I thought I would try and do a series blog posts about the different types of Music I enjoy and how each type has influenced and made me who I am as a person. Some of these will no doubt shock you, and others may not shock at all. Either way, I figured it would be good to show why and how I became a lover of so many different musical styles.
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The first musical genre that I have to talk about as a major influence to me is Grunge. Obviously this is not the first style I ever heard, but it was one that shaped a very critical point in my life... my years in college.
But what -is- Grunge, exactly? Is it Metal? Is it Punk? Is it just banging pots and pans in a minor chord?
My understanding of Grunge is this: an early 90's reaction to the 80's Glam Metal scene where the artists involved went the complete opposite direction and instead of focusing on sex, drugs & rock 'n roll... show the darker parts of life: suicide, divorce, disease, drug abuse, etc.
For years I couldn't quite pinpoint why I was drawn to this type music. Here it is... a little over 20 years later and I was still stumped. Then I saw an episode of a miniseries on right now for VH1 Classic called Metal Evolution. The show has been extremely educational on a lot of where Metal and Hard Rock comes from, so if you can... do check it out. They just talked about Grunge in episode 7, which is what got me thinking more about it.
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How did I get sucked into what Grunge was all about as a college kid? Well after the death of my mother in mid '88 and the subsequent (and rather quick) remarriage of my dad to my now stepmom a year and a half later, I was kind of lost in High School. In fact I didn't really hit a solid "happy point" in High School until I was a Senior in '91-'92. I finally my driver's license (my folks refused to let me drive until I was 18, bah) and after switching High Schools my sophomore year... I had finally found a grounded place with new friends.
Then I hit my first year of college...
My freshman year was bad. I mean -really- bad. I don't think I was ready for college at that point, and it showed when my grades for the fall semester were the lowest I'd ever had in my entire life. Spring semester I did a bit better, but not spectacular. Then that summer I ended up totally my dad's car which didn't make me popular at home either. No doubt, feeling down about how much of a failure I was at 19 helped draw the particular style and subject matter of the Grunge scene into my musical repertoire.
A music so raw and yet filled with so much passion. That definitely fit my general mood at the time. Besides the awful grades, my decision during my sophomore year to change my major certainly was brought forth at least partially by the overall mood of Grunge music. I did stick with it and eventually got my Bachelors degree in Philosophy of all things. ;-)
I was still in school when Cobain died and when Soundgarden broke up, and suddenly I felt like a part of me had died right along with them. What was I going to do without that soundtrack in my life? Then we were left with bands like Creed (gag) & Hootie and the Blowfish (double gag) and I was kind of lost, musically and emotionally, for the rest of the 90's.
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I'm glad that some Grunge bands are now making a comeback. Helps me remember a part of my youth that, while very dark and depressing, has helped shape me into who I am today. So while some still don't quite "get" what Grunge is all about, some people did... and are still willing to throw on their flannel shirt proudly.
-----------------------
The first musical genre that I have to talk about as a major influence to me is Grunge. Obviously this is not the first style I ever heard, but it was one that shaped a very critical point in my life... my years in college.
But what -is- Grunge, exactly? Is it Metal? Is it Punk? Is it just banging pots and pans in a minor chord?
My understanding of Grunge is this: an early 90's reaction to the 80's Glam Metal scene where the artists involved went the complete opposite direction and instead of focusing on sex, drugs & rock 'n roll... show the darker parts of life: suicide, divorce, disease, drug abuse, etc.
For years I couldn't quite pinpoint why I was drawn to this type music. Here it is... a little over 20 years later and I was still stumped. Then I saw an episode of a miniseries on right now for VH1 Classic called Metal Evolution. The show has been extremely educational on a lot of where Metal and Hard Rock comes from, so if you can... do check it out. They just talked about Grunge in episode 7, which is what got me thinking more about it.
-----------------------
How did I get sucked into what Grunge was all about as a college kid? Well after the death of my mother in mid '88 and the subsequent (and rather quick) remarriage of my dad to my now stepmom a year and a half later, I was kind of lost in High School. In fact I didn't really hit a solid "happy point" in High School until I was a Senior in '91-'92. I finally my driver's license (my folks refused to let me drive until I was 18, bah) and after switching High Schools my sophomore year... I had finally found a grounded place with new friends.
Then I hit my first year of college...
My freshman year was bad. I mean -really- bad. I don't think I was ready for college at that point, and it showed when my grades for the fall semester were the lowest I'd ever had in my entire life. Spring semester I did a bit better, but not spectacular. Then that summer I ended up totally my dad's car which didn't make me popular at home either. No doubt, feeling down about how much of a failure I was at 19 helped draw the particular style and subject matter of the Grunge scene into my musical repertoire.
A music so raw and yet filled with so much passion. That definitely fit my general mood at the time. Besides the awful grades, my decision during my sophomore year to change my major certainly was brought forth at least partially by the overall mood of Grunge music. I did stick with it and eventually got my Bachelors degree in Philosophy of all things. ;-)
I was still in school when Cobain died and when Soundgarden broke up, and suddenly I felt like a part of me had died right along with them. What was I going to do without that soundtrack in my life? Then we were left with bands like Creed (gag) & Hootie and the Blowfish (double gag) and I was kind of lost, musically and emotionally, for the rest of the 90's.
-----------------------
I'm glad that some Grunge bands are now making a comeback. Helps me remember a part of my youth that, while very dark and depressing, has helped shape me into who I am today. So while some still don't quite "get" what Grunge is all about, some people did... and are still willing to throw on their flannel shirt proudly.
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