Interview with Chris Simpson from Mineral

Reuniting after 17 years, European fans will finally get a chance to witness Minerals’ live performance on their very first European tour. On the occasion of the bands’ first Parisian show last Thursday at Le Glazart (brought to us by Old Town Bicyclette and K&B), I’ve had the honor to sit down with frontman Chris Simpson for an interview. Being slightly nervous at first, he quickly reassured me with his wonderfully down-to-earth, friendly character, paving the way for a laid-back and interesting discussion about the band, the past as well as the future for Mineral.

First off, how has the tour been going so far?

Great! The US dates were all incredible, many of them sold out. We’ve been getting very energetic crowds, people singing along the words … it’s been a wonderful experience. We’ve had really good shows on this European tour as well, two shows in Italy and two in Germany before tonight.

Starting from the very beginning, what is it that first made you pick up and instrument and start playing music?
For me, I was very young. My mother was obsessed with music and played it all the time and I just knew early on that that’s what I wanted to do. So it took some piano lessons as a kid and got into drums for a while, I played drums in some bands in middle school. My brother had also gotten a guitar, so I was sneaking into his room when he was away and learning to play his guitar because he wouldn’t want me to touch it when he was around. So between piano and guitar I started writing music a bit more. I kind of always knew that that’s what I wanted; I was working towards it in various forms, up until Mineral even started.
I’ve been playing in bands since middle school. At school and when you’re young and you play an instruments it’s easy to form bands, especially if you play drums, since more people play guitar it seems.
Mineral was probably the first serious band that actually had records released and got to tour and whatnot.

So this is your 2^nd tour since your reunion after 17years back in April of last year. How did it feel to relearn these songs after all of these years?

It was such a challenge; there was a lot of rehearsing involved. We rehearsed from February of last year to August before the first shows.  We wrote these songs, we used to play them all the time, so you would think the memory of how to play them would be there, but in a lot of senses it’s not. So you really have to relearn it all from scratch. On some occasions I had to watch some live videos on youtube to see if I could get a hint of my hand positioning on the guitar when some particular parts of songs were eluding me.
It was a challenge but it felt good to do. Once I relearned my guitar parts, I remember it all now and it feels like I’ve gotten back to the point where it feels natural.

How does it feel to be back on stage as Mineral?

It feels so nice. Before, we didn’t have rooms full of people who already knew the songs and wanted to hear them. This much easier for us than what we did originally. It’s nice to go out and play for a room full of people who already knew the material and who are there to see it.
This is our first tour outside of the US, we never made it out of the states.

So this is your first time in Europe?
I did a solo tour in Europe for my more recent stuff with Zookeeper in 2006 and I’ve been here a few times, just travelling, but this is my first time here with Mineral.

Do you feel like the music scene has changed since you first started out with Mineral?
Well back then it just seemed to be all about networks of people who knew each other and talked on the phone. We were just starting to have email back then, but during the majority of the time we were a band there wasn’t really any of that. There were fanzines, people would make themselves photocopies and give them out at shows. It was kind of a more DIY culture, very small networks of people who knew each other back then. That also still exists but of course now we have also got the internet and social media. Nowadays it’s so easy to connect with people.

Have the touring conditions evolved?
They’re super fancy for this tour, compared to what used to happen. (Laughs)
Back in the day we played a lot of house shows, very small DIY parties, coffee shops and just anywhere they would let people put on shows. And now we play nicer venues with bigger sound systems where hopefully you can hear things a bit better.

Do you still somehow miss playing some of these smaller venues now?
 I always like playing in small places, but also the reason Mineral can come back and play again is that there are these amounts of people who want to see us on tour. So I like to play somewhere big enough for everyone who wants to come see us.

So do you see this tour and this reunion as more of an homage to those particular records or more of a continuation, a new chapter for the band?
It feels like continuing. It doesn’t feel like nostalgia. It kind of feels like being transported back to that time and place, at least when we’re playing and connecting with the music.

What kind of music do you like to listen to while on the road?
I like to listen to a lot of Neil Young, Leonard Cohen and John Denver. I listen to a lot of singer-songwriters; it puts me in a specific mood, you know?

