Lessons from Generation X

Continuing on the music theme I decided that for this blog I would list the 10 alternative albums that I consider to be essential listening.  I grew up in the 90s so I have limited this list to 90s alternative albums.  There are definitely others from the 80s (and 00s) that could have made the list but they weren’t considered.  Regardless, I think that if you were only to have these 10 albums your alternative collection would be pretty solid.  Also, new this blog I decided to build a spotify playlist containing some of my favorite tunes from each of these albums.  You can check that out here:  90s Alternative

 (make sure you have spotify open when you click the link) or just have a look at my public playlists on spotify.  Ok, here is my list (in no particular order):

Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik:  All killer, no filler.  That pretty much sums this one up.  This album is a masterpiece and like Radiohead’s OK Computer (see below) you hear something new in it every time you give it a listen.  This is by far the best album that the Chili Peppers ever recorded.  I once read a review that stated that they should have called it quits after this album…although that does seem a little extreme, it is true that their career could have been considered complete after this album.  I am not sure that I know of any other album that covers so much ground (funk, rock, acoustic ballads, etc.) in just over an hour.  I know, “Under the Bridge” was played to death on MTV but that tune is still fantastic when I go back and listen to it now. 

Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral:  I actually saw Nine Inch Nails on the ‘Self Destruct’ tour supporting this album and it was an incredible show.  Trent Reznor is truly a musical genius and the Downward Spiral is his masterwork.  Every song is a different mood and different musical landscape culminating in the beautiful and breathtakingly emotional “Hurt”.  I remember the performance of “Hurt” at that NIN show (which was 19 years ago last month…jeez I’m old) and it truly felt voyeuristic to watch Trent sing that tune. 

Nirvana Nevermind:  I just happened to be watching MTV (back when they still played music videos) when the world premier showing of the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video happened.  I sat there watching that video for the five minutes that it lasted and it blew my mind.  I had never heard anything like it and knew that music had changed forever.  Two days later I begged my grandparents to take me to the mall so that I could buy a copy of Nevermind and I have had it in my collection ever since.  You can say what you want about how played out some of these tunes became because of radio play but upon listening to it now it still sounds completely fresh. 

Alice in Chains Dirt:  The 90s was a decade full of really dark music and Alice in Chains is definitely not a sunshine and puppies kind of band.  Personally, I think that Dirt is probably their darkest (and best) album.  It’s clear from the lyrics of tunes like “Junkhead” that drugs had already begun to take a strong hold on Layne Staley’s life.   The drugs clearly have a huge impact on the mood of the album making much of it seem melancholic, detached and isolated.  Regardless, it is really a beautiful artistic endeavor and a fantastic album that I listened to almost non-stop for a year after it was first released. 

Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream:  I still remember the first time that I heard this album.  I was hanging out with a friend of mine that had moved to my hometown from Seattle and he put on a CD (which turned out to be Siamese Dream) and the opening drum role of “Cherub Rock” just drew me in.  I was floored that I had not previously heard their stuff (I had I just didn’t know it) and made him let me borrow the CD.  Siamese Dream (like many of the albums on this list) is truly a great album in that it covers so many different moods, themes, and styles of music.  All of that and it has also stood the test of time.

Jane’s Addiction Ritual de lo Habitual:  Released in August of 1990, this album barely makes the cutoff for 90s alternative but I’m glad that it does. This album covers more musical ground over the course of 51 minutes than most bands do in an entire career.  Hard rock, guitar based jams, funk, ethereal…they are all covered and they are all done perfectly.  It’s really too bad that ego led to the separation of this band while they were at a creative peak but if you have to go out then this is the way to go.

Beastie Boys Check Your Head:  Some would argue that the Beastie Boys aren’t alternative but they would be wrong.  I will admit that their first album would fall outside the realm but everything after that fits the bill.  Check Your Head is really the album that got me into the Beasties.  What I think sets this one apart from say Paul’s Boutique is that the Beasties moved back to playing their own instruments on this record (i.e. there are very few samples).  Not only do they play their own instruments but they play them really well.  They set up several grooves that are killer and this album also doesn’t lack in the catchy tune category (see “So What‘cha Want, “Pass the Mic”).

Soundgarden Superunknown:  I love Soundgarden.  Picking between Superunknown and Badmotorfinger was probably the hardest choice I had while putting this list together.  I have always loved Badmotorfinger (“Outshined” should be on anyone’s essential alternative tune list) but overall I think that Superunknown is a more cohesive album.  Some of these tunes were obviously played out (see “Black Hole Sun”) but that’s because they were really great.  It’s hard to find a better rock vocalist than Chris Cornell and he really brings it in spades on this album.   

Radiohead OK Computer:  OK Computer is hands down one of the best alternative albums of the 90s and as time progresses is likely to be considered one of the best albums of all time.  It is sheer effing brilliance.  I have probably listened to it in its entirety 1000+ times and I still hear new things in it with every listen.  There are really too many high points to list with this one so I will simply say that if you don’t own it then there is a hole in your life.

Pearl Jam Ten:  When I first heard the tune “Alive” I didn’t really appreciate it.  About 6 months later I was in the music store (Camelot Music for those of you Goldsboro, NC natives) looking for some new tunes and the guy working in the store (whose name escapes me) recommended that I check out this band Pearl Jam.  I remembered being ambivalent about that tune of theirs that I had previously heard but decided that it was only $10 and bought the CD.  What I heard when I got home was that these guys were the real deal.  Ten is a scorcher that just gets better as the album progresses. Also, I have to go on record that Mike McCready is perhaps the most underrated guitarist in rock.  That guy can flat out play a guitar and play it he does throughout this entire album.   

So there is my list.  Disagree with me? Think I left something out?  I would love to hear your top albums so leave me a comment.