3 of the Most Memorable Verses of 1990s Grunge

In 1991, grunge music leaped from the underground into the mainstream. Grunge was initially characterized as the marriage of punk and metal, as well as the continuation of rock. In the late 1980s, grunge became much more defined, with Washington pioneers such as Green River, Screaming Trees, and The Melvins.

In the 1990s, bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden pushed grunge into the mainstream. As a result, these are 3 of the most memorable verses of 1990s grunge.

“bullet with butterfly wings” by the smashing pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins were also part of this wave of grunge that invaded the mainstream. In 1995, The Smashing Pumpkins released a double album, Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, which is often referred to as their magnum opus. The album went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200, spawning five successful singles. Among them, their lead single “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” saw the band fully embrace their grunge side. In 1997, The Smashing Pumpkins won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.

“The world is a vampire, set to drain” is as gnarly as lyrics could get in the 1990s. The song opens straight into the first verse with these iconic opening words. Mentioning how “secret destroyers hold you up to the flame” references the intense pressure Billy Corgan felt from the music industry.

“jeremy” by pearl jam

Released as the third single from Pearl Jam’s debut album Ten, “Jeremy” captured the band’s darker edge. In the second verse, it becomes evident that it’s about a student who is being bullied. Specifically, the second verse describes his pent-up anger. “Clearly I remember, picking on the boy / Seemed a harmless little f**k / But we unleashed a lion / Gnashed his teeth and bit the recess lady’s breast / How could I forget?”.

Jeremy then hits the narrator, as the pre-chorus emphasizes that his bad home life, mixed with bullying, led to this. Not many songs of the 1980s or earlier took on such serious issues as this. Lead singer Eddie Vedder was inspired to write the track after reading a newspaper article about Jeremy Wade Delle, a high school student who shot himself in front of his class in 1991.

“hunger strike” by temple of the dog

Months before Pearl Jam’s debut release, the members collaborated with Chris Cornell and Matt Cameron of Soundgarden. Cornell had written songs about the death of his roommate, Andrew Wood, who had been a member of the Seattle band Mother Love Bone.

As a tribute to Wood, the members recorded their only album as Temple Of The Dog. Their single, “Hunger Strike”, has one of the most recognizable opening verses in grunge. “I don’t mind stealing bread from the mouths of decadents / But I can’t feed on the powerless when my cups are already overfilled.”

Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images

The post 3 of the Most Memorable Verses of 1990s Grunge appeared first on VICE.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Know If Your Content Marketing Just Isn’t Working

Image
Content is king. And content marketing in 2018 remains a brilliant and cost-effective method for engaging with leads and customers, spreading brand awareness, and getting around the increasing use of ad-blockers . Whether it’s an email newsletter, social media post, or blog on your own or someone else’s website, people want to see your stuff. They accept it. Approve it. Whitelist it. Because it’s the user him or herself clicking on it, there are no concerns of spam complaints, or annoying the recipient, or ending up in the junk folder. It’s popular, powerful, and for all intents and purposes, perfect. If you’re online in any professional capacity, you’re already using it. Google “content marketing” and you’ll uncover millions (78,200,000 when I did it just now) of results, everything from definitions to how-to guides to case studies. You can quickly and easily pick up the how, why, when, what, and where of content marketing. Every online marketing personality and business has the...
Read more

Teclados Logitech K480 e K380 (mais: dicas de uso em iPhone, iPad e Android)

Image
Uso teclados portáteis desde meu primeiro Palm, um m100, e continuo adorando a praticidade que proporcionam aos profissionais móveis que precisam escrever MUITO. Quando alguém me vê usando um teclado externo com meu smartphone, a reação muitas vezes é de surpresa; muita gente sequer sabia que estes teclados podem ser usados não só com tablets, mas também smartphones. Logo pedem dicas de uso ou sugestões de modelos à venda, e eu imediatamente recomendo meu blog. Talvez este seja um dos motivos de você estar aqui. Da mesma forma, é recorrente a situação de leitores que chegam ao meu blog justamente para pegar dicas de uso de teclados com smartphones e tablets, principalmente recomendações de modelos ou dicas de como acentuar usando este acessório em Androids,  iPads e iPhones. Talvez esteja seja este seu caso… É para vocês que criei este post. Falarei do teclado que estou usando no momento — um modelo da Logitech — e deixarei algumas dicas de produtividade, como acentuação....
Read more

3 New Hip-Hop & R&B Songs You Must Hear This Week (9/5/25)

Image
Every week, seemingly a gazillion songs release on streaming services. From Soundcloud and Bandcamp exclusives to the endless array of songs on Spotify and Apple Music, it’s a lot to take in. Additionally, some of the tracks aren’t nearly as good as it should be. Who wants to waste their time sifting through records in fear that some aren’t very good. How can one possibly have the time to even do it? This is where Noisey has you  covered . We’re saving you time in the playlist department to narrow it down to the three most essential songs in hip-hop and R&B you should hear. This week is especially loaded. Maybe you’ll find a new favorite artist or album in the process. 3 of The Best New HIP-Hop Songs of the Week dexter in the newsagent- “Eighteen” Teenagers go through some intense existential crises. It might seem a little melodramatic, their whole lives are ahead of them, they don’t work or pay any bills. The most they’ll ever have to worry about is the social nightmare...
Read more