Allow me to let you guys in on a little secret that’s actually not a secret at all, but we’re calling it that for the sake of dramatic effect… Sometimes, in journalism, you get to pitch assignments that you really want to do, and sometimes you don’t pitch enough, so your infinitely patient editors — who should probably be having regular “come to Jesus” meetings with you — have to assign you things to write. This is the latter.
Honestly, my initial reaction was hesitancy, because who actually ticks all the boxes that Nirvana did, and isn’t named “Pearl Jam” or “Foo Fighters.” The more I thought about it, though, the more I began to feel really excited about the challenge of figuring out what four grunge bands deserve a place next to Nirvana’s creativity, fervor, talent, importance, and/or general magnetism.
To start, let’s point out a couple of obvious ones…
Soundgarden
Look, no one is going to argue that Soundgarden isn’t one of the top five biggest grunge bands of all time — as well as a forbearer of the genre — but what we’re talking about is matching the iconography of Kurt Cobain and Nirvana, which is no easy feat, but I’ll be damned if Chris Cornell and Soundgarden don’t get there.
From Badmotorfinger being a masterpiece to Superunknown being a DOUBLE masterpiece, the band just fired on every single cylinder, composing some of the most thoughtful and passionate grunge music of the ’90s.
I feel like if I really have to sell you on this one, then… with all due respect… you’re a lost cause.
Alice in Chains
This one might just be personal for me (though I swear I’m trying to be objective), but Alice in Chains was the first grunge band I really loved, and, to this day, they remain my favorite band of the era. In the days before the death of frontman Layne Staley, the band had just as many, if not more, top 10 hits as Nirvana, and that’s an impressive stat.
There’s also something about the way AiC created this tether to the metal world, even more than their grunge peers, that I feel like merits recognition. Musically, they were very heavy, leaning on big, loud, fuzzy guitar parts, while also exploring deeper, darker depths, as Staley sang lyrics like: “Is she ready to know my frustration? / What she slippin’ inside, slow castration / I’m a riddle so strong, you can’t break me / Did she come here to try, try to take me?” (from “Rain When I Die.”)
I’m convinced that Alice in Chains had a huge impact on a lot of Millennials getting into heavier music, and if you ask just about any metalhead who their favorite grunge band is, I’d bet real money that, say, 85 percent of them would likely mention Alice in Chains.
Screaming Trees
OK, so shifting gears a little, let’s talk about a band that genuinely deserves more credit than they get for their role in the evolution of grunge.
The Screaming Trees were formed in Washington state in 1984 by vocalist Mark Lanegan (who later went on to play with Queens of the Stone Age), guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bassist Van Conner, and drummer Mark Pickerel, who was replaced by Barrett Martin (Mad Season) in 1991.
They are widely considered to be one of the pioneers of grunge, alongside bands like the Melvins and Mudhoney, but there’s always been something about the way they approached songwriting that was a clear blueprint for the countless bands that came after them. These guys were writing songs in the late ’80s that made way for a lot of what came around on the radio a decade later.
Whereas most bands knew they couldn’t copy Nirvana, everyone really tried to copy Screaming Trees’ The Doors-meet-The Beach-Boys style, but no one ever did it without watering down the sound, making the Screaming Trees infinitely unique.
Hole
I can already see you seething. I just know some of you are insensed that I would have the nerve to include Courtney Love on this list, but… here we were.
I refuse to engage in conspiracy theory and misogynistic conjecture, and I will stand on business to say that the bullshit speculation that Courtney Love had anything to do with Kurt Cobain’s death is the only reason that Hole does not get the respect they fucking deserve.
Dopping Pretty on the Inside in 199 and then following that up with Live Through This just three years later was a wild back-to-back, but then they came back and Celebrity Skin in ’98, which I am not ashamed to say is on par with the Smashing Pumpkins’ Adore (released the same year) as being some of the last great grunge music of the ’90s (also, not made by Pearl Jam or Foo Fighters.)
Hole’s music is aggressive and grating at times, just like Love’s personality and stage presence. I get that this could sound like an insult, but I mean it as a glowing compliment. She took no shit from anyone, always spoke her mind, and used her art to make people uncomfortable. I will forever respect the hell out of Courtney Love and Hole.
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