C120: The absolute most ESSENTIAL American alternative tracks

Smells like Teen Spirit

-- Son of Spam

Pixies - "Debaser", "Break My Body"
Pavement - "Silence Kit"
Slint - "Breadcrumb Trail" or "Nosferatu Man"
The Dandy Warhols - "Ride", "Dandy Warhols TV Theme Song"
Nirvana - "Blew"
(fuck i wish i could put stuff from The Bends on here)
Sonic Youth - "Teen Age Rocket"
Guided by Voices - "A Salty Salute"
pretend Ride is American and put on "Cheslea Girl"
something Smashing Pumpkins, your call ("Cherub Rock", perhaps)

I'll post more when I think of them.

Temple of the Dog- I'm Going Hungry
Pearl Jam- Alive OR Jeremy
Soundgarden- Black Hole Sun
Gin Blossoms- Hey Jealousy

The Gin Blossoms are so fucking awesome.

xpost

Soundgarden: more like it. TOTD is something I need to buy soonish.

you might get the names of your bad 90's mainstream rock songs misogynist footballers correct.

-- August 6th, 2006.

Corrected ...

Mid-80s?

And "Talkin' 'Bout the Smiling Deathporn Immortality Blues (Everyone Wants to Live Forever)"

-built to spill
-modest mouse
-neutral milk hotel

I don't really think of Soundgarden as fitting in with this stuff but if they do, please something other than "Black Hole Sun." "Jesus Christ Pose" is the obvious one. "Face Pollution" and "4th of July" are less obvious. And if those are to be included, then definitely some Faith No More, maybe "Land of Sunshine."

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:vXCWZSkXhqeHpM:i37.photobucket.com/albums/e97/Mbones55/ramones_-_ramones_a-ramones.jpg
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:tcFaW9L2Tc9zoM:images-jp.amazon.com/images/P/B00005HEF5.09.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:fWYfF8SZPeOYCM:www.blondie.net/archives/archived20030811/images/albums/parallellines.jpg
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:SSCzrddyxgfo-M:fusionanomaly.net/pereubuthemoderndance.jpg

I have to add just one track: The Rain Parade, "Halloween."
The Rain Parade were a jaded, loose sounding band that
occupied a no man's land between Syd Barrett and Camper Van
Beethoven. They were slightly amateurish but VERY good
songwriters. "Halloween," in particular, isn't just
"essential american alternative," it's just plain essential.

-- Louis Jagger (papiermachealamphibia...), August 6th, 2006 4:30 PM. (Haberdager) (later)
what are you trying to prove?

-- Louis Jagger (papiermachealamphibia...), August 6th, 2006 4:30 PM. (Haberdager) (later)
what are you trying to prove?

-- Louis Jagger (papiermachealamphibia...), August 6th, 2006 4:30 PM. (Haberdager) (later)

THAT SAID:
sun city girls - space prophet dogon
codeine - tom

xpost: squirrel police, why do you format your posts like that?

Beat Happening - "Our Secret"
Red House Painters - "Mistress"

Sonic Youth - Starpower
Half Japanese - Charmed Life
Pixies - Vamos
Dinosaur Jr. - Freak Scene
Galaxie 500 - Snowstorm
Fugazi - Waiting Room
Jane's Addiction - 1%
Nirvana - Negative Bitch
Pavement - Conduit For Sale
Guided By Voices - Hot Freaks
Palace Music - More Brother Rides
Built To Spill - Car
Ween - Push Th' Little Daisies
Flaming Lips - Felt Good To Burn
Beck - Outcome
Modest Mouse - Exit Does Not Exist
Brian Jonestown Massacre - Oh Lord
Cat Power - We All Die

