re: Grunge Era

I was there too! Eddie Vedder climbed across the rafters during Porch. Some ding-dongs got kicked out before the show started because they were stage diving to an Ice Cube tape.

No, initially Scott Weiland had a lot of the same vocal mannerisms as Eddie Vedder. And there was a feeling that they were kind of a corporate thing because they didn’t come from Sub Pop, SST or another hip indie label.

I think it turned out that Weiland just had the same influences as Eddie Vedder. And apparently the whole deal about him being a fake corporate rocker bugged him to the point that he started using heroin to deal with it. (It was a big, big deal in the early 90s to be a sell-out)

I wasn’t a huge STP fan - I thought they paled in comparison to Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Alice In Chains, etc. But they had staying power and did a lot of different, solid tunes. And STP sounded like Black Sabbath compared to the wave of lame bands that followed - Creed, Nickelback, Candlebox, Collective Soul, Days of the New, etc.

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They went downhill after Ten.

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I was a huge fan of Ten, still am. I was eagerly anticipating the release of Vs. Yet when it came out I was disappointed. It just didn't grab me the way Ten did. I'm not even sure why. With Ten, I was sold the first time I listened through. Vs. never moved me in the same way. Never paid much attention to them after Vs. unless a song was on the radio.

Just natural progression for a songwriter. First album or two are your life’s work to that point. The rest of your albums are new writing and old non favorites with the “growing as a band” songs thrown in.

Vedder stopped trying any vocal range after VS for a while. His tone sounded the same. With occasional great songs per album instead of the occasional stinker per album.

Red Hot Chili peppers
Smashing Pumpkins
Pearl Jam

NOLA Municipal Auditorium Feb 92 all time classic linup

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Time has shown that AIC and Stone Temple Pilots were the greatest of the era.

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Add Soundgarden, too.

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Time has shown that AIC and Stone Temple Pilots were the greatest of the era.

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I've listened to plenty of Alice and Chains, but I dived into their catalogue a couple of weeks ago on a 3 hour trip, and did some more active listening. I thought about what makes them sound the way they do, and I guess I never fully realized how incredible Staley and Cantrell's harmonies are. That is what makes their sound so distinct I reckon, along with great song writing obviously. I read that Cantrell harmonizes in 4th intervals instead of the common 3rds and 5ths which other bands started emulating after them, making up that "90s" rock sound.

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Temple of the Dog

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Mad Season's Above gets forgotten in this era too but has some solid tunes IMHO

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I've listened to plenty of Alice and Chains, but I dived into their catalogue a couple of weeks ago on a 3 hour trip, and did some more active listening. I thought about what makes them sound the way they do, and I guess I never fully realized how incredible Staley and Cantrell's harmonies are.

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I've just recently started watching the unplugged show they did back in the late 90s and this is the exact same conclusion I came to. I never realized how much harmonizing they did and it's really good.

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I never understood that angle. I think it was very few music critics that said that. It wasn't some huge belief among listeners

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I don't think the poster is justifying it. Right or wrong, that was how many in the public viewed STP when they hit big with "Plush.". They eventually outgrew the comparison.