“Grunge. The Bastards of Seattle” – a story about the sounds that took over the 90s.

You will find more interesting texts on the home page.

“Grunge. Dirty, rough rock and roll, grew out of love for punk and heavy metal. Long hair, military boots and flannel shirts were supposed to be symbols of the rebellion of the generation that was stubbornly called the lost “Generation X” in newspapers, television and radio stations. He prided himself on his differences and his sarcastic, dark sense of humor. The bands didn’t dress up in rockers’ clothes and were proud of how much they didn’t fit in with the famous MTV bands. However, from the music of ordinary twenty-year-olds and young rebels, grunge eventually turned into a global market commodity, and the sudden success turned out to be a death trap for some.” – These are the first words of the description of Piotr Jagielski’s book, advertised by Wydawnictwo Czarne. On its pages, on November 22, the premiere of this item. Why is it unique? It takes us to the crazy world of over 2 decades ago.

When music lovers think of grunge, they immediately think of bands such as Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, or Soundgarden. But this world does not end with the “Big Four from Seattle”. Fans of the genre also do not forget about those less known, but equally important, such as Mudhoney, Mother Love Bone, or Stone Temple Pilots from outside Seattle. And why do we mention this city at all? Because the history of grunge is connected with it, and learning about the realities of the metropolis allows us to understand a number of phenomena circulating around it.

Only in the conditions of rainy, even depressive Seattle could this rough genre, created from hybrids of rock, rebellious metal and punk, be born. It was a response to the expectations of young people who were entering a new decade.

“It was also created out of…boredom.” In opposition to the rest

Jagielski argues in his book that grunge was also created because of… boredom. “Nothing was happening there in the 1980s and maybe that’s the key. Bored teenagers are growing up in the surrounding, smaller towns. They don’t really have anything to do with themselves or their free time. They don’t have any great life prospects ahead of them. They are more likely to repeat the same path. life of their parents employed in Boeing plants or sawmills, which were also going bankrupt at that time,” he explained on radio “Czwórka”.

Big stars didn’t flock to Seattle, so the city “created” it itself. Figures such as Kurt Cobain, Layne Stayley, Chris Cornell and Eddie Vedder still hold honorable places in the pantheon of the world’s greatest performers. Unfortunately, only the last of them is with us today…

Grunge is not only music. It’s even politics

Although the book is not very long – it has about 300 pages, the story presented in it about the birth of a social phenomenon that turned American society “upside down” covers the topic almost completely. Of course, there were also photos typical of this era. Grunge continues to fascinate, and its influences are visible in many aspects of life – not only in music, but also in culture, fashion and even politics.

Reissues of Nirvana albums are still very popular, fans are eagerly awaiting the latest Pearl Jam album, and Alice in Chains is still active, although with a changed lineup. The legend of grunge continues. The book is available from November 22.
Sources: czarne.com.pl, polskieradio.pl, eskarock.pl