From No Doubt to Jane’s Addiction: The 10 best alt-rock anthems of the 1990s
Mainstream discourse has us believe that the 1990s was the best decade in history and that nothing will ever top it. Whilst many obvious factors undo this broad assertion, it’s hard to disagree with it regarding the musical side of things, with everyone from Nirvana to No Doubt and Massive Attack bursting onto the scene.
Excitement was in the air. The Cold War finally ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, with the scholar Francis Fukuyama describing the new epoch as “the end of history”. This thought posited that Western hegemony would be unchallenged from then on and that the sprint into the future would be totally unchained, aided by technological, economic and social advances.
Politically, this is just one side of the story. However, music certainly stepped up over the decade, with an incredible explosion changing the trajectory of culture forevermore.
Much of the brilliance of the ’90s had its roots in the late 1980s, but when the fuse eventually sparked, the shockwaves were so tremendous that we still feel them today. Everything from the most visceral elements of metal to boundary-pushing electronica emerged from the depths and made the world a better place with their presence.
Although there was a myriad of genres that burst into life in the 1990s, alternative rock was the most dominant. From grunge to Britpop and everything in between, it produced the most significant acts, hits and personalities of the era, with them making a defining impact on history via the six-string and a hefty dose of angst.
Join us then, as we list the ten best alt-rock anthems of the 1990s.
The 10 best alt-rock anthems of the 1990s:
Hole – ‘Celebrity Skin’ (1998)
Courtney Love’s now-defunct outfit Hole gave us many stellar moments, including ‘Violet’ and ‘Malibu’. However, 1998’s ‘Celebrity Skin’ pips them all. It has everything an alt-rock classic should have; biting guitars, edgy lyrics, and a rip-roaring chorus. Augmenting proceedings is Melissa Auf der Maur’s busy bassline that holds everything together, giving Eric Erlandson’s jangly guitar in the post-chorus a ballast from which to drill itself into our earholes.
Furthermore, the song is brimming with some of Love’s best lyrical work, which includes the classic reading of the shallow essence of fame: “When I wake up in my makeup / Have you ever felt so used up as this? / It’s all so sugarless, hooker, waitress / Model, actress, oh, just go nameless”.
Jane’s Addiction – ‘Been Caught Stealing’ (1990)
In my mind, Jane’s Addiction are one of the ultimate alternative rock bands who enjoyed great success before the ’90s arrived. The first year of the decade saw them produce their masterpiece Ritual de lo Habitual, which is brimming with highlights.
Arguably, their greatest cut is the expansive ‘Three Days’ from the record, with ‘Stop’ also being up there, but neither are exactly anthems. They’re both stellar but represent the more sonically unrelenting, challenging facet of the genre. This is how we landed on ‘Been Caught Stealing’.
It’s their catchiest piece, with frontman Perry Farrell delivering a raucous performance, with it driven by Eric Avery’s funky bassline. This is also vintage Dave Navarro, with that short burst of a solo utterly exquisite.
Dinosaur Jr. – ‘Start Choppin’ (1993)
This was nearly ‘Feel the Pain’, which features one of J Mascis’ best performances on the guitar, but ‘Start Choppin” is more of an anthem. Whether it be the falsetto of the “I ain’t tellin’ you goodbye” line, the hooky guitar work of Mascis or the fact the chorus is utterly cathartic, there are many reasons that Dinosaur Jr.’s ‘Start Choppin” is hailed as one of their finest, and one of the ultimate examples of alternative rock.
The perfect mix of self-effacing and defiant, remarkably, this is just one moment in Dinosaur Jr.’s glittering career, with ample brilliance coming before and after it.
Pavement – ‘Cut Your Hair’ (1994)
2022 has seen the long-awaited return of slacker-rock legends Pavement, and what a ride it has been. They’ve regaled us all with fan favourites and crossover hits in their live shows, playing to capacity crowds worldwide, reflecting just how celebrated they are.
Although it might seem easy, ‘Cut Your Hair’ is indomitable. It’s wholly energising, able to kickstart a day that’s been languishing in the doldrums since waking. From the catchy “oohs” to frontman Stephen Malkmus’s fuzzy solo, the track is timeless.
Placebo – ‘Nancy Boy’ (1996)
No list of the best 1990s alt-rock anthems would be complete without the presence of Placebo. When Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal broke through in the mid-’90s, they were unlike anything else, fusing the taboo-busting essence of glam-era David Bowie with Generation X angst, providing a refreshing antidote to all the lad-heavy antics of Britpop.
