Nirvana- Greatest Band of the 90's? [Archive]

Angelixx

02-21-2005, 06:28 PM

PapaRoachRules

02-21-2005, 06:32 PM

being a big fan of them i had to vote yes

Brock Landers

02-21-2005, 06:33 PM

Hey well i was listening to the radio the other day on the Edge and they had a Berry intetesting Survery on the Dean Blundell Show

the question was:

Do you think nirvana was the greatest band of the 90's?

The results were pretty interesting.....Now personally being very little and not much of a music guru during the 90's I don't pride myself on saying I know a lot about the music in the 90's but from what I do know....Nirvana made a huge impact and are still one of the most beloved bands out there.....almost everyone loves Nirvana or some song from them at least

so from what i know I would say yes...Im interested in knowing everyone else's opinion?

Okay, I think they're judging them on the impact they had on popular music - but does that mean we can call them the best band musically? I'm not denying they were influential, but were they better than the other bands of the 90's? Hell no. Kurt sucked at playing the guitar, and all he wrote were second-rate Pixies songs. Woo, they brought grunge to the mainstream, which is on the same field as making lynchings all the rage again.

Influentially = maybe.
Musically = hell no. Pavement is better. Pavement is the best band of the 90's.

krushgroove19

02-21-2005, 06:47 PM

they were definitely the most influential band of the 90s, and i enjoy listening to them quite a bit, but there are other 90s bands that i like better personally... and as for kurt sucking at the guitar, well, he didn't suck, as the MTV Unplugged performance pointed out. that was actually probably the best Unplugged show ever (MTV wise, anyway)

cg124

02-21-2005, 07:06 PM

No, nirvana is just okay. Some of there songs are good,but their way overated.

ZombieMan

02-21-2005, 07:56 PM

and as for kurt sucking at the guitar, well, he didn't suck, as the MTV Unplugged performance pointed out. that was actually probably the best Unplugged show ever (MTV wise, anyway)

Yeah, he didn't completely suck at guitar, nor' was he very good either. Anyhow, I voted "Good but not THAT good". Like cg said, they had some songs that were really cool but they were WAYYYY overrated and still are to this day. The one guy that got my most respect from that band was Dave Grohl, what a bad ass on the drums! Anyhow, my favorite band of the 90's was and always will be Blind Melon. They had assloads of musical talent. Heck, I think they played almost every instrument on all of their albums, haha.

cg124

02-21-2005, 08:41 PM

I do agree the drummer kicked ass. I'm glad that dave grohl is still playing today with the foo fighters

JBond

02-21-2005, 08:52 PM

My favorite of the 90's is Pearl Jam.

gnarley

02-21-2005, 09:23 PM

I voted good but not that good, while I do love their music and am a big Grunge fan, I prefer other bands more. My favourite band of the 90's would be Alice In Chains then Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and then Nirvana. That was a great time for music for me.

Brock Landers

02-21-2005, 09:27 PM

Have you heard Pavement?

gnarley

02-21-2005, 09:28 PM

No, I don't think so.

Crow T. Robot

02-21-2005, 09:49 PM

maybe yes, maybe no. What kind of word is 'best' anyways? Its completely subjective. In the end it doesnt matter what people say now, the band that is still listened too in 100 years will be viewed as the best.

ZombieMan

02-21-2005, 10:12 PM

Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam were my two other major favorites back in the good ole' days.

equipe

02-21-2005, 10:33 PM

If you add up their amazing library of music, and their influence 'till this day, 11 years after the fact. They probably are the best and at very least, the most important band of the 90s.

LegolasIsntSexy

02-21-2005, 10:45 PM

i chose NO

They were the most influential, but last time I checked, influential doesnt mean best.

Personally I think Dave Grohl is a better overall musician than Kurt ever was.

I really cant choose the best band of the 90s. I know it wouldnt be Nirvana, though.

JBond

02-22-2005, 12:12 AM

Sad to say, but if Cobain hadn't shot himself, not near as many people would be saying how great they were.