What is the most rewarding part of playing music?
Live shows for sure at this point, but also recording. I still love to record. Mineral is a great example of the idea that records are sort of immortal, you know? I actually don’t really remember recording the Mineral records too much actually. The band put out a couple of records and broke up like countless bands do every day, and now, years later, those records took up a life of their own, people can discover them. THAT is really neat. So I love records, but my favorite experience would still probably be playing live, getting to connect with people… There’s nothing that feels quite the same.

Over the years, Mineral has become a household name in the emo genre. How does it feel to know that these records had such an impact and an influence on the newer generation of bands?
It definitely wasn’t something we expected to happen when we were making Mineral records. It’s a wonderful thing. It’s always good to know that your music connects with people. Mineral felt kind of insulated at the time. We would often face our backs to the crowd. We weren’t really interested in the crowd of any sort.We were more interested in the experience we were having with this music. And now it’s nice to come back and get to see the people who appreciate our music and actually connect with them, you know? So it feels different in that sense now. It feels more like we’re here BECAUSE there are these people to connect with as opposed to us being here because we’re young guys who want to be in a band.

What is next for Mineral? Are there any plans for a new album?
There are no plans for a new album or anything beyond these tours, but we are starting to do some dates in the spring and summer, some festivals… Maybe we’ll be back in Europe. I don’t think we’ll do any more full tours unless there’s’ a reason to, like some new material or something.
So I guess we’ll see what happens. It seems like new material would take some time to develop.

So you’re not ruling out the possibility of writing new material.
No one is closed minded to it, like “absolutely not!”, but we haven’t had any time or leisure to think about it or work on anything yet. So we’d have to see how it goes. It would have to be something that we’re all very passionate about. It’s a very interesting idea to me.  I’m definitely curious about the possibility; to restart after all this time, being free to do whatever you want… then again you’re not really free, you know? The legacy of what you made 17 years ago would certainly have to color what comes next.

Interview by Robin

A huge thank you goes to Chris Simpson, along with the guys from Old Town Bicyclette and K&B for making this interview possible.

Mineral in Paris (@Le Glazart, 05/02/2015)

Back in July of 2014, after over 17 years of absence, the legendary Austin-based band Mineral announced that they would be reuniting. While this came off as a nice surprise to me as fan of the band, I had figured that this piece of news would only serve to further my frustration, considering that old-school emo bands seem to rarely ever tour outside of the States... hence my surprise and my excitement upon learning about the bands' European tour and their Parisian date. Having barely moved past the 3 year old mark back when the second wave of emo was in its prime time over in the US, I would have never imagined I would one day be able to witness a live show from one of the leading bands of the movement, let alone meet them for an interview.

Opening for Mineral was the UK based band Solemn Sun. The band previously known as Jim Lockey & The Solumn sun, decided to simply go by the name Solemn Sun after a change of musical direction, drifting away from their folk punk formula to a more ambitious alternative rock oriented sound. The freshly reborn act delivered a convincing performance tonight with some effective vocal melodies and pretty, airy guitar leads followed by loud powerful choruses. Other than the nicely arranged, spaced out clean guitar sections, the vocal delivery was great as well, with the clean poppy vocals occasionally backed up by some harmonies from the backing vocalists to add some texture to the somewhat dreamy yet straightforward feel of the songs.

After clearing up the stage and some last few sound adjustments, our headlining act timidly stepped on stage to pick up their instruments and introduce themselves. I couldn't help but feel this somewhat unusually timid introduction to very touching and all the more heartfelt and genuine. These guys are musicians, legends in their own right, but are first and foremost down-to-earth people who are here to connect and share their passion for music with an audience. The lights dimmed and Chris Simpson started playing the instantly recognizable first few notes from "Five, Eight and ten", the opening track off their debut album, under the thunderous cheers of an excited audience. I haven't had the chance to witness a Mineral back in the day, but I could only guess that the sound wasn't as good as it was tonight. One thing that I was also surprised and thrilled to promptly notice was Chris Simpsons' heartfelt vocals kept intact after all of these years. As with their studio efforts, the vocals were not always on key but just right, carrying the same emotionally gripping presence it had two decades ago (judging from old the live footage I've seen of them). Every member was at the top of their game tonight. When the band followed up their opening song by breaking out the classic "Gloria", I started to get goosebumps from hearing the stunning live rendition from a band that seemed to have never broken up in the first place. For the next hour and a half, Minerals' intimate set brought every one of us in the crowd back to the bands' hometown in Austin, Texas in the mid 90's, and boy did it feel great! The front rows of the audience jumped in excitement at the start of every song, smiling and hugging each other, making for a heartwarming atmosphere, while others enthusiastically were singing their hearts out to the lyrics.

