1991- Best Year Ever for Music?
A take so hot you can bathe in it.
1991, Portland Oregon: It’s easy to label certain years in music as “seminal.” Everyone seems to have their idea of which one was the best. For me, it’s pretty hard for me to argue against ‘91.
There was something new coming out every week, and each release took us in a different direction. It wasn’t just chart-friendly pop anymore (though there was still plenty of that, too).
College radio was moving from low watt campus station into the mainstream, and being rebranded as “alternative,” whatever that meant.
Industrial music was continuing to shapeshift, veering into grittier sounds that reflected a geopolitical era that was kinda sketchy.
Still, other established artists took things into new directions (see you at #6, Siouxsie).
This was the year my divorce from pop radio was finalized.
This was also the year I turned 16. And as I’ve written about many (too many?) times, it happened to be an electric time to be in Portland, where it felt like new bands showed up every weekend.
On top of that, I finally got my license and could drive downtown to 2nd Avenue Records instead of taking 2 buses to get there.
As for going to shows, I could go to the ones I wanted to, not just the ones the older guys on my block wanted to see. I spent most of this era either listening to music with friends, making mixtapes, blasting it out of my car, or going to shows. When I wasn’t doing that, I was reading about new bands in Flipside and/or saving money to go buy more records.
Sometimes, I even managed to go to school.
A couple of notes about the list below:
It’s all over the map. if you’re looking for a theme, genre, or consistency you’re out of luck. That’s a reflection of where I was at during the time. We were like kids at a buffet trying everything all at once. New artists, new genres, new everything. It was a sonic wonderland. It was amazing.
I tried to hold this list purely to 1991 releases, but time is squishy. For the pedantic among us, some of these are 1990 releases. What can I say?
There are a LOT of bands that by rights should be here. Some were cut for space, and some material from local bands I just couldn’t find. And with any of these types of lists, it’s sure to come with second-guessing (by me), and resisting the urge to endlessly tweak it.
And with that-and in no particular order- here are 16 songs from my 16th year:
“Happy,” Ned’s Atomic Dustbin from the God Fodder record. Just an amazing record that blindsided every one of us. Playing with 2 bass guitars gave the band a novel sound that was unlike anything we’d heard before.
“Radio Song,” REM from Out of Time. The opening track on this record reflected the urgency of the era, and for me, the weird sort of relationship people (including myself) had with the radio. Having KRS-One featured only made a good thing better.
“Trust Me,” Jesus Jones from Doubt. The band caught my attention with Liquidizer, and kept it with their follow-up. Everyone loved “Right Here, Right now,” (it’s a great song), but I loved the opener. Hmmm. maybe there’s a theme here.
“Planet of Sound,” Pixies, from Trompe Le Monde. Okay, not an opener, but definitely one of the best on this record. And on a record with “Alec Eiffel” and a JMC cover, that’s saying something.
“Breed,” Nirvana, from Nevermind. It was 1991. Of course, Nirvana was gonna make this list at some point. If you have, if you need.
“Shadowtime,” Siouxsie & The Banshees, from Superstition. In my world of (then) snotty music geeks, this record was met with a lot of derision and glances askance. The band went in a poppier direction (“Kiss Them For Me” was a mild hit), and that raised a lot of people’s hackles. This was still in the era when people equated any success with selling out. Shame really; it’s a fantastic record with a lush, expansive sound.
“Motor.Tool. Appliance.,” Babyland, from You Suck Crap. A band I discovered through reading Flipside. They sound like they came from the same finishing school as bands like Einstürzende Neubauten. And despite the album title, the record was anything but. I’m pretty sure this is the soundtrack to the end of the world.
“Unsung” Helmet, from Meantime. My favorite song to run red lights to. If nothing else, listen to the last 1:20 and imagine being 16 and behind the wheel again. Sounds as good as ever.
“Killer,” Mule, from the Killer 7' EP. A local band that never gave less than 110% live. I lost a lot of hearing watching these guys play. Was it worth it? Probably.
“Not Too Soon,” Throwing Muses from The Real Ramona. Following up a record as perfect as Hunkpapa would’ve been nearly impossible, but Ramona comes close.
“When It Began,” The Replacements from All Shook Down. This album felt like a letdown to me. It’s not that it’s bad — it’s that “Don’t Tell A Soul” was so good. Nevertheless, this is one of my favorite tracks by the band.
“X,Y, & Zee (sensory amplification mix),” Pop Will Eat Itself from Cure For Sanity. 1991 was a vibe.
“Downer,” Lush, from Gala. Yes, this came out in 1990. Yes, I was still listening to it on repeat in 1991.
“Sunless Saturday,” Fishbone, from The Reality of My Surroundings. Smart(ing) social commentary from the same band that brought us “Party at Ground Zero.” If we could harness half the energy of this song, we wouldn’t need to worry about where our gas comes from.
“Gutless,” Jawbreaker from Unfun. Another 1990 pick here, but I mean, I’ve never really stopped listening to it so… (shrugs)
“Rush,” Big Audio Dynamite, from The Globe. At this point, Mick Jones swapped oversized baseball hats for bucket hats (because, 1991), and dropped The Globe, which gave them their biggest hit in “Rush.” Rob Janicke recently wrote about the track on Generation Riff. I hadn’t listened to this in years, but somehow still knew all the worlds.
“If I have my time again
I would do it all the same
And not change a single thing
Even when I was to blame”
Indeed.
Have some thoughts on this list? What’d I get right? What should be on here? Share your thoughts!
Thanks for being here,
Kevin—
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A earlier version of this article first appeared here.
i think once i tried to decide what the best year in music was and i came up with 1977 because that was the year that rumours came out? but i don’t think i agree with that take anymore, it’s too hard to determine “best” even within a year.
Shadowtime!! That one immediately popped out at me when I was looking through the list. Sir, I doff my hat to you.
For me though, 2003-2008 were the glory years of discovery.