Olorin

02-22-2005, 12:15 AM

My favorite of the 90's is Pearl Jam.

Woo! But hey, this is to everyone, I think that Pearl Jam was perhaps the most influential of nineties bands. I don't mean in terms of accomplishment, (although in that department, both their first two albums outsold Nirvana's Nevermind and In Utero) but rather in terms of the difference they made on the public view of music. While Nirvana influenced millions, it doesn't seem like that many of them really made it big. 'Cept maybe Puddle of Mudd. But then Pearl Jam look-a-likes? There were so many it was sickening. Many rock critics have argued that Eddie Vedder has the most imitated voice in rock music.

Now I would have to say that my favorite band/artist to emerge from the nineties is either 1) Pearl Jam, 2) Radiohead, 3) Beck, 4) Jeff Buckley, or 5) Bjork.

JBond

02-22-2005, 12:18 AM

Many rock critics have argued that Eddie Vedder has the most imitated voice in rock music.

Like that Scott guy from Creed, pisses me off :cool:

Brock Landers

02-22-2005, 12:44 AM

Or that creepy canadian Jesus from Nickelback.

krushgroove19

02-22-2005, 12:45 AM

yeah, but STP didn't suck... and it was only a few songs on Core that he did that voice... most of the time it was higher and fit better with the music.

Crow T. Robot

02-22-2005, 12:45 AM

or STP

Brock Landers

02-22-2005, 12:49 AM

Seriously, they haven't had a hit in 6 years now (since Last Kiss) and I was craving the "ooo-eee-ooo".

Which was a cover. :D

Olorin

02-22-2005, 12:50 AM

Or that band that had that song about being in the rain... and sad. I know what I'm talking about. It was a guilty pleasure of mine for the SOLE REASON that I missed hearing Pearl Jam on the radio. Seriously, they haven't had a hit in 6 years now (since Last Kiss) and I was craving the "ooo-eee-ooo".

Brock Landers

02-22-2005, 12:56 AM

I'd like to see you do better...

jerk.

sorry.

When my band releases something.....

.....whore.

Olorin

02-22-2005, 12:56 AM

Which was a cover. :D

I'd like to see you do better...

jerk.

sorry.

Crow T. Robot

02-22-2005, 01:01 AM

Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam were my two other major favorites back in the good ole' days.

You know when I first heard the name Pearl Jam, I thought it was a reggae group. I mean, it sounded like a reggae group. I could just picture jamaican guys with dreadlocks and colorful clothing coming out of a smokey backstage and playing Carribean music. Just say the name 'Pearl Jam' and you will no what I mean. And then when I heard that they were from the northwest I was suprised and said "that is suprising because their name sounds like a reggae group." What I am trying to get at here is that the name Pearl Jam sounds like that of a reggae group. But its not. But I thought it was. And if you are still reading this you have wasted your time.

Brock Landers

02-22-2005, 01:01 AM

Damn you Crow.

PAVEMENT RULES!!1!!111!!1

GGGG

02-22-2005, 04:15 AM

I like Nirvana and no doubt they had the biggest influence as the media was all over them but I prefer other artists from the 90s such as:
Manic Street Preachers
Prodigy
Radiohead
Chilli Peppers (I know they formed in the 80s)
Oasis
Rage Against The Machine
Green Day
Pearl Jam
Massive Attack etc.....

and I am sorry to mention but the Spice Girls had a huge effect as well.... so did New Kids on the Block....

Kronos

02-22-2005, 04:19 AM

Pearl jam was the best band of the 90's IMO

GGGG

02-22-2005, 04:20 AM

ohhh I forgot Dr Dre....

Angelixx

02-22-2005, 10:59 AM

and I am sorry to mention but the Spice Girls had a huge effect as well.... so did New Kids on the Block....

O damn spice girls had to be mentioned arghhh.......in the nineties i was so young i didnt know anything about music....so therefor......i was obsessed with spice girls....and im not afraid to say it.......I STILL LOVE THEM!