They delivered music with real significance, and so much of it that the pair are still hailed as icons to this day. Although they creatively developed over time, with much of their best still to come, their 1996 hit ‘Nancy Boy’ is the sonic and lyrical definition of 1990s alt-rock.
Weezer – ‘Say It Ain’t So’ (1994)
Weezer’s self-titled debut album set them well on the way to being one of the most anthemic alternative rock bands of the 1990s and featured their most-beloved hit single ‘Say It Ain’t So’. Every element of the track is just about an anthemic as it comes, from the iconic intro chord progression with the arpeggiated G# to the sing-as-loud-as-you-possibly-can chorus of “Say it ain’t so!”
In fact, after writing the music for the song, Rivers Cuomo had only that particular line. He wrote the rest of the lyrical content of the tune upon remembering an incident from his childhood when he returned home from school one day to find a bottle of beer in his family home’s fridge. He was under the belief that his mother and father’s relationship had ended due to his father’s alcoholism and feared that his mother and stepfather would suffer the same fate.
Smashing Pumpkins – ‘1979’ (1995)
Smashing Pumpkins were another outfit that encapsulated the very essence of the 1990s. Their truly memorable single ‘1979’ was released on their third studio album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. The track is something of a coming-of-age story (typical of the decade), and in 1979, frontman Billy Corgan was 12 years old, and the year marked his first foray into the difficulties of adolescence.
As with Weezer’s song, just about every part of ‘1979’ is genuinely anthemic, from the processed drumbeat at the beginning of the tune to the effortless chorus tones of Corgan’s devising. Interestingly, ‘1979’ altogether eschewed the guitar solo that Corgan had become known for across the prior Smashing Pumpkins release, although given the true anthem status of the song, it sure as hell didn’t need one.
R.E.M – ‘Losing My Religion’ (1991)
By the time the 1990s rolled around, R.E.M. had already been through what they considered their ‘college radio rock’ period. While 1987’s Document and the following year’s Green had been defined by the band beginning to turn their attention to the demands of commercial radio, it wasn’t until 1992 with Automatic For The People that R.E.M. would make the complete transition into the band we know them as best today.
Yet it was arguably the album prior that really set the wheels in motion. Out of Time featured the hit single ‘Losing My Religion’, undoubtedly one of the Athens, Georgia outfit’s best tunes. Perhaps what makes the tune so iconic is Peter Buck’s mandolin, giving R.E.M.’s sound a more nuanced feel than had previously been heard. As always with the legendary alt-rock band’s songs, Mike Mills’ backing vocals really come to the fore in what is easily one of the most anthemic choruses, not just of the 1990s but of all time.
Alanis Morissette – ‘You Oughta Know’ (1995)
In the 1990s, we thankfully saw a considerable revival in female-fronted alternative rock, and none were more iconic than the inimitable Alanis Morissette. Her third album Jagged Little Pill, released in 1995, marked Morissette’s transition from a pop-oriented sound into employing the alternative-rock textures that had begun to dominate the airwaves. ‘Jagged Little Pill’ was the album’s lead single and helped to cement Morissette’s place in the pantheon of the 1990s greats.
The track combined Morissette’s prior pop sensibility with the ’90s angst and ennui that had been brought into the mainstream consciousness by Smashing Pumpkins and Nirvana. Lyrically, Morissette embodied the spirit of feminism by not just pointing the finger at a cheating ex-boyfriend, but completely tearing him to shreds, brutally telling him everything he ought to know about himself.
No Doubt – ‘Don’t Speak’ (1995)
Just a year later, Gwen Stefani released an equally anthemic break-up banger in the form of No Doubt’s ‘Don’t Speak’, taken from the band’s third studio album, Tragic Kingdom. Gwen and her brother Eric Stefani initially wrote the track as a love song. Still, after going through several rewrites and alternative versions, its final iconic format would be the break-up song about Gwen’s ex-boyfriend and former bandmate, Tony Kanal, that we know and love today.
Those first plucked notes are as about as memory-evoking as it comes and takes us straight back to the days of MTV. Stefani’s vocals are at their absolute peak on ‘Don’t Speak’, from the tender introduction verse to the evident pain coming through her mouth in the anthemic chorus. Despite not making much of an impact on the singles chart at the time, ‘Don’t Speak’ remains one of the true 1990s anthems.
