The Best of 90's rock

Started by revolt, September 05, 2008, 18:10:52

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revolt

Example nr.1

Morphine were an American trio known among other things for using an unusual instrumental combination: two string bass, saxophone and drums. Sometimes on record this combination would expand to other instruments, some more common (guitar, organ, piano), other more "strange" (ukekele, the tritar). Outside rock itself, blues and jazz were their main influences. All combined in a poweful and rather unique synthesis. Though they could occasionally sound a bit "out there", most of the time it can be said that they are quite straightforward in their approach. Even catchy.

Best albums: "Good" (1992) and specially "Cure for Pain" (1993) and "Yes" (1995) (the remaining 2 albums are also good, though)

Musical links:

"Honey White" (from "Yes")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=fJv7Y8KvCqo#18

"I'm Free Now" (from "Cure for Pain")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=NEvnyj2S7EU




KingOfSomeIsland

Good band! Mind if I add a couple?

#2: Faith No More

An alternative rock band best known for the songs We Care A Lot and Epic although they actually put out alot of good music. They were merely mediocre when led by original vocalist Chuck Mosely but they truly reached their stride after hiring Mr Bungle frontman Mike Patton as their singer. Pattons humour and energy gave the music new life as well as a more experimental twist besides straight hard rock.

Best Albums: Angel Dust (1992), King For a Day... Fool For a Lifetime (1995)

Song Links:

"Falling to Pieces" from The Real Thing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wr5gdrj6bZQ

"A Small Victory" from Angel Dust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGKjeRgn4CA

"Evidence" from King For A Day...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgY_UGV08rY


#3: Eels

Essentially a one man project of Mark Oliver Everett better known as just E. Combining a dark and cynical sense of humour with odd studio techniques among them using toy insturments and radiators to create a unique and fun sound.

Best Albums: Beautiful Freak (1996), Electro-Shock Blues (1998)

Song Links:

"Your Lucky Day In Hell" from Beautiful Freak
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1ED9ky-ojQ

"Novocaine for the Soul" from Beautiful Freak
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sHj6V1lfek

"Last Stop: This Town" from Electro-Shock Blues
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8hyCWH1Ww0

"Mr. E's Beautiful Blues" from Daisies of the Galaxy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZFLmhFn0mg

revolt

Quote from: KingOfSomeIsland on September 07, 2008, 23:14:52
Good band! Mind if I add a couple?

#2: Faith No More

An alternative rock band best known for the songs We Care A Lot and Epic although they actually put out alot of good music. They were merely mediocre when led by original vocalist Chuck Mosely but they truly reached their stride after hiring Mr Bungle frontman Mike Patton as their singer. Pattons humour and energy gave the music new life as well as a more experimental twist besides straight hard rock.

Best Albums: Angel Dust (1992), King For a Day... Fool For a Lifetime (1995)

Song Links:

"Falling to Pieces" from The Real Thing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wr5gdrj6bZQ

"A Small Victory" from Angel Dust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGKjeRgn4CA

"Evidence" from King For A Day...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgY_UGV08rY


#3: Eels

Essentially a one man project of Mark Oliver Everett better known as just E. Combining a dark and cynical sense of humour with odd studio techniques among them using toy insturments and radiators to create a unique and fun sound.

Best Albums: Beautiful Freak (1996), Electro-Shock Blues (1998)

Song Links:

"Your Lucky Day In Hell" from Beautiful Freak
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1ED9ky-ojQ

"Novocaine for the Soul" from Beautiful Freak
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sHj6V1lfek

"Last Stop: This Town" from Electro-Shock Blues
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8hyCWH1Ww0

"Mr. E's Beautiful Blues" from Daisies of the Galaxy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZFLmhFn0mg


Faith No More were indeed a good band, at least in those 2 albums you mention as the best. It helps that they had one of the best vocalists in rock's history.

As for the Eeels, it's probably the kind of band that I've heard before somewhere without knowing who they are. Probably the 4th track in your post (which, by the way, I think is the weakest of the four: the melody kind of gets stuck in your head but the general sound of it is too close to general indie pop, I think. Also maybe close to a Beck average track?). There's quite some interesting sounds and grooves in the other three, though, even if in all of them I prefer the first part of the song (the intro and verse) to the chorus... Maybe because the singer goes into falsetto there - I've never really liked that kind of high-pitched singing (well, unless it is done by Bono or Mick Jagger, maybe the only two singers that can sound good to my ears when they're doing that kind of stuff).

revolt

Well, even though I'm not sure I can second that Eels nomination, I'm going to accept the order number and just go on with this anyway. With more people participating this will be more fun, and that is the spirit, I think.


