Grunge Music: A Homage To A Few Gone Too Soon

Grunge Music discovered me at a time in my life when the music had stopped playing. I remember listening to rap and thinking, "This shit is changing. All these mofos want to do is talk about themselves and shit that I don't care about." To say that I was quickly turned off by the new direction of Hip Hop would be putting it lightly. Grunge music saved me. When I first heard Nirvana's, Floyd The Barber I was flabbergasted. This song was one of the first songs Skid Row played in 1987. The premise is as follows: What if you went to Mayberry, that ordinary All American town in Middle America, to get a haircut only to find out that Andy, Oppie, Aunt Mary & Floyd the Barber are all serial killers. They had me at dunt, dunt, dunt. I love lyrics that tell a story and as I listened to more of their music, I realized that this genre of music had a message that spoke to me in ways that Hip Hop first did in the early 80's. Damn I'm old....

RIP Layne Staley (1967-2002) 

HIS PERSPECTIVE: Alice In Chains is by far one of my all time favorite groups. Layne Staley's raspy voice is the very definition of pain unbridled. Listen to Sludge Factory, a journey into the mind of a junky on a trip that ends in an overdose. If you don't feel something on this song then I'm sorry to say you are dead inside. Or try God Am, this joint starts out with Layne pulling on a bong as he goes into a Memnoch the Devil type rant on what he sees is the hypocrisy of an all knowing and almighty being, judging his own without giving them the same tools from which to self-correct. Try Junkhead, a first hand account of the ongoing struggle with the demons he faced nonstop. By far my favorite song is when Layne left Alice and formed a group called Mad Seasons. Wake up was his rock bottom and an admission to the world that he needed help and was ready to change. The beauty in this song is that it doesn't matter what your addiction is, be it drugs, sex or whatever. This song is a call to maturity and reckoning. Gone way too soon, but never forgotten my brother, your music will move me for the rest of my life. 


HER PERSPECTIVE: Although I wasn't heavily influenced by the sub-genre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980's, I did (and still) appreciate its existence in our culture. My earliest memories of grunge are linked to the more commercially successful bands of the early 90's. I remember listening to Z100 and jamming to the likes of Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Soundgarten because, much like the boy, the music appealed to me in a different way than Hip Hop. Grunge was like therapy for the loner, angry, addicted, disturbed, hyped, despondent, voiceless and somewhat lost (or searching for something new) souls of that era. It was a much needed release and escape from the norm. 

RIP Scott Weiland (1967-2015)

HIS PERSPECTIVE: The first time I heard, Creep by STP, I was done. From the words, the beat, the music and the voice, this dude was telling the world about change and failing to get the support that you need as you go through your shit. For my crash and burn pattern of relationships, this was my soundtrack. No wonder that I turn to this whenever that pattern creeps back into my present life. Plush, to me this was the song that carried me through the time when I was cheated on back in the day. Never mind that I invited that energy into the relationship by having multiple side chicks in the first place. I know, the hypocrisy right? Big Empty, I have always taken the lyrics in this song two ways. One is to avoid serious conversations with a love interest as the serious nature always leads to ruins. The second is more nefarious and personal. I always felt that it would only be a matter of time when Scott would leave us, his battle with drugs had him kicked out of STP and pretty much excommunicated from the group. Another one gone much too early in life, with so much music left on the shelf. You came, saw and rocked that shit, Scott. Go easy into the night my man. 


HER PERSPECTIVE: Stone Temple Pilots is one of the coolest band names ever! As for Creep, I think most of us could relate to going through personal struggles, looking at the man in the mirror and not loving the reflection and ultimately feeling alone in that journey. The conviction in Scott Weiland's voice tells a beautiful and real-life story. I live for the inspiration behind music and for Plush, besides being about a metaphor for a failed relationship, the lyrics were loosely based on a newspaper article Weiland read about a girl who had been found dead in an area outside of San Diego. Heavy shit. The song title, Big Empty intrigues me. It's not a lengthy song...two short verses and a hook...yet it feels like so much more than that. I love the way it begins...soft and slow and then shit gets real hectic. Very similar beginning to Creep. Scott Weiland was clearly going through some dark shit when he wrote this tune, "too much trippin and my soul's worn thin." I like the way he articulated his emotions. 

Kurt Cobain (1967-1994)

HIS PERSPECTIVE: What do you say about the dude and group that started a movement? No words can do Kurt Cobain or Nirvana justice so I'll just grab a few of my favs and talk about my interpretation of them. About A Girl, was about every girl that I wanted to date that was unavailable to me at the time. I'd play this joint all day if I ran up on a cutie that gave me the cold shoulder or the promise of love, the next time around. Dumb is another favorite of mine and to me is a homage to simplicity and the need not to over process or analyze shit. This song came along at a time when I was at a crossroads with a few things in my life. My song of all songs by Nirvana is Heart Shaped Box, this song came along at a time when I questioned organized religion in each and every form. Do yourself a favor and listen to the lyrics while you watch the video and tell me what you get from it. Interesting, right? The Man Who Sold The World is a song by David Bowie that he wrote after he had convinced the world that he was indeed Ziggy Stardust  as he was ready to change back to David Bowie. I think of it as a conversation in the mirror, a soliloquy of sorts. Bowie's original version is funky as hell, think spaceship studio recording. Although Kurt has been gone for more than twenty years, it seems like yesterday to me and a host of others. Now part of the infamous 27 club, it's a shame that he's not here to apply a soundtrack to today's current state of affairs. I know it would be compelling. Kurt, you are the star that shines on creativity and an inspiration to break the chains of GroupThink, and I thank you for that and of course your body of work. 
   
 
HER PERSPECTIVE: The only Nirvana song that I know well and care deeply about is none other than - Smells Like Teen Spirit. One of the greatest songs of all time. After doing some light research on the meaning behind the name, I discovered that a friend of Cobain's spray painted "Kurt Smells Like Teen Spirit" on his wall and Cobain misinterpreted the slogan as having a revolutionary meaning. What the friend actually meant was that Cobain smelled like the deodorant Teen Spirit, which his then-girlfriend wore. Furthermore, Cobain revealed that "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was an attempt to write a song in the style of the Pixies, a band he greatly admired. Either way, I am over the moon that it all worked out the way it did. SLTS was a game changer.