ZombieMan

02-22-2005, 11:08 AM

Woo! But hey, this is to everyone, I think that Pearl Jam was perhaps the most influential of nineties bands. I don't mean in terms of accomplishment, (although in that department, both their first two albums outsold Nirvana's Nevermind and In Utero) but rather in terms of the difference they made on the public view of music. While Nirvana influenced millions, it doesn't seem like that many of them really made it big. 'Cept maybe Puddle of Mudd. But then Pearl Jam look-a-likes? There were so many it was sickening. Many rock critics have argued that Eddie Vedder has the most imitated voice in rock music.

Now I would have to say that my favorite band/artist to emerge from the nineties is either 1) Pearl Jam, 2) Radiohead, 3) Beck, 4) Jeff Buckley, or 5) Bjork.

Wow, I like everything that Olorin had to say right there. Also, Eddie Vedder probably does have the most imitated voice in rock music, even I can do his voice, lol. There are like 4 local bands here that do his voice too. If you ever heard me play guitar, drums, or bass guitar then you can tell the influence that Pearl Jam had on me. The only things that Olorin stated that I didn't care for was the word RADIOHEAD. ;)

gnarley

02-22-2005, 12:01 PM

I found Radiohead to be an aquired taste. At first, the only song of theirs that I liked was "Creep" until Kid A came out, once I got into that CD, I went back and listened to all of their previous albums and now I find "The Bends" to be one of my favourite CDs.

Or that band that had that song about being in the rain... and sad. I know what I'm talking about. It was a guilty pleasure of mine for the SOLE REASON that I missed hearing Pearl Jam on the radio. Seriously, they haven't had a hit in 6 years now (since Last Kiss) and I was craving the "ooo-eee-ooo".
Even though they haven't had a hit since then, they've released some petty solid CDs. There's a lot of very good songs on "Binaural" and "Riot Act" has quite a few as well.

ZombieMan

02-22-2005, 12:06 PM

I just bought Pearl Jam's lost tracks CD, called "Lost Dogs", its pretty damn good!

gnarley

02-22-2005, 12:08 PM

Yeah, I've got that too. I think I prefer disc 2 more than 1, not only because "Last Kiss" is on it but also because of "Driftin" and "Let Me Sleep".

ZombieMan

02-22-2005, 12:30 PM

Yeah, I agree with you gnarley, the 2nd disc is definitely better. I like that "Brother" instrumental too!

Kronos

02-22-2005, 05:06 PM

both "hard to imagine" and "fatal" are awesome aswell!

Frizzo the Clown

02-22-2005, 05:18 PM

First off, I want to let it be known that I am a massive Nirvana fan. Probably my favorite band from the 90's "grunge" era. With that said, I can honestly say that I don't think they were the "best" band. Influential, yes, but not the best. However, since I was in highschool during the heyday of Nirvana and "grunge," they'll always hold a special place in my heart. The band meant a lot to me. They influenced me musically and influenced my life in general. It was the first and probably only music "scene" I was ever really a part of, and I think that explains a lot of their importance to me. I guess it just has a lot to do with the fact that I was old enough to appreciate them the "first time around."

DangerMouse

02-22-2005, 06:03 PM

Some of you guys are funny.

Nirvana single handedly put an ENTIRE FORM OF MUSICIAN OUT OF BUSINESS.

Also people wanna bag on Kurt's playing?

Hate to break it to you, but writing is a talent and there's not one band in the 1990's I know of that wrote better lyrics or wrote better songs than Nirvana. I used to go round and round with guitar player friends of mine who were so into the whole "Yeah but there's nothing to what he's playing."

Really? Did you write it? How did someone who sucks that bad on their instrument completely change the music industry and put Hair Metal out of business?

That's the point. He wrote it. Some schmoe that couldn't play his guitar was still able to formulate a song and melody that retired Hair Metal.

I graduated High School in 1989 and lived in a house without MTV when the whole "Seattle" thing hit.

