Metal Reviews

grandbazaar

I'm a bit curious to see what people consider classic rock albums of the 90's and in the process maybe discover some bands that I might Have missed.

So What do you consider classic essential albums of the 90's ?

My top ten in no specific order

Moist - Silver (1994)

Great debut album by this great Canadian band who are basically unknown outside our borders. The produced dark melodic rock that was definitely inspired by the bands coming out of Seattle at the time. They added enough ideas to the mix to create their own unique sound in the process.

Our Lady Peace - Clumsy (1997)

Another Canadian band with a very unique sound and singer. This album spawned many hits such as Clumsy, Superman's Dead Automatic Flowers and 6 A.M just to name a few.

Live - Throwing Copper (1994)

Post-grunge rock filled with angst and spiritual lyrics Throwing Copper was filled with hits like Lightning Crashes, Selling the Drama, I Alone and All Over You. This albums remain to this day their best release.

Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dreams(1993)

Not much to say on this one except instant classic.

The Tea Party - Transmission (1997)

Canadian Band from Windsor Ontario who blended their
rock with middle eastern sounds and blues. On this release
the added industrial and electro to their sound and made it
sound like an album to play on a cold snowy day.

Weezer - Weezer (AKA the blue album) (1994)

Post grunge-rock with pop infusions and great guitar work.
This addictive and catchy band produced in 1994 one hell of an album and followed it in 1996 with another album that could be considered classic: Pinkerton. But for the sakes of diversity, I'll
keep my classics to one per band.

Matthew Good Band - Beautiful Midnight (1999)

Politically charged Canadian rock mixed with an original vocalist,
MGB hit the Canadian scene with huge hits such as Hello Time Bomb, Load Me Up, The Future is X-rated and Strange Days.

Soundgarden - Superunknown (1994)

One of the best grunge acts to ever come out of Seattle if not the best.

Green Day - Dookie (1994)

The album that put them on the map, contained some of the most memorable punk rock songs of the decade.

The Offspring - Smash (1994)

The Offspring delivered punk rock with an hard edge loaded with
emotion and angst. Just what the doctor recommended!

GeneralDiomedes · Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 4:56 am Post subject:

Just some ones that I liked. Agree with most of your picks, BTW.

Pixies - Bossanova (1990)

Yep, most of their output was in the eighties, but this was 1990. Worth mentioning as they are probably the best of the alt rockers.

Urge Overkill - Saturation (1993)

The opening song 'Sister Havana' is a killer, one of the best rock songs I have ever heard, period. Put this on at any party and watch the energy spike.

Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Now I Got Worry (1996)

There are so many good riffs on here, you lose count. The distorted vocals used on some songs takes a bit to get used to, but the riffs had you hooked so it was going to happen. Just check out 'Wail'.

Radiohead - The Bends (1995)

Epic guitars that'll make you feel like you are on drugs. This is their masterpiece IMO.

Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (1991)

I just can't get into the later Soundgarden much anymore, although Superunknown is still good don't get me wrong. This one still had great energy, and Kim Thayil still had some influence. Their best IMO. Rusty Cage, Outshined and Jesus Christ Pose FTW.

warfleloup · Metal Lord Joined: 11 Jun 2010 Posts: 661 Location: U.Y.A.

- 1990 -

Fish "Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors"
Debut album from ex-Marillion frontman. It sometimes sounds like Peter Gabriel (State of Mind) or Phil Collins (Big Wedge) but Fish vocals and a collection of great tunes win it all.

The Black Crowes "Shake Your Money Maker"
Bringing back roots rock'n'roll to the "cock rock" scene, the Black Crowes released one hell of a debut album. The Otis Redding cover (Hard to Handle) is particulary juicy.

Depeche Mode "Violator"
20 years after its release it remains DM's finest album. A delight from start to finish with highlights such as Personal Jesus, Enjoy the Silence or Policy of Truth.

Robert Plant "Manic Nirvana"
A great return to form for ex-Led Zeppelin's singer. From the mock 60s rock Hurting Kind to the closer (Watching You), it's an almost flawless album and the proof that Robert Plant is a giant among dwarves.

Sonic Youth "Goo"
Sixth album for the New Yorkers and probably the first classic in their high quality discography. More accessible than their earlier stuff it also is a good place to start with this awesome band.

Jane's Addiction "Ritual de lo Habitual"
I'm not a big fan of Jane Addiction's music but I must admit that this album is an almost flawless demonstration of quality alternative rock. The 10 minutes almost progressive song Three Days is particulary good.