In conclusion, Mineral have clearly stated with this first Parisian show that they are back with full force, ready to gracefully carry on where they had left off 18 years ago. The legacy of the band has yet to be put to rest, as I would go as far as to argue that the band still are at the top of their game as I can only imagine they must have been back in the day.

Robin.

I would like to send a very warm thank you to the band, to K&B as well as the staff from Old Town Bicyclette (OTB) booking for making the show as well as this article possible! Thank you!

Be sure to keep follow the bands as well as Old Town Bicyclette on Facebook and twitter as well as on their official webpages.
 

Old Town Bicyclette
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/OldTownBicyclette1
Official website
http://oldtownbicyclette.org/#!/events

Solemn Sun
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/s0lemnsun
Official Website
http://www.solemnsun.com/

Mineral
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialMineralMusic
Twitter
https://twitter.com/officialmineral
Official Website
http://officialmineral.com/

Solemn Sun Setlist

Mineral setlist

Valley of the Damned-DragonForce

 Today I am reviewing one of the essential power metal bands greatest albums. I am covering DragonForce's classic Valley of the Damned. This is their debut album but they have no difficulty proving themselves as a more than capable power metal band. They have all of the hard and soaring riffs that make DragonForce so good. Also the cover art is pretty darn cool. The guitar has a really good feel, it is constantly escalating in power. The bass is solid and helps to keep up a strong beat. The drums are hard and really fast hitting and thus very impressive. All in all this is an incredible first album from DragonForce.

The guitar has several really great aspects that makes DragonForce one of the best power metal bands. The main aspect that makes DragonForce really good is the sheer speed of some of the guitar solos that are played. The solos go so fast it is almost hard not to label this as a shred album. DragonForce is either really technically skilled, or they speed up their solos. If the solos are real then they are an incredible band, if not then wow they are horrible posers. The bass is steady and provides a good driving feel to the music along with the drums. The drums are really good on this album for two reasons. 1. They keep the beat well. 2. When given a fill the drummer does an amazing job. Essentially the instrumentalists of DragonForce are pretty awesome, if its real.

The vocals are fabulous and you can not question their reality. They have a lot of power behind them, however they are a bit high to have the operatic might of the greats like Dickinson. The vocals do have a certain sing-a-long feel and they really make the music have a great quality. There are some autotuned bits which tick me off a little but asides from that I think that the vocals are pretty awesome. The one thing the vocalist could do is put a bit more soul behind his singing. That would make his good vocals great. The lyrics are primarily fantasy based and have a great sound. They come across well and leave quite a few interesting concepts in their wake.

Overall DragonForce is a great band, if they are real. As I have found no good evidence that they are slowing their tapes then I have to accept that they are real and are thus amazing. They have everything that a good power metal band should have and they rock it well. The guitar is a powerful and fast bird swooping in with insane solos. The bass is rock steady and helps the music a lot and I truly enjoy it. The drums are also magnificent and provide a great feel to the music.The vocals are well done even if they do lack a bit of Umph behind them. The lyrics are excellent and I truly enjoy them. All in all DragonForce is a pretty awesome band with a pretty awesome album.

OVERALL 9/10

Rage Against The Machine-Rage Against The Machine.

 So this morning (Happy New Year by the way) I am reviewing pretty much the only type of rap I will listen to. And that is rap metal. And who is better at rap metal than Rage Against The Machine. This is a spectacular album perfectly blending the two genres of rap and heavy metal. There are metal standards on here, notably Killing in the Name Of one of the worlds best metal songs. The guitar work is excellent and establishes Morello as one of the greatest 90s guitarists (Also I like his guitar, which bears the slogan Arm The Homeless). There are decent bass lines and high powered drumming parts. The lyrics are so ferocious its amazing, it blows me away. The vocals are very good setting Zack de la Rocha as one of the few white men in the world who can rap.

