3 Minutes of Awesome! Classic 90s Grunge...

In 1993 I was just getting out of my serious rock phase. Up until then, I was an avid reader of Rolling Stone, a constant listener to WXRT (back when it was more cutting edge), and a self-proclaimed student of rock history and criticism. I was into a lot of noisy, angry music like Pearl Jam, Living Colour, Jane's Addiction, and Sonic Youth. Then, we had our first kid, and I wasn't finding a lot that spoke to me as I settled comfortably into my Suburban Dad phase. I got back into jazz in a more focused manner as well as teaching my brand new baby all of the important Beatles songs. It just seemed more appropriate than "Been Caught Stealing." Nowadays I only keep up with rock in a tangential manner, listening to NPR's Sound Opinions podcasts to hear what's considered hip today. But back in 1993, I was still an angry young man...

One of the coolest albums from that year was Last Splash, by a band out of Dayton, Ohio called The Breeders. Led by twin sisters Kim and Kelley Deal, it was a great example of what was considered alternative at the time--quirky, post-punk, grungy music with attitude. Every band had their own sound; there was nothing homogenous about 80s-early 90s alternative. This is before it became a record company/radio station format.

The whole album is a lot of fun. Staying with the "3 Minutes of Awesome!" theme, I chose "I Just Want to Get Along" for its danceable beat, chiming guitars, and thick distortion. The muffled, sarcastic vocals fit perfectly: "If you're so special, why aren't you dead?"

I highly recommend checking out the entire album on Spotify. The highlight is the hit single "Cannonball" - one listen and I'm back in 1993, my fifth year at DHS when we had two bands and a mandatory marching band, all crammed into M106 with a practice room for an office. Good times...