Grunge music broke to the mainstream when Nirvana released their album Nevermind in 1991. After that hell broke loose and several grunge bands hit the popular music charts and got air time on the radio stations. The majority of the groups were from the Seattle area and grunge is commonly referred to as grunge from Seattle.
Grunge is often described as a mix of heavy metal and punk however differs from both of the styles with slow ” pulse ” riffs and harmonies. Grunge was a lot more than only the music. A lot of grunge band members were noted for their unkempt appearances and they did not present themselves as rock stars, similarly to the members of Guns and Roses or Bon Jovi.
The thing that was quite interesting about the grunge phenomenon had to be the dark and sometimes depressing lyrics. Very few people think about what the songs they listen to are really about. A lot of them would be alarmed if they knew what the best grunge songs were really about.
The song Nuthell sums this up pretty much. Nutshell by Layne Staley the lead singer of Alice In Chains is an ideal example of dark lyrics that are packed with anxiety and sadness. Many songs from the grunge bands were about drug addiction, rape victims, child abuse, and things of that nature.
What is surprising is the u-turn from the late 80′s.
Beasty Boys sang about that you had to fight for your right to party, Motley Crue sang about Girls, Girls, Girls, Def Leppard sang about pouring sugar over people and Van Halen sang about jumping.
One of the reason why grunge music got very popular during the early 90′s was that the teenagers didnĀ“t connect with the music style of the late 80′s.
One might ask if we’re seeing an end of an era. Is the youth connecting with the best-selling music nowadays? One could make the argument there does exist way too much of manufactured rock out there.
Is a brand-new grunge wave coming?