Dead Kennedys - Holiday in Cambodia ('80)
The Cure - Jumping Someone Else's Train ('80)
Mission of Burma - Academy Fight Song ('81)
Black Flag - Six Pack ('81)
Dream Syndicate - Halloween ('82)
REM - Radio Free Europe ('83)
Violent Femmes - Add It Up ('83)
Minutemen - Little Man With a Gun In His Hand ('83)
Replacements - Within Your Reach ('83)
Smiths - Reel Around the Fountain ('84)
Husker Du - The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill ('84)
Meat Puppets - The Whistling Song ('84)
The Jesus and Mary Chain - Never Understand ('85)
Butthole Surfers - Lady Sniff ('85)
Big Black - Fists of Love ('86)
Squirrel Bait - Kid Dynamite ('86)
Sonic Youth - Schizophrenia ('87)
Spacemen 3 - Walkin' With Jesus ('87)
Dinosaur Jr. - Little Fury Things ('87)
Squirrel Bait - Kid Dynamite ('87)
Pussy Galore - Allright! ('87)
Pixies - Bone Machine - ('88)
Mudhoney - Touch Me I'm Sick ('88)
Nirvana - About a Girl ('89)
Galaxie 500 - Tell Me ('89)
Fugazi - Song #1 ('90)
Flaming Lips - Unconsciously Screamin' ('90)
My Bloody Valentine - To Here Knows When ('91)
Sebadoh - The Freed Pig ('91)
Teenage Fanclub - The Concept ('91)
Pavement - Summer Babe ('92)
Built to Spill - Twin Falls ('94)

Camper Van Beehoven - Take the Skinheads Bowling ('86)
Superchunk - Slack Motherfucker ('90)
Liz Phair - Exile In Guyville ('93)
Beck - Loser ('94)
Guided By Voices - I am a Scientist ('94)

2. Anthony, the difference is that now knowing the names of a bunch of shite songs is excusable. Putting the Dead Kennedy's on a list about American alternative music from 85-95 is inexcusable.

3. Whoever listed the entirety of the Empire Records Sdtrk, you made me laugh.

The defining music of this "movement" occurred between about '81 and the very early 90s. But in trying to define it, I think you have to pay at least a little attention to the music that it came out of, and the music that was coincident with it. Hence, the quirkier edges of California punk, and therefore the DKs. I mean, it's hard to talk about this stuff without roping in Public Enemy, NWA and the Beastie Boys, too...

Similarly, PE, NWA and the Beasties were popular with the same self-consciously "eclectic" college kids who were rocking the Pixies and Sonic Youth, or at least that's how I remember it. Slayer, too, for what it's worth. But those are other movements, so I think it's fair to relagate them to the margins of this "comp."

DK's, on the other hand, have to stay. If it weren't for Alternative Tentacles and SST, it'd have been a very different decade...

But while DK's and Black Flag are textbook "punk," they gave way to the Butthole Surfers and Husker Du, which in their era, were textbook "independent rock music." The continuum of rock, man...

Adam, I understand your reasoning about NWA and PE and that sort of stuff. But I don't think that the DK's have all that much to do with what we're talking about here... Alternative Tentacles certainly. But the DK's? No.

I think a lot of people will disagree with you on this one.

If I include stuff from the UK than the list would be too big and sprawling all over the place. Let's just limit it to the so-called college rock bands. So in that case, DK, Black Flag, NWA, etc. must go too.

You've got your 'Our Band Could Be Your Life' indie-rock (Sonic Youth, Minutemen, Replacements, Dino Jr., etc.) in the early to mid '80s.
Then you've got the sludgy heavy grunge/proto-grunge in the late-80s and early-90s.
You've got your jangly dream-pop (Mazzy Star/Opal, Velocity Girl)
Twee
Riot Grrl
Grunge
Alternative Rock for the Ladeeez (Juliana Hatfield)
Alt-Pop
and by '95 you've got the grunge also-rans headlining the alterna-rock festival near you).

Besides, it's hard to think of early '90s alt-rock without PJ Harvey's first album.

You seem to have a very specific idea of what you want on this tape, which makes trying to help you a bit tricky.

If it's all about the jangle, you might want some Lemonheads on there.