jstripes said:
O


Yes. Yes I am.
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Nah Bro, the difference of quality alone is enough to put them in a different category. I've always related Blink and their sound with this shitty nonthreatening, shopping mall "happy punk" bands who sounded all the same.
 
S

Saucestin_Roast

Member
Ok I love grunge and for my fellow grunge people I'm going to have to strongly urge you to check out a band called Dinosaur Pile Up!

Check this track out by them: "Mona Lisa"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOrK3FRxYd8 (Skip about a minute in if you don't want the video's intro)

"My Rock N Roll" is heavy as hell also
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhXs1UY_Kgk

This one is their new jam. Bit more modern but still heavily influenced by grunge: "11:11"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPr1JR1Iu3w

(forgive the screaming but...)

DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND CHECK THEM OUT IF YOU LIKE GRUNGE
Bonus track for the hell of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0l374JoJR4
 
Kev Kev

Kev Kev

Member
I was born in 87 so it's some of my earliest memories of rock music on the radio. Riding in my Dads work van on the way home from after school programs, then to and from football practice and eventually to and from the job site when I was old enough to work with him (well not legally lol, but I had to earn my allowance and being his helper paid more than house chores).

So in a way grunge will always have a special place in my heart. Screw the haters, I love all those bands and more from the early 90's rock scene.

Eddie Vedders work on the 'Into The Wild' soundtrack is really great for anyone who's never gave it a listen.
 
Q

Quikies83

Member
timetokill said:
Diorama was their best album though. I don't blame them for trying to ape Pearl Jam so hard as kids when they put out Frogstomp, but at least by Neon Ballroom they were starting to sound like their own band.
Click to expand...
Totally agree. I loved Diorama.
Neon Ballroom was my high school.
I picked up a guitar because of Daniel Johns.
 
Q

Quikies83

Member
100%TrophyMaster said:
Whooo loved both those bands so much.
Sixteen Stone and Frogstomp were so good.
I followed Silverchair for awhile--really wish Daniel Johns still rocked out like the old days
Click to expand...
:( Me too..
Saw Bush last month. It was pretty okay.
I also saw them on their sixteen stone tour. First show I ever went to - I was 12.
Never got to see Silverchair
 
B

Bandit1

Member
I like all the bands listed in the OP, but Soundgarden is on another level to me. Chris Cornell just had such an amazing voice. I was able to see him live in 2007 when he was touring solo. I was standing very close to the front and there was a point in the show as he was singing that he came over to the end of the stage I was at and he looked right at me. His death is the hardest-hitting of any celebrity that I can think of for me. I'm grateful I had the chance to see him live, but always hoped I'd get a chance to see Soundgarden after they reunited.
 
entremet

entremet

Member
It's sad but nothing last forever. Seems like the road musician life is hard on the psyche.

I know I could not do it.
 
U

uncelestial

Member
Brerlappin said:
Yes, the woman who was grieving so hard for her husband she literally climbed into the casket with him almost DEFINITEY HAD HIM KILLED. Jesus fucking Christ will people ever stop with this bullshit. There isnt enough tin foil in the fucking universe to make this true.
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Speaking of things that aren't true, Kurt was cremated. There was never a casket.
 
A

ATF487

Member
Timeaisis said:
I never understood why Soundgarden was considered grunge. It's more hard rock (and almost metal) a lot of the time. I guess it's from Seattle, so there's that, and that is where they started, to a degree.

Grunge has always been a really poor descriptor of music for me. Like alternative rock, which was also used to describe grunge.

EDIT: Oh, look someone agrees.

Yup, pretty much same.
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Grunge is sort of a weird concept, it's more of a scene vs. a genre. The only analogy I can think of at the moment is something like no wave.

Out of the bands considered grunge though, Soundgarden were my favorite. Badmotorfinger and Superunknown are absolute classics and better than anything the other grunge bands put out. I liked the idea of Nirvana a lot (and bump In Utero from time to time) but I always liked the bands they were influenced by much more than them.
 
A

admiraltaftbar

Member
jabuseika said:
Was Sonic Youth considered grunge?

They're still around.

So is My Bloody Valentine.
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Sonic youth started out as Grunge (and in that vein people are forgetting the Pixies also). Eventually sonic youth became a big player/founder of no-wave with bands like blonde redhead.

My bloody valentine is shoegaze.
 
T

truly101

I got grudge sucked!
Maybe its better to term it early 90s alternative rock. STP and the Pumpkins were never considered grunge bands but certainly considered part of the same larger alternative rock family. Grunge seemed to be reserved for the Seattle and NW music scenes, though bands like Dinosaur Jr, Scratch Acid and the Pixies were certainly influential to that scene.

Grunge hasn't been an active trend for years with a lot of those bands breaking up in the mid to late 90s, not just the major ones either.

I used to be all about that scene, I think I had at least one CD by about every act that had a modicum of exposure back then. Posies, Coffin Break, Love Battery, Tad, Fastbacks. Screaming Trees. Heck my user name was derived from a band of leftover members of Soundgarden and Screaming Trees. I still like some of those bands but I don't think Cornell's passing killed a movement, its been dead for a good while.
 
DiscoJer

DiscoJer

Member
I was a huge Posies fan. They were more of a power pop band though.

School of Fish was my favorite 90s band. They had one pretty big hit, 3 Strange Days, but their two albums were just great. But they didn't sell and they broke up, then the former lead singer died of testicular cancer.

Live was another favorite. I got Throwing Copper on the first day it came out and had no idea it would be so huge. Then it got so massively overplayed I got sick of them.

And Medicine. They were a noise rock band. And shoe gaze.

There was a lot of different types of rock in the 90s. Really vibrant era.

STP to me was always more a hard rock band, but to me, so was most "grunge". Grunge typically featured very heavy guitars
 
C

CrunchyB

Member
And somehow Neil Young is still alive and making music.

Sure, his last few albums weren't anything special, but his live performances are still good stuff.
 
U

uncelestial

Member
jabuseika said:
Was Sonic Youth considered grunge?

They're still around.

So is My Bloody Valentine.
Click to expand...
Sonic Youth is not considered grunge, and they broke up after Kim and Thurston divorced.

My Bloody Valentine are shoegaze. They're like, the band pictured when you search for shoegaze.
 
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