The guitar is awesome with some of the best riffs that I have ever heard. They drive the music just as much as the drums, similar in vein to Iommi's killer riffs. The solos are intense and have a huge amount of energy (mostly anger) behind them. The guitar is a combination of Tony Iommi type riffs and thrash metal. It is pretty good as alternative rock guitar. Tony Morello is one of the angriest and skilled soloing guitarists that I have heard in a while. His guitar perfectly compliments the lyrics. He is a dark guitarist dedicated to taking away the machine that he rages against. The bass comes through a little but it could have more. The rhythm section is pretty tight though so I'm not complaining. The drums have really good parts and help to drive the music on to every angrier and more powerful heights.

The lyrics are very rap influenced but they keep their anarchic feel. Rather, the lyrics are rap in rhyme structure and sound but in content they are all about raging against the machine. In fact they are to some degree punk like. The perfectly epitomize what the band is about, rebelling against the system which they feel limits them and hurts them. This is perfectly seen in the song We Gotta Take The Power Back (which has a self explanatory title). Zack de la Rocha's voice keeps a very good rap feel while still maintaining some alt rock feel as well. He exudes anger from his every poor and wants to destroy the system because he is so filled with hatred. He is one of the biggest figures in the anarchic movement simply because of his raw and powerful energy.

Overall this is a really hard and rebellious album that showcases one of the most rebellious bands of the 90s, whose guitarists motto was Arm the Homeless. Anger is exuded from this album as an almost discernible odor. An anger so filled with energy that you can not resist it. I think this album blends rap and metal really well and it is simply awesome rap metal. There is great guitar on this album setting Morello as one of the greatest 90s guitarists, then there are good bass and drum parts. The lyrics are angry and protest the system. De la Rocha is one of the few white men who can rap and his words excrete anger (oh yeah). This is a rocking anarchic album that anybody who hates the system (or is feeling just prickly towards it) would like, and any metal fan would like.

Overall 8.5/10

Rage Against the Machine

Sonic Brew- Black Label Society

So today a review of one of my favorite guitarists group. The rock and roll viking himself. Zakk Wylde with his Black Label Society debut album “Sonic Brew”. Right off it explodes with Bored to Tears and shows true heavy metal potential. This album is fantastic with huge power chords and loud awesome solos. There are huge guitar and bass parts, its just spectacular, as I right this my body is shaking with the power of the music. It is truly beautiful and truly pure heavy metal. Zakk Wylde has a great voice that is some 2 octaves lower than everybody else and everything here is explosive and amazing heavy metal at it's finest. I hope my earphones don't blow out on this album, that would really suck.

While the music is guitar dominated it is definitely not the only aspect. Bass has a chance to shine as seen in the intro of the second track. The drums definitely give a certain drive to the music. Wylde has always claimed that his biggest influences are Zeppelin and Sabbath (same for me) but this is like really hard Sabbath with a really deep voiced vocalist. The guitar roars over everything, sometimes it is quieter but it is always read to explode into a cacophony of power full chords that make the album awesome. The distortion is almost always on and the musical quality never goes down with an amazing mix of tapping and regular soloing. These factors make sure that the album rocks for its whole duration.

The lyrics are aggressive at times and doom laden at others. Overall it is typically pretty much angry heavy metal. It lashes out at others who have lied or been against the singer. I am impressed at Wylde's ability so sing so well and play such great music at the same time. The solos are also a cut above average, I understand why Ozzy like him so much when they were together. They definitely rocked then and Wylde rocks in this band. The music is spectacularly loud and aggressive and just makes you want to move. Or in my case reall ticked off that I bust a string earlier today and need to go buy a replacement.

Overall a really good really loud album that features some really amazing tracks. While the compositions are not as good as that of the Smashing Pumpkins they are still pretty amazing and strong. Everything is well played and the solos are great. Wylde is one of my favorite guitarists and if you listen to this album you will hear why. While not like the Zeppelin and Sabbath he loves so much it is still really good and loud. If you had a bad day this is one of the things you listen to at full blast to feel better. This is a fantastic album.

OVERALL 9.5/10

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness- Smashing Pumpkins

So I like the Smashing Pumpkins, and seeing as I'm supposed to be writing about 90s metal we have today's installment. It starts off with the quiet piano track Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. There is definite communication of the melancholy atmosphere here. Then we hear the spectacular track Tonight Tonight. (Which has a really creepy music video). It starts off and you realize this is really good music. The album is really long and features all sorts of great Pumpkins tracks. You have to admit there is a lot of technical skill in this band. The music is filled with beautiful energy, the synth just makes some tracks awesome. This is THE Smashing Pumpkins album and shows off their greatest stuff.

