Grunge
Emerged from late 1980s Seattle, Washington
Seattle's gift to the world. Heavy, raw, flannel-wrapped.
Grunge fused punk's aggression with metal's weight and wrapped it in Pacific Northwest rain and existential dread. For a brief, incandescent moment in the early 1990s, it was the biggest thing in music, then it burned itself out, because that's what grunge does.
What started in Seattle's basements and dive bars, Sub Pop singles, all-ages shows at the Crocodile, became a cultural earthquake that buried hair metal overnight and proved that mainstream audiences were hungry for something real.
Defining Characteristics
—Heavy, downtuned guitars
—Angst-filled lyrics
—Dynamic shifts
—Raw production
—Punk-metal fusion
Essential Artists
Essential Albums
1991
Nevermind—Nirvana
1991
Ten—Pearl Jam
1994
Superunknown—Soundgarden
1992
Dirt—Alice in Chains
1993
In Utero—Nirvana