I’m having a large debate with a group of friends about how influential “grunge” music was in the 90’s.
I (and a couple other people) think grunge was a major influence of the decade both musically and culturly (sp?). The rest of the group denies this big time. They say rap and “techno-pop” is more “90’s” than grunge.
Am I wrong?
MtM
Hmm I think of the growth of industrial and EBM music mostly, but I suspect that is because it reflects my own interests more than anything else.
In answer to your question though, I think the grunge movement revitalised what was again becoming stale, much as punk did way back when.
As a rock fan, I think of grunge first but the 90s will be remembered for rap as much as the 70s was for Disco, I’m betting.
Garth Brooks
Oh shit, the 90s are over?
oh yeah, can’t forget the huge jump in popularity and influence of Tejano music.
I don’t think one label will suffice, guys.
What 90’s music.there wasn’t any…
“Alternative Rock.”
Pearl Jam, STP, Smashing Pumpkins, etc.
As I read the thread title “Nevermind” started playing in my head.
I was into Soundgarden and Pearl Jam, but I think ultimately grunge was an evolutionary dead end in music. I don’t know of any new music that has any kind of grunge-type sound to it.
The end of good pop music 
MtM, my first thought upon reading the title of your thread was Pearl Jam, STP and Nirvana.
I don’t particularly like rap or techno pop, so that’s why I can say rap and techno pop was not a major musical influence for me in the '90s. By the same token, it’s definitely not been an influence on what I listen to now.
I think grunge is not as much of an influence as you think. I see grunge as more of the culmination of many influences, such as The Pixies, Husker Du, Black Flag, Bad Brains, Beatles, Stooges, etc. Not that grunge isn’t an influence, but I don’t think it is near the level of influence of these bands. It isn’t that big of a step from these bands. I would say that techno and rap are both bigger influences that come from the 90’s.
Please Hammer don’t hurt them.
But we were doing techno in the early 80s. It may have evolved in the 90s, but its roots go back deep into the 70s, maybe older. Same with rap.
Upon seeing this thread title, Nirvana immediately popped into mind, quickly followed by** Pear Jam, STP, Smashing Pumpkins**, etc. etc.
But I think UnwrittenNocturne is on the right track - it would depend on your own interests. I have never listened to anything except rock and pop, so I would have no clue as to how much, say, Garth Brooks influenced anything.
I say grunge, but I was a metalhead/grungelover in the 90s. For me, it means good Metallica, Nirvana at its peak, Soundgarden, etc.
I say PM Dawn. For all intents and purposes they were the quintessential 90’s band. Had their first big hit in 1991 (Set Adrift on Memory Bliss if I recall correctly) then released a string of great songs throughout the decade (Looking Through Patient Eyes, I’d Die Without You, Moving On Up amongst others). They released their greatest hits album in 2000.
Plus you can’t beat their Album titles:
Jesus Wept
The Bliss Album…? (Vibrations of Love and Anger and the Ponderance of Life and Existence)
Dearest Christian, I’m So Very Sorry For Bringing You Here, Love Dad (Greates. Album. Title. Ever)
Of The Heart, Of The Soul And Of The Cross: The Utopian Experience
The 80’s ended musically in '91-'92 with Nirvana. With them entering the main stream mind, topping the charts, being played 24/7 on MTV and selling posters to adorn the walls of millions of teenage rooms, the last remnants of the 80’s were thrown out. By that I mean poodle hair, Yamaha DX7 and Roland D50 synths. It totally threw the fashion industry as well. Geekier guys in a neo punk style suddenly entered center stage, with record companies looking for ‘the next Nirvana’.
Musically, I guess it was a dead end, much in the same way punk was. But the influence at the time was tremendous, as with punk, and the repercusions are still felt, if not heard. Guys wanting to play rock got out from the shadow of Stones, Zeppelin, Stooges. Those playing more pop like music got out from the influence of Bowie, Roxy Music and T-Rex (who totally shaped the new wave scene of the 80’s), merging pop with puink and we got Wheezer (Buddy Holly is the pop song of the 90’s). These trashy pop bands would never have made it, had Nirvana not cleared away all the garbage from the 80’s.
So what’s left now?
Hip-Hip/Rap is getting very mainstream with Eminem taking it out to the ‘White suburban street punks’. A lot of black guys doing rap are caught up taking samples from white main stream music, or falling victims to their own gangsta posing.
However, I notice new bands relying more on playing real intruments, and not resorting to sequencers, synths and pre-recorded drum loops. I feel something is bound to happen with black music scene soon, as it seems about to implode. Black guys venturing into r’n’r have been very succesful in the past. Maybe we’re about to see some of that on a larger scale?
So anyway. Getting older (I’m 42) means gaining perspective. And I can clearly see that there is no possible way to over rate Nirvana. The band and the album Nevermind are the single most important musical event of the 90’s.
I think of grunge. The techno-pop stuff seemed to me to be relegated to two or three years, like 89-92. Maybe that’s just because I stopped caring about it when I became an angsty teenager, though.