1991: Losing My Religion and Smells Like Teen Spirit. (1 Viewer)

[Thomas_Berg]

Tool is really the only band from the early 90's (that I can think of) that is still imporatant to fans and critics.

Radiohead? U2? Lenny Kravitz? Weezer? Red Hot Chili Peppers? Metallica (even though they are kinda at the end of their time)?
just to name a few.
REM released a new album in the past year that got some attention. i am a big fan of Tool's though. if you are a musician (even if you don't like rock music), listen to a few tracks and be amazed at the time signatures they use. some of my favs are The Grudge, Lateralis, Forty-six & 2, Schism, and Stinkfest. if you do decide to take a listen, make sure you hear the whole song through. they really do play around with the music, and you'll appreciate this more if you're a musician of any sort.

 

[Tom Ryan]

Radiohead? U2? Lenny Kravitz? Weezer? Red Hot Chili Peppers? Metallica (even though they are kinda at the end of their time)?

I think he was referring to bands that had their first big success in the early 90's, although Radiohead, Kravitz, Weezer and the Chili Peppers would certainly all apply there. Metallica and U2 were already pretty big (though Metallica really did explode in 91-92).

-Tom

 

[Todd H]

My two favorite years are 1991 and 1992. I turned 21 in 1991 and was attending the University of Georgia in Athens at the time. As you know, Athens is the birthplace of R.E.M. so everyone there was happy to see their favorite local band make such an impact.

As for the other big acts of 1991-92, I loved the music that appeared then. You had acts such as Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, NIN, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alice In Chains, and Rage Against The Machine all making a huge impact. And who could forget Lolapalooza? That was a turning point for rock because it destroyed what was left of that crappy hair-metal.

I have a feeling that we're due for the next big thing to hit again. Like someone said earlier, it comes in ten year cycles. The kids that are listening to this pop crap now will become angry teens soon and want music that is a bit more rebellious. Who knows what this new music will sound like...

 

[Frank_W]

First off, I did not like 'Losing My Religion' at all.

I do remember the video, which I think had a lot to do

with the popularity of this record. Visually it was

a damn fine one.

What I do not understand is grunge. I was 23 in '91.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal was just starting to decline.

But there was still GnR, Queensryche and Metallica.

However Nirvana and Pearl Jam were hitting it big time.

However, a lot of us (friends who

liked the harder type of music) loved Soundgarden and

Alice in Chains. Soundgarden was a pretty heavy band

and Alice was not much different than the hard rock/hair bands,

except a lot more talented (very important hehe) but

the look and sounds were not too far removed.

I know it can be as simple as this but was it just the clothes and bitching about life

(mixed with a little metal and punk) that dictated you were grunge or not?

It always boggled my mind. I'm just asking because, in my opinion, it went from having

fun to getting way too serious. Is this close, or am I just missing it?

Also in '91 we had The Black Crowes too, a band that I

liked quite a bit back then.

 

[Bill Leber]

However, a lot of us (friends who

liked the harder type of music) loved Soundgarden and

Alice in Chains. Soundgarden was a pretty heavy band

and Alice was not much different than the hard rock/hair bands,

except a lot more talented (very important hehe) but

the look and sounds were not too far removed.

The appeal, to me at least, was honesty. Maybe it was a dillusion, but the Soundgardens, Nirvanas et. al seemed to be doing it for the music and to convey an attitude and feeling rather than looking cool, getting the chicks, and showing off with big guitar solos.

Musically, besides lyrical content, I think the decreased importance of the guitar solo is the biggest difference between "grunge" and "heavy metal."

As for my previous list. I'd put RHCP in the "largely ignored" column. They're last 2 albums haven't had nearly the significance and I don't think they're reaching as many of the younger fans today.

Radiohead and Weezer are in a seperate catagory because they're the bands who got their deals beacause Nirvana was succesful. The ripple effect I guess.

 

[Sheldon C]

Ahhh I was a senior in high school in 91-92. The album that had the biggest impact on me was Metallica's Black Album. I thought this truly was an amazing album until I bought their 80's stuff and realized that for Metallica, the black album was just "ok". From 92 on there hasn't been any albums by any bands that could compete with 80's Metallica IMO.

I think a lot of people had the same experience as I did, because the album Ride the Lightning which was released in '84 actually peaked on the charts in 94!

 

[MikeH1]

I'd put RHCP in the "largely ignored" column. They're last 2 albums haven't had nearly the signifigance and I don't think they're reaching as many of the younger fans today

I agree and disagree. Your right when you speak of the RHCP not reaching as many of the youth as 10 years ago. The band is not "MTV" enough. But I wouldn't call Californication not significant. The music itself wasn't groundbreaking but what was in this day of one hit wonder bands/properly tuned boybands is that almost 18 months after its release it was still in the top 40. I believe 5 singles went to top 10.

In this day and age thats pretty impressive. And much more significant than what Blood Sugar Sex Magic ever did in 1992. That album brought them to the world of mainstream. Californication proved 7 years later that they could adapt without losing their sound.

 

[Sheldon C]

Anybody else notice that Anthony is completely tone deaf? I like his voice on the albums, but live it is a painful experience.