Some of these bands would build strong followings and sign to major labels, pulling the scene from Seattle and placing it in front of every avid consumer of the ubiquitous MTV.Ĭritically and commercially, the genre reached its peak in the early to mid-1990s. Grunge bands like the aforementioned Hole sprung up in California, as they did with The Smashing Pumpkins in Chicago and also further afield in places such as Australia. In the wake of this, in the early ’90s, its popularity had spread far outside the confines of Washington state. In terms of the name grunge taking on a life of its own, this can be essentially put down to the success of the bands and the shrewd marketing of Sub Pop. The latter of these can perhaps find its root in the music of the ’60s the bands were inspired by. So, typically, the scene’s lyrical themes were dark and introspective and included themes of alienation, abuse, neglect, betrayal, trauma and a desire for self-determination.

Grunge, it is worth noting, was also associated with Gen-X. The bands who would become retrospectively associated with the scene took their cues from various artists such as The Beatles, Black Flag and Sonic Youth. It has since been characterised by distorted electric guitar, bass, drums and vocals. Regardless of the term’s provenance, what we now know as grunge fused elements of punk rock, hardcore punk, heavy, thrash and sludge metal to create a loose-fitting umbrella term for a wide variety of bands.

Best deftones albums fuse