Example nr. 4

It is 5 A.M. and you are listening to Los Angeles...
Once you listen to these words on Soul Coughing's "Screeenwriter's Blues" you will probably be unable to forget them. This song is possibly the greatest classic from their debut album, "Ruby Vroom", which shows an original take on alternative rock that is strongly influenced by jazz. Using a rhythm section of upright bass and drums, helped by a usually somewhat sparse rhythm guitar, the features that stand out most on the band's sound are probably Mark De Gli Antoni's inventive sample keyboards (which literally admit almost anything as a possible sound source, may it be voices and instruments from old jazz records, mellotron, concrete noises and whatever other source of harmony or dissonance) and singer's M. Doughty's half-spoken vocals. They recorded 3 albums for the subsidiary (Slash Records) of a major label (Warner Bros.) but never managed to obtain mainstream success. Probably because their music - specially on the first album - is often a little too "strange" to be confortable listening to mainstream years.

Best albums: "Ruby Vroom" (1994) and "Irresistible Bliss" (1996). This last one is more compact (both in song lenghts and total number of songs) and more direct, therefore easier to get into. But it doesn't include "Screeenwriter's Blues"...

Musical examples:

"Screeenwriter's Blues" (from album "Ruby Vroom")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=wpZD8DVTXPU#18

"Collapse" (from album "Irresistible Bliss")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=0_VaxAAhPpU


revolt

Example nr. 5



Slint was a seminal American band whose career span from 1986 to 1991, but as far as impact goes, they must be considered a 90's band. Their 1st album was released in 1989, on a very small indie label, and it was only really noticed when re-released in 1993 by the more famous Touch & Go. And their magnum opus, "Spiderland", issued in 1991, was initially granted very little attention from the media, only eventually gaining cult status, to the point that it is often mentioned by post-rock bands as a major influence.

"Spiderland" is really a ROCK album, only of a particular kind. The songs are slow, supported by angular guitar rhythms, often travelling at irregular time signatures, and enhanced by dynamic structures. The "typical" "Spiderland" song is a dark or "strange" story, told in a vocal style that swings between subdued spoken word and shouting, only sometimes adventuring in more normal singing territory (it's understandable, the vocalist doesn't really have a powerful voice). There is always a dark tension underlying the songs, a tension that eventually gets some sort of release. The exception to what I´ve been saying is the ambient-like, totally instrumental , "For Dinner...", the only song here that could actually be called post-rock: the kind of slow, understated and introspective instrumental stuff that would later find favour with bands like Tortoise, for instance.

Best album: "Spiderland" (1991)

Musical example:

"Breadcrumb Trail": http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=5HM-cZWCgTw


KingOfSomeIsland

I loved Spiderland. Great atmospheric music, always contributing to the tension and the darkness.

revolt

Quote from: KingOfSomeIsland on September 13, 2008, 07:05:14
I loved Spiderland. Great atmospheric music, always contributing to the tension and the darkness.

Good to see a Spiderland fan here!  :smth023

Actually, it was an album that I missed when it came out, at the time I was probably too busy with The Cure, or "Achtung Baby" or something like that... It was only a few years later when I started reading some post-rock related articles that mentioned Slint as a "forefather" that I took notice.

revolt

Example nr.6


The ambient-rock of English band Bark Psychosis produced one of the most unique albums of the 90's in their debut "Hex", from 1994 (their only album until their eventual reunion in the 2000's). In that album the band show themselves as masters of atmospherics, creating long musical pieces that, although having vocals and lyrics, are not structured in the usual pop/rock verse-chorus-verse style. They have a slow developing mode, embedded in layers of sound, where atmospheric keyboards are of central importance. Often the second half of the song introduces a different musical motive and feel, which can have a surprising effect, but it is all done in masterful way.

This is the album that has been referred as being responsible for the coining of the term "post-rock", allegedly in a review by critic Simon Reynolds (the journalist however has declared that he had already used the term before that review and also that, even though he thought he was inventing a new word, he has since then found out that the term had already been used by other critics before).


Best album: "Hex" (1994)


Musical examples (from album "Hex") : "The Loom" (track 1 on the album; also included in this link is track 2):

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=WCw2seCIwGE


"Eyes & Whispers":

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=Qvtxcos_pPg


revolt

Example nr. 7

Ride was an English rock band that is probably known by many Cure fans who paid attention to Robert Smith's interviews in the early 90's: he made it clear many times that they were one of his favorite bands. Before eventually getting too infatuated with 60's psychedelic pop music and losing much of their personality in the way, Ride was probably the best band in the so-called shoegaze scene (stupid name, but often good or even great music). With a love for all things sonic but at the same time a sense for the perfect melody, albums like and "Nowhere" and "Going Blank Again" remain to this day near perfect examples of what 90's indie rock scene could be capable of.