I listed to Ride, Blur, The Stone Roses, The Smiths, The Replacements. AT the time Nirvana blew up. So it's not like I was overly influenced in my youth by them. But there's not anyone even close to them as far as "Best" goes.

I don't see Primus listed anywhere, and their musicianship is probably second to Rush.

You wanna try and be cool and try and brush Nirvana off because they sold a TON of records? No problem.

But don't play stupid.

There was music before Nirvana and then there was Music post-Nirvana.

There's not one band that came along that could even be in the same room with those guys.

People forget that inbetween those "bar Chords", was still a melody and lyrics that completly set off the entire decade.

Not one of my favorite all time bands, but a band that still deserves respect.

Crow T. Robot

02-22-2005, 11:37 PM

Some of you guys are funny.

Nirvana single handedly put an ENTIRE FORM OF MUSICIAN OUT OF BUSINESS.

No they didnt, all they did was force rockers to switch fashion. Things are pretty much the same now as they were before.

Dont believe the hype.

Brock Landers

02-22-2005, 11:45 PM

but writing is a talent and there's not one band in the 1990's I know of that wrote better lyrics or wrote better songs than Nirvana.

That debatable. For one I could say Stephen Malkmus wrote more intelligent and thought-provoking lyrics(one reviewer noted that Malkmus & Pavement were the band for English majors). One could say Cobain was more than just a little influenced by Black Francis(of the Pixies). And as lame as it sounds, Rivers Cuomo is easily more talented at writing than Cobain was.

DangerMouse

02-23-2005, 10:11 AM

If you take the total amount of record sales Pavement has had in their entire career, they still won't even come close to Nirvana's worst selling CD.

As an Engligh minor (at the time) I can safely say Pavement was an indie darling, but VASTY overrated. I'll just slip on a record by "The Fall" and call it good. And if Steve Malkmus was such a genius, he should've looked up "melody" in the dictionary before he started a band.

Crow-As soon as Nevermind blew up, all those guys on "Head Bangers Ball" no longer had an audience. Their entire form of music was extinct and exposed for being fake.

"Ten" didn't do it. "Dirt" didn't do it. "Badmotorfinger" didn't do it.

"Nevermind" did.

As for the Cobain, Black Francis connection? Not sure who said that, but they should rethink their profession if they are a music critic because they've obviously never heard of "The Germs".

ZombieMan

02-23-2005, 10:26 AM

I think Pearl Jam's "Ten" album was pretty close to Nirvana's "Nevermind" album in sales for awhile wasn't it? It would be cool if someone could pull up sales on all of these albums that are being discussed. I know that my favorite album "Nico" by Blind Melon hardly sold many copies, but they were still one hell of a band with loads of talent! Everyone likes something different.

DangerMouse

02-23-2005, 11:09 AM

"Ten" did sell really well....thanks to "Nevermind".

Actually, "Ten" was released in August of 1991, versus (pardon the pun) "Nevermind" which was released in September of 1991.

At one time, "Ten" was actually selling more units after Nevermind cooled off. But over the long haul, "Nevermind" has sold more.

But "Ten" intially went in a holding pattern until "Nevermind" went Gold, Pearl Jam got a spot opening for Red Hot Chili Peppers in the summer of 1992 and MTV started playing the "Alive" 24-7.

All of which happened, thanks to the success of Nirvana.

Zombie-My fondest memories of the 90's are thanks to Blind Melon.

Brock Landers

02-23-2005, 05:38 PM

If you take the total amount of record sales Pavement has had in their entire career, they still won't even come close to Nirvana's worst selling CD.

You're right, because success = Quality. I totally forgot!

As an Engligh minor (at the time) I can safely say Pavement was an indie darling, but VASTY overrated.

"Vasty"? Thanks english minor!

Crow-As soon as Nevermind blew up, all those guys on "Head Bangers Ball" no longer had an audience. Their entire form of music was extinct and exposed for being fake.

You're acting as if "Hair Metal" automatically ended. One could say it was when a steady decline by the end of the 80's because of the amount of those bands. Really, it was bound to happen.