The musicianship is spectacular. This album is meant to be listened to as a whole and is just amazing. The first really metal track is Jellybelly a power chord driven track that shows off the heavy sound of the Smashing Pumpkins. The music on this album both has quiet beautiful parts, as in the lead track Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and heavy grunge parts as in Jellybelly and Bullet with the Butterfly Wings. Corgan has a spectacular voice that is rather unique especially when he's really letting it rip. His voice is the defining aspect of the album. The music is brilliantly composed but not technically skilled. You can easily argue that only Corgan being left in Pumpkins still means they are the same band.

The guitar is classic. James and Billy bounce music off each other really well and the compositions are brilliant. The bass definitely comes through well on a lot of tracks and combines with the drums to form a great rhthym section. The lyrics are pretty dark in places like Bullet With the Butterfly Wings, but otherwise are about any variety of topics. There are some really nice music videos. I remember seeing the video for 1979 for the first time when I was 11 in the Hard Rock New York. A lot of times there is protesting the system in the lyrics or videos, such as when James flips off the entire town from a cliff.

Overall this is a great Pumpkins album showing off all their spectacular stuff. This album has so much stuff I would like to learn but a lot of it requires a pedal. There are all kinds of sounds here, from quiet classical pieces, to grunge and even some progressive tracks. Really a cool combination of sounds on one of the greatest albums of the 90s. This is a great album from one of the monsters of the 90s and has brilliant musical scores that you have to acknowledge as pretty fantastic. This is a beautiful album and that's all there is to it.

OVERALL 9.5/10

Fear of the Dark- Iron Maiden

Yay more Iron Maiden. I was in a Maideny mood so I did the best Maiden album of the 90s, not actually saying a lot seeing as... you know who... would come and ruin the band for 2 albums until the triumphant return of Dickinson. The album starts out with the really cool “Be Quick or Be Dead” and then breaks into the cool sing-a-long feel of the choruses in From Here To Eternity. It shows some experimentation, particularly in Be Quick or Be Dead which experiments with a faster tempo than normal Maideny stuff. It has a couple of classic songs, in particular Fear of the Dark. Childhoods End and Wasting Love are also awesome. It shows off a lot of the greatness of Maiden. From political commentary in Afraid to Shoot Strangers, to plain old simple heavy metal awesomeness in Fear of the Dark.
The first two tracks are extremely fast paced and lead one to believe wait... is this a Maiden album sans those amazing acoustic bits that build progressiveness into the music? Nope, you will be satisfied by the doom laden Afraid to Shoot Strangers. It still ranks as one of the top metal voices though, its just fallen a few notches. There is some really great music on this album. From the amazing Murray tapping to their traditional technically amazing solos. Dickinson comes across loud and angry and showing off all his vocal might. Murray's solos just boggle the mind. Steve Harris has a bass that shines through, more so than in many metal bands. Of course Nicko McBrain (also known as Mr. Best name ever) is still an amazing drummer and drives the music with his powerful and skilled drumming chops.

The lyrics are very dark, as usual with Maiden. But even these are more laden with messages of death and despair than normal Maiden tracks. One of my favorite Maiden tracks Childhoods End shows off a spectacular guitar part thanks to Murray and then a great rhythm part in the verse. It is enough to make you both despair and smile. The whole feel exuded by this album is very Iron Maidenesque. It is filled with all of the guitar parts and dark vocals complimented by one of rocks best rhythm sections that make the music great. Even though this album is not classic-ridden it still shows off some of Maidens best work.

This is a fabulous album that has everything that makes Maiden, Maiden. My only complaint is that there are few classic Maiden tracks here but if you consider it pretty much any aver song by Maiden could qualify as a classic for many other bands. (I mean the real Iron Maiden with either D'Ianno or Dickinson.) This is just an hour of Maiden showing off who they are accentuated by a couple amazing tracks that will survive as metal classics for years. Maiden shows their skill off here and you have to respect an album as awesome as this.