Best albums: "Nowhere" (1990) and "Going Blank Again" (1992)


Musical examples:

"In a different place" (from "Nowhere")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=GSBgroOloJc&feature=related

"Cool your boots" (from "Going Blank Again")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=0a5X-1eZwx4


revolt

Example nr. 8


Swiss industrial/electro-rock trio The Young Gods formed in 1985. They released 2 revolutionary albums in the 80's – "The Young Gods" (1987) and "L' Eau Rouge" (1989), the second of which received acclaim from British media as Melody Maker and Sounds. The basis of their sound has always been voice, drums and sampler, with sampled sounds ranging from metal riffs to classical music and spacey electronics. They were also known for some time for being the "guitar band with no guitars".
In the 90's they changed somewhat both their musical and lyrical approach, with most songs being written in English and musically taking greater inspiration from American traditional rock (in "TV Sky") and electronica (in "Only Heaven"). At least until 1995 their approach was always progressive, with each album breaking new ground. They are still alive and kicking nowadays, though in the second half of the 90's they started losing some of their steam and creativity.


Best albums in the 90's: "Play Kurt Weill" (91), "TV Sky" (92) and specially "Only Heaven" (95)


Musical examples:

"The dreamhouse" (from "Only Heaven")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=tlBUX2NViiA


"Kissing The Sun" (from "Only Heaven")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=sil2jKL8JSA


"Skin Flowers" (from "TV Sky")

http://mx.youtube.com/watch?v=30H0mr_yY4I

terry

agree, Ride and Bark Psichosis produced two good albums(i have both mentioned), but i think it isn't enough to get them on the top of the 90s
i vote for the REM the 88 album "green" got them into a decade (1990) of great inspiration and success....agreee or not

revolt

Quote from: terry on October 02, 2008, 00:24:31
agree, Ride and Bark Psichosis produced two good albums(i have both mentioned), but i think it isn't enough to get them on the top of the 90s
i vote for the REM the 88 album "green" got them into a decade (1990) of great inspiration and success....agreee or not

Well, I think 2 albums is enough... I mean, Joy Division only have 2 proper studio albums and they are always mentioned as one of rock's best bands ever.

Also: besides the 2 albums mentioned, Ride have a very recommendable compilation of EPs...

As for REM, they are an 80's band and they were much better in that decade than in the 90's, in my opinion... The only 90's album that reaches the level of their best 80's work is "Out of Time".

terry

Quote from: revolt on October 02, 2008, 11:15:58
Quote from: terry on October 02, 2008, 00:24:31
agree, Ride and Bark Psichosis produced two good albums(i have both mentioned), but i think it isn't enough to get them on the top of the 90s
i vote for the REM the 88 album "green" got them into a decade (1990) of great inspiration and success....agreee or not

Well, I think 2 albums is enough... I mean, Joy Division only have 2 proper studio albums and they are always mentioned as one of rock's best bands ever.

Also: besides the 2 albums mentioned, Ride have a very recommendable compilation of EPs...

As for REM, they are an 80's band and they were much better in that decade than in the 90's, in my opinion... The only 90's album that reaches the level of their best 80's work is "Out of Time".
yes you are right talking about JD, but you forget to say their music influenced a whole generation....and their 3 proper albums are still on sale( and they sell!!!!)...i don't know if we can say the same about Ride and Bark Psychosys
about the REM...they are one or the most successful band of the 90s, much more than the 80s as they born into

revolt

Quote from: terry on October 02, 2008, 15:30:19
yes you are right talking about JD, but you forget to say their music influenced a whole generation....and their 3 proper albums are still on sale( and they sell!!!!)...i don't know if we can say the same about Ride and Bark Psychosys

Well, it's true that albums by Ride and Bark Psychosis are not very easy to find these days... But it's mainly about artistic greatness we're talking here. Ride were perhaps the best of the shoegaze bands, at least for the 1990-92 period. And shoegaze was one of the few "new" scenes to appear in 90's rock music... As for Bark Psychosis, as I stated before, it was their "Hex" album that became associated first with the post-rock scene. And it is a very good album. As far as artistic quality and relevance go, these 2 bands deserve a place among 90's best.



Quote from: terry on October 02, 2008, 15:30:19
about the REM...they are one or the most successful band of the 90s, much more than the 80s as they born into

You are 100% right as far as commercial success goes. But in the 90's REM didn't add anything new to their music. Their artistic impact happened in the 80's, when they were an indie band, recording for IRS.

terry

sure they deserved a mention
i only make a point, my fav REM album is "green" and i'm not so far a fan, i interpreted "the Best" in the title looking what happened in terms of popular success,live impact an albums sold