Frizzo the Clown

02-23-2005, 06:42 PM

Dude...I'm a huge Nirvana fan...but you're starting to make us all look a little psycho. ;)

Brock Landers

02-23-2005, 07:16 PM

Dude...I'm a huge Nirvana fan...but you're starting to make us all look a little psycho. ;)

Who, me? Or DangerMouse? ;)

gnarley

02-23-2005, 11:19 PM

Crow-As soon as Nevermind blew up, all those guys on "Head Bangers Ball" no longer had an audience. Their entire form of music was extinct and exposed for being fake.

You're acting as if "Hair Metal" automatically ended. One could say it was when a steady decline by the end of the 80's because of the amount of those bands. Really, it was bound to happen.
All those "Hair Metal" bands were pretty much all looking and sounding a like towards the end, that put the final nail in their collective coffins. I don't know if any of you have seen the Documentary called "Hype" about the Grunge music scene, it says that the bands from Seattle were bound to explode onto the scene anyways. It was just that Nirvana were the ones to capture the attention of world the hardest, I believe everyone associated with the Seattle music scene had expected the Screaming Trees to break out first. It's a very good doc.

ZombieMan

02-23-2005, 11:25 PM

The Screaming Trees rocked my world, thats for sure!!!

DolAmroth

02-23-2005, 11:29 PM

Nirvana or sublime

JBond

02-24-2005, 12:38 AM

"Ten" did sell really well....thanks to "Nevermind".

All of which happened, thanks to the success of Nirvana.

Is it possible "Ten" did well because it was a great album? If it was all due to Nevermind's success, why did only "Ten" do well and not every other album released that year?

And like everyone else is saying, albums sold does NOT secure who is the greatest band.

DangerMouse

02-24-2005, 09:29 AM

Dude...I'm a huge Nirvana fan...but you're starting to make us all look a little psycho. ;)

Sorry man. As I said before, I was listening to other stuff at the time, so ths "opinion" is coming from someone fom the outside looking in. I do remember vividly having a friend of mine mention that "Nirvana, is the new Husker Du". But I didn't get around to actually buying "Nevermind" until about 6 years ago.

Sorry if I'm ruffling some feathers. But speaking as someone who was in their early 20's when Nirvana hit big, I vividly remember the times. Nirvana was the biggest band at the time and pretty much everyone else rode their coat tails.

Granted, bands like Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden blossomed into their own and were more than capable of carrying their own weight. But it still doesn't change the fact that the king of the mountain during that period of music was Nirvana.

Yes, "Ten" was/is a fantastic album/CD (personally I preferred VS) and it sold well because of that. But it still doesn't change the fact that it didn't begin selling until after "Nevermind" began to sell units. You can look that one up.

As someone who has worked in an "indie" record shop (ala "High Fidelity"), I CAN'T STAND when people get all pretentious and want to slag on bands because "its cool" to try and take down the biggest guy on the block.

If anything, I think its a big cliche to bag on Nirvana for the same old sad sack reasons I've seen. He couldn't play his instrument. Sales don't mean anything.

Come on. No other band back then made a bigger impact on the world of music than Nirvana.

And Brock, pointing out spelling errors is pretty weak. But I'll cut you some slack because Brian Wilson is a freeking genius. ;)

DangerMouse

02-24-2005, 10:06 AM

Is it possible "Ten" did well because it was a great album? If it was all due to Nevermind's success, why did only "Ten" do well and not every other album released that year?

And like everyone else is saying, albums sold does NOT secure who is the greatest band.

See above.

And you're right, album sales don't solely make up a band's place in history. But you also can't simply discount factors such as sales, impact, influence, and quality.

If we were simply throwing all that out the window, my vote would go for Ween and Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.

2 GREAT bands, that unfortunately made little impact on the 1990's.

But, when the term "Greatest" gets thrown around, I don't think things like sales, impact and influence should be simply thrown out becuase if furthers someone's personal opinion.