OVERALL 9/10

Nevermind Nirvana

So I felt like covering some 90s grunge today. So who epitomizes 90s grunge? NIRVANA! This album is a spectacular tribute to grunge and shows Nirvana at all their grungy amazingness. It explodes right off with their classic Smells Like Teen Spirit and then plows on to In Bloom. Both of those tracks have awesome music videos. This is THE best Nirvana album. It starts off with 3 of their greatest tracks Smells Like Teen Spirit, In Bloom, and Come as you are. The later on there is of course Lithium and Polly. So overall this has more Nirvana classics than either of there other albums. It truly rocks and gives you a real headbanging feel. Cobain's voice is the same grungy unintelligible mess it should be and as one called him “truly the voice of the teens of the 90s.” Nirvana has a lot of classic grunge hits and you have to love their loud gritty sound which often has some brilliant commentary in Cobains lyrics.

Cobains guitar is pretty much all power chords, but that's okay because its grunge. He does love his pedal though. It allows for spectacular explosiveness rarely achieved before. Also one of the greatest grunge solos can be heard in Smells Like Teen Spirit while seeming simple it is actually amazing. In Bloom also features a nice solo, but it is the feel that makes them so good, not the technical skill. Novoselic's bass comes through well on a lot of tracks, primarily as a background for Cobains singing and as a connector for the brilliant power chord dominated riffs of Cobain. The drums really give the music a really good rhythm section and supercharge the explosions of Smells Like Teen Spirit among other songs.

The vocals are sometimes nonsensical and other times brilliant at pointing out faults in their listeners such as in In Bloom. (For the record play In Bloom to any pop music fan convinced that the pop people aren't all drunks and they won't get it and the irony is HILARIOUS). The music is really driven and cool sounding. It is grimy and sweaty and has a great “buzz”. It shows off a bunch of good musicians who come together for spectacular results. Typically the music is loud but when you can really hear Cobains voice you realize it is kinda meh, but it is perfect for the grunge genre which doesn't care about stuff like that. Nirvana epitomizes grunge and garage bands in every aspect of their sound.

Overall this is a really cool album that lacks some musical skill but comes off sounding awesome. It is all about the buzz you get from the music. Unlike a lot of other bands which I like because of their technical skill Nirvana instead just has an amazing headbanging vibe with whatever they play. A side note is that if you are eager to learn some “Vana most of Nirvanas tracks you need a pedal to play. Overall this is a really good album that what it lacks in technical skill it makes up for in the sheer vibe and emotion based in the lyrics of Cobain.

OVERALL 9/10

NIRVANA band profile

Today I'm going to cover Nirvana and do a band profile for them. These guys rocked the 90's and rocked it hard. While lacking technical skill they had memorable riffs and are rightly rated among the rock gods even only 15ish years after Cobain, you know... *sniff*. They were one of my favorite 3 piece bands of all time. They had the brilliant Kurt Cobain, who was a guitarist and singer, he composed legendary riffs that will be remembered for decades if not centuries. Dave Grohl their main drummer was talented and powerful and made the songs steady and powerful. Krist Kristiansen (I think that's his name.) Had a great talent with the bass and people love him even today. His lines were memorable.

This band was a grunge band through and through. Actually they invented the genre. With rather unintelligible lyrics, distorted power chords and a headbanging sound they embodied grunge and everything that it should be. What was originally a simple garage band from Seattle became a legendary group with a golgafrinchan (it means big) following. In the words of “Weird” Al Yankovic “It sure beats raising cattle”. Comment please if you got either of the references made in the last 2 sentences it would be really cool to know that I'm not just babbling on and no one gets my humor, feel free to lie and say you get it even if you don't because then I'll get to feel special and have a tingly feeling on the inside.

They recorded some really good songs that will be remembered for aeons to come. Probably their most popular and important defining song is Smelled Like Teen Spirit. Other cool works of theirs include “Pennyroyal Tea” (the only rock song to mention laxatives), “In Bloom” (I love the lyrics of that one, play them to some weird little kid who like pop, make sure they have no idea what pop lyrics mean/suggest you get odd results.) and “The Man Who Sold the World” (one of my favorite covers of all time, post if you know who they covered,).

Overall this band rocks and rocked hard till Cobain.. committed suicide thus joining the 27 club and causing us to take all shotguns away from rock stars. They had a heavy defining sound and a powerful cause and meaning behind their songs. I like many others see this as THE grunge band and they are my favorite 90s band. They also called me to forever curse my music teacher from last year at school who when we talked about 90s music she was all about boy bands and Aerosmith (who was an 80s band, showing a lack of understanding of the topic.) but never mentioned Nirvana. So music teachers remember Nirvana in your next music lesson!

OVERALL 9/10