Bad Religion "Against the Grain"
Probably Bad Religion's best album and a landmark for melodic intelligent punk rock. 35 minutes of great melodies, fast rhythms and thoughtful lyrics.

ganeshaRules · Einherjar Joined: 04 Feb 2006 Posts: 2125 Location: Here!

Some more.

Yeah, The bends is a masterpiece, but this one too.

Yeah, this album rulez.

IMO, the best Bad Religion album.

Some songs are forgetteable, but the great songs are just incredible.

I can't believe nobody mentioned this one.

cry of the banshee · Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:36 pm Post subject:

The track "Head Down" alone makes this album worthy.

The_Voice · Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 4:09 pm Post subject:

1990 - Social Distortion - Social Distortion

1993 - Pearl Jam - VS

1994 - Stone Temple Pilots - Purple

1994 - Meat Puppets - Too High To Die

This is not my complete list im just adding to what you guys have already posted.

Milan · Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 4:32 pm Post subject:

Overrated yes, but still great.

Pearl Jam - Ten

Temple of the Dog

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik

R.E.M. - Automatic for the People

Live - Throwing Copper

Goo Goo Dolls - A Boy Named Goo

Blink 182 - Dude Ranch

Weezer - Pinkerton

Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted (every single one of their albums belong here actually)

The Flaming Lips - Transmissions from the Satellite Heart

warfleloup · Metal Lord Joined: 11 Jun 2010 Posts: 661 Location: U.Y.A.

- 1991 -

R.E.M. "Out of Time"
As essential as it gets. Sure, this is where R.E.M. became widely popular but it's, above all, a mighty collection of very good songs such as Radio Song, Near Wild Heaven and the worldwide hit Losing My Religion.

Slint "Spiderland"
It took time for this terrific album to finally gain the cult reputation he deserved. Influential to both the post-rock and early math-rock scene it's an important album those who care about the History of indie music should try.

Temple of the Dog "S/t"
An album recorded in homage to Andrew Wood. 55 minutes of great rock music with what will become Pearl Jam and a splendid vocal performance from Soundgarden's Chris Cornell.

Nation of Ulysses "13-Point Program to Destroy America"
An almost perfect post-punk/hardcore album by this Washington DC based band. Angry and classy at the same time. You don't come across albums like this very often.

Massive Attack "Blue Lines"
THE album which helped popularize the trip-hop sound out of his Bristol base. It's smooth, groovy, sexy and intelligent at the same time. As essential and influential as the next album on my list.

Nirvana "Nevermind"
Some might argue that their previous album was better and you won't find me saying otherwise. The fact remains that the historical importance and the quality of Nevermind cannot be denied.

Red Hot Chili Peppers "Blood Sugar Sex Magik"
The album which helped confirm the RHCP as a worldwide phenomenom. It also remanis their best album thanks to terrific songs such as Breaking the Girl, I Could Have Lied, Give It Away or the tasty and short Robert Johnson cover, They're Red Hot.

My Bloody Valentine "Loveless"
Second MBV studio album, Loveless is one of those album not enough people have listened to. This one took almost two years to record and judging by its unique mix of dream pop and noisy guitars, it was worth every minute of it.

Talk Talk "Laughing Stock"
Talk Talk final album was the confirmation that the band had gone to territories yet unexplored. Sometimes described as "progressive" this hugely influential album helped, above all, defining what artistry means in pop/rock music and was, ultimately, a big influence on the post-rock and art-rock scene.

grandbazaar · Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 10:58 pm Post subject:

Damn, their are plenty of good stuff in your list guys!
I'll go ahead an add another one I had forgotten about

Foo Fighters - The Colour and The Shape (1997)

This was a hard rocking album and it's the basis for
everything the Foo Fighters are today.

The_Voice · Posted: Sat Jun 19, 2010 12:00 am Post subject:

Forgot the Peppers:

1995 - Red Hot Chilli Peppers - One Hot Minute

Seinfeld26 · Posted: Sat Jun 26, 2010 4:13 am Post subject:

In no particular order (and I'm only choosing ONE album per band, by the way):

Alice In Chains - Facelift. Possibly my favorite non-metal album of the 90's.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication. Honestly, this is probably my favorite RHCP album. Yeah, it's a little softer than prior albums. But that's only because the band "grew up" and mellowed out with age (without compromising their attitude).

Garbage - S/T. A personal favorite of mine. Only Happy When It Rains, As Heaven Is Wide, Supervixen, Vow, and Stupid Girl are among my favorite rock songs of the 90's.