DangerMouse

02-24-2005, 12:09 PM

Is it possible "Ten" did well because it was a great album? If it was all due to Nevermind's success, why did only "Ten" do well and not every other album released that year?

Don't mean to be a d*ck. Just proving a point.

From www.answers.com

The success of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (from the Nevermind album) surprised the entire music industry. The album was a #1 hit around much of the world, and paved the way for more bands, including, most popularly, Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam, in fact, had released their debut album Ten a month earlier in August 1991, but album sales only picked up after the success of Nirvana.

http://www.answers.com/topic/grunge-music

Infact, bands such as Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, and Alice in Chains all benefitted from the success of "Nevermind".

The following CD's enjoyed a lot of success thanks to "Nevermind".
Soundgarden-Badmotorfinger-October 1991 (actually released 2 other CD's before Badmotorfinger)
Alice in Chains-Facelift-September 1990 (sales improved post-Nevermind)
Screaming Trees-Oblivion-September 1992 (original indie debut in 1986)

So even CD's that were released before "Nevermind" didn't begin selling until after Nirvana's success. But once "Nevermind" was released, the whole Seattle scene saw an increase in record sales accorss the board.

secant

02-24-2005, 12:57 PM

I prefer R.E.M

Brock Landers

02-24-2005, 05:50 PM

I prefer R.E.M

Eh, I like R.E.M. off and on. One month I can't stand them, and the next I rather enjoy them.

Olorin

02-25-2005, 03:58 AM

Yes, "Ten" was/is a fantastic album/CD (personally I preferred VS) and it sold well because of that. But it still doesn't change the fact that it didn't begin selling until after "Nevermind" began to sell units. You can look that one up.

"Ten" did not hit big until a full year after it's release, which was a full 11 months after the release of "Nevermind." On the contrary, "Ten" stayed off the charts completely for 8 months following the release of Nevermind. It wasn't until Pearl Jam opened for Red Hot Chili Peppers that the album began to sell, and it sold because Pearl Jam was in-frickin'-credible live. I will be quite honest, Nirvana was good live, but Kurt Cobain never climbed fifty feet into the air and dangled from the rafters while singing. Eddie Vedder was insane, the band was amazing and the crowds loved them (by the way, Kurt Cobain could not play guitar worth a damn. I could play any Nirvana song on cue within 3 months of first picking up a guitar, but I'm still trying to master some of Pearl Jam's catalogue.)

"Ten" did not sell because of "Nevermind", "Ten" sold because Pearl Jam toured non-stop and blew people away. Please, please stop pretending like Nirvana is the grandaddy of all music from the era. Some members of Pearl Jam, Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament, were playing Seattle clubs in 85' under the name "Green River". Then there was "Mother Love Bone." Soundgarden formed in 88'. Nirvana's first album debuted a full year later, and they migrated to Seattle from Aberdeen because the Seattle scene was already completely abuzz. Pre-"Smells like Teen Spirit", Rollingstone labelled Seattle "the new liverpool." The whole city was a ticking bomb, just waiting to explode. That Nirvana was the first to do so does not mean that it would not have happened without them.

In a nutshell, Nirvana is a melodically super-talented band, even if technically mediocre, that participated in (as opposed to created) an amazing period of rock history.

DangerMouse

02-25-2005, 09:16 AM

Hey, don't get me wrong on this. I like Pearl Jam.

And no, Nirvana isn't the end all be all. But it still doesn't change the fact that Nirvana had the biggest impact on the music scene at the time.

And I saw Pearl Jam open for the Chili Peppers that summer.

NO ONE was talking about the Peppers after the show because Pearl Jam blew them off the stage. I didn't think it was possible until I saw it in person.

But "Nevermind" had a profound effect on music in general and opened the door for more musically talented bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains.

Those records sold on their own merit, but "Nevermind" was the album the blew the door open for all those bands (after the buzz surrounding "Bleach".)

And being able to play a song is quite different from being able to write a song.

There isn't much to a Ramones song. But that was the point.

If musicianship was the measure of success, we'd be talking about Primus, not Nirvana.