[billboard]Why 1991 Was the Best Musical Year of the '90s

No it really isn't the same. Nirvana isn't the Beatles. They have 3 albums. I'm not asking to be an *******, I'm just curious. They obviously were leaders in changing the music scene and the success of Nevermind was huge in pushing rock forward but they weren't alone. i was listening to Outshined at the same time as Teen Spirit. What does last biggest band in the world mean?

 

And Pearl Jam.

 

1994-1995 in the best since late 1968-1969. The music, movies, culture... Etc was amazing. Could also be that I am drunk off a 12 pack of Three Floyd's Zombie Dust and 2 Dark Lord's and am remembering tag teaming a pair of Rocket's cheerleaders AND in June of 95 porked Liz Phair and in August of 95 porked that chick Lisa Lobe while my girlfriend watched... I dunno, anyway 1994-1995 was awesome.

 

They were the last band that was on the level of bands that we say are the "biggest in the world". Even with only 4 albums worth of material (Bleach, Nevermind, Insecticide, and In Utero) they were on the same level as bands like the Beatles....the unquestioned biggest band in the world starting in 1991.

Simply put, if there was no Nirvana, the Seattle sound is an afterthought and most of the population would have already forgotten or never known about bands like Soundgarden and Alice in Chains despite those bands being formed before Nirvana.

As to hearing "Outshined" at the same time, that's because the Teen Spirit video had just taken over the world and people were gobbling up the Seattle sound as quickly as they could. The Teen spirit video premiered on September 29, 1991 and the Outshined video didn't hit the airwaves till December of that year (if you remember, back in those days music videos were really important).

 

1994 in movies was ridiculous.

 

Gish was 91.. So now I agree.
I could have sworn it came out in 92.. Woops.

 

Ugly Kid Joe were better than Nirvana.

 

Saying "better" is a matter of taste, someone could try to argue that Primus was better than the Rolling Stones if they wanted to and IMO that's pretty much the same as saying Ugly Kid Joe is better than Nirvana.

It's a more objective conversation when we are talking about "most influential" rather than "better".

 

LOL. I never could stand Eddie Vedders vocals. To me he always sounded like the Swedish Chef singing

 

Crazy thing. Is that for me, all the established bands '91 albums were awful. I lived U2 but thought Achtung Baby was pure crap - U2 trying to hard to be edgy and thereby losing their edge. REM's Out of Time was definitely a departure. Less jangle, more blah and much more boring. RHCP Blood Sugar Sex Magick was definitely a turn for the worse as the band became too serious and less energetic and fun. It was the end of alternative music as the alternative to the mainstream went mainstream with a more pop sound. Nirvana could've been the saving grace if it weren't for the sound-a likes pushing it all into the top 10 ensuring that record execs would have to strong-arm good bands like Mudhoney and Soul Asylum to make more commercial, less interesting albums.

 

1991 was RIGHT when commercial cd players became more popular and people moved away from cassettes.

Guns and Roses Appetite for Destruction we bought on tapes.
G & R Use Your Illusion we got on clean crisp digital audio - and we could actually skip ahead FORWARD listening to music with having to actually wait to REWIND and starting and stopping to find the place (!)

Had to have some bit of influence in receptiveness of music. More convenience, more clarity of sound that can benefit experimentation, and of even benefit the loud thumping booty bumping bass rap of the time. I can't imagine alternative music even existing on cumbersome cassettes.

But dat Girl Power, doe

 

war, joshua tree and unforgettable fire disagree.

 

Wasn't Pavement's first album out in 91 too?

 

I don't know about these "The best... this and that" things, but 1991 was a strong year, Pixies Trompe le Monde also came out then.

 

Arguing about best music year in the 90's (not to mention later) is like arguing over whether Elly May or Jethro was the smartest one. Sure, Elly May understood animals and Jethro made it through 6th grade and could cipher a bit, but neither one would be considered smart.

 

Yes. Absolutely, IMO.

The mainstreaming of geek/nerd culture can be traced directly to Nirvana's rise. They "legitimized" the fringe, those outsiders who had singular passions that were not easily, or readily, embraced by the mainstream. Those outsiders have since grown-up and become the epicenter of pop culture.

Think about, for instance, where comic book movies were 25 years ago v. now. In 1989, Tim Burton released Batman - a giant hit, and yet, throughout the rest of the 90s... other than Batman's two sequels, the only other comic book movie of any significance (OTTOMH) was TMNT in '90. The next big one? X-Men, about marginalized heroes being persecuted for being "different," written by a guy who was 22 in '91 and directed by a guy who was 26 (and gay, FYI).

I think their impact was seismic; an organic (not pre-determined) rise that broke through and managed to tap directly into a wandering generation that was seeking its own path.

 

And eight great ones.