Queens Of The Stone Age - S/T. By complete default, this album is on here since it's QOTSA's only 90's release. A fine debut with two of my favorite QOTSA songs: If Only and You Would Know.

Nirvana - In Utero. I guess, if I had to choose one Nirvana album to put on my list, this would be it. It shows Kurt Cobain at his most passionate, and the unfinished nature of the album really makes you feel the turmoil he was going through at the time of its recording.

The Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness. Four Words: Bullet With Butterfly Wings. But there are plenty of other great songs on here too: Tonight Tonight, Zero, 1979, Beautiful, Where Boys Fear To Tread, and We Only Come Out At Night, and Farewell And Goodnight to name a few.

Radiohead - OK Computer. One of the most emotional and creative rock albums I've ever heard. The Tourist is one of only a tiny handful of songs that actually once made me CRY when listening to it.

The Offspring - Smash. One of my favorite pop-punk albums of all time. Nitro (Youth Energy) is my personal favorite song. Followed closely by Gotta Get Away. Self Esteem, Bad Habit, What Happened To You, and Come Out And Play are also great songs.

Green Day - Dookie. I know my inclusion of this album will piss a few people off, as it spawned bands like Blink-182 and Bowling For Soup. But you know something? I love it! Longview and Welcome To Paradise are among my favorite rock songs of the 90's. Basket Case and Chump are also great songs.

Weezer - Pinkerton. Possibly the happiest "sad album" ever made. And a personal favorite of mine. The live-sounding production, combined with Rivers' distraught vocals, really give this album a moody/angsty tone only matched by albums like Dirt and In Utero. But unlike those two albums, Pinkerton also has a healthy dose of humor/sarcasm, so you're never left feeling totally miserable after listening to it. And I'm sure we all can relate to a song or two on this album.

Bad Religion - Stranger Than Fiction. It's a toss-up between this and Against The Grain, but I have to choose this as my favorite BR album. I find that it has the most memorable songs, best production, and all around best music of their entire discography. Which, unfortunately, isn't saying a whole lot since the band's post-Gray Race material has been pretty hit-or-miss at best.

Metallica - Load. Hey, it technically counts as a rock album. And I like it. So why not put it on my list?

There are plenty of other great 90's rock albums. But I ultimately had to pick these as my personal "Essential Rock Albums."

GeneralDiomedes · Posted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 6:21 pm Post subject:

Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals - Burn to Shine

Was listening to this the other day .. I'd have to rate this up there.

Milan · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2010 4:15 pm Post subject:

I can't believe I forgot this one.
It's a compilation of their full-length Apple and their EP Shine.

Mother Love Bone - Selftitled

wild_child · Metal Servant Joined: 06 Aug 2009 Posts: 134

Im not going to bother getting album covers. also i may repeat some already mentioned.
alice in chains- dirt
alice in chains - s/t
alice in chains -facelift
Mad season - above
metallica - black album ( its a good ROCK album, not a METAL album)
Nirvana - Nevermind
Pearl jam - ten
Pearl jam - Vs.
pearl jam - vitalogy
Pearl jam - no code
Soundgarden - badmotorfinger
soundgarden- superunknown
temple of the dog s/t
stone temple pilots- purple
red hot chili peppers - californication
also the unplugged live cds for nirvana and alice in chains. i dont know the titles

wild_child · Metal Servant Joined: 06 Aug 2009 Posts: 134

Seinfeld26 · Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 2:11 am Post subject:

I was reluctant to put this on my list, since it's debatable whether this band counts as "rock" or "metal," but...

dead1 · Einherjar Joined: 13 Apr 2010 Posts: 2155

Notice lack of stuff from post-1995?

For me:

Alice In Chains - Dirt
Alice In Chains - Facelift

Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion I
Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion II

Faith No More - Angeldust

Metallica - Load

Mighty, Mighty Bosstones - Let's Face It

Nirvana - Nevermind
Nirvana - In Utero

Queens of the Stone Age - Rated R (2000 was the last year of the 1990's).

Red Hot Chilli Peppers - Blood, Sugar, Sex Magik

Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger

Stone Temple Pilots - Core

metalatem · Svartalfar Joined: 25 Nov 2010 Posts: 22

Mad season- above

Satan's Anus · Metal King Joined: 22 Mar 2009 Posts: 1046

Fucking giant photo!

Satan's Anus · Metal King Joined: 22 Mar 2009 Posts: 1046

Ridiculous fucking giant photo!