Nirvana were the first band to popularize the musical aesthetic that dominates mainstream rock today. So, yeah, they were pretty influential.

From the Grunge period, there are really only a small handful of bands that had any visible influence on the future musical landscape.

For all intents and purposes, there are only two major players. Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Nirvana will always receive an asterisk because we'll never know what might have been.

In terms of bands clamoring to sound like one or the other, no post-1990 band/album has been emulated more than Pearl Jam's Ten. I qualify it as band/album because nothing in Pearl Jam's
catalogue is even remotely similar to Ten.

Considering Pearl Jam's longevity, its many copycats, hardcore fanbase and recent return to chart success, I'd venture to say they are the most influencial band of the grunge period.

What Nirvana acheived cannot be discounted. I'll never forget the first time I heard "Smells Like Teen Spirit". But Nirvana were the benficiaries of good timing. They got played first, so they started the explosion. Otherwise, wholly overrated.

No, Nirvana was not the most influential grunge band.
The honors go to Pearl Jam, and notably, as the last response says, to the album Ten.
I do not, however, think that Nirvana is overrated. Some band needed to take credit from the alternative rock explosion, and while it could have just as easily been the Pixies or a more mainstream Sonic Youth, Nirvana made the album, (Nevermind), that did it. The band itself may not be any greater than other great alternative rock bands, but because of their historical presence and accessibility, they will last in rock. Also, Nevermind and In Utero are excellent rock albums on their own, stronger than a Surfer Rosa/Doolittle combination or S&E/CRCR combination.

Most influential grunge band? Toughie. It is either Nirvana or Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam survived the mid-90s rise of soft rock and is still somewhat of a powerhouse band today. But Nirvana and Kurt Cobain are more traditionally hailed as the kings of grunge and even the voice of Generation X. "Teen Spirit" was a historic point in music history, but I believe Pearl Jam's style has been more copied and imitated than Nirvana's and is perhaps more influential. Though it could go either way, and I may sway because Nirvana is my favorite rock band, but Pearl Jam's much longer existence adds influence.

I mean, Nirvana obviously didn't invent the soft chorus loud verse of "smells like teenage spirit" but they clearly popularized it. You listen to all the bad rock songs from 96 to 2006 and a good proportion follow that same formula. So in that regard, Nirvana was clearly the most influential.

I don't really see the album "Ten" being as influential as "Nevermind". Mainstream rock or indie rock today sounds nothing like those two albums, but if I had to pick one, I hear more of the punk rock influence of "nevermind" than I do of the classic rock oriented "Ten".

quote:

Originally posted by Jimi White Cobain:
the only reason i joined this site is to tell the guy who said the members of nirvana can barely play their instruments that he is a moron. Others have already called him out but i would like to personally call him a jackass. Kurt Cobain did what he could with his skill. He might not have been the greatest guitarist in the world but he knew how to make something relatively simple into something beautiful. His lyrics could've and would've been better had he not supposedly killed himself. Krist Novoselic is a great bassist and Dave Grohl is the best drummer since Neil Peart. Neil Peart is the guy from Rush who is basically the best drummer ever, but Dave Grohl is bar none the best drummer of this generation.

The mind boggles. Either you don't listen to many other bands or you don't know anything about drumming. I can think of at least a dozen drummers from the 90's alone who were better than Grohl. Let's see now:

Chamberlin (The Smashing Pumpkins)
McBrain (Iron Maiden)
Selway (Radiohead)
Cameron (Soundgarden)
Portnoy (Dream Theater)
Perkins (Jane's Addiction)
Carey (Tool)
Walford (Slint)
Bordin (Faith No More)
Silveria (Korn)
Sorum (Guns N' Roses)
Howard (Muse)

And Novoselic was by no stretch of the imagination a great bassist.

Out of the 'big four' seattle bands, Nirvana were the least talented musically and vocally. I'm amazed by the unchallenged 'Nirvana were the most talented grunge band' comments on here. Amazed!

I was never much of a Nirvana fan...didn't really see what all the fuss was about. I think that:
- Pearl Jam is the most influential in terms of vocal style, with Ten being the template for much of what happened in the late 90's/early 00's
- Soundgarden was the most talented band all the way around
- Alice in Chains is a close second to most influential, and they were probably the only major Seattle band that, imo, sound remotely like something that could be called 'grunge'

But...a question - how in the name of all that is holy can PJ, AIC, Soundgarden, Nirvana, et al give rise to the abominations that were/are Creed, Nickleback, Staind, Matchbox 20, Disturbd, et al?

quote:

Originally posted by wcsmith77:Soundgarden was the most talented band all the way around

Completely agree. The best musically and vocally. Also the most original.

Are you talkin' about grunge or every which way?
Does "best" equal "favorite"?

Most influential grunge band is Pearl Jam, because all of those musicians were incredibly influential to the Seattle grunge scene in all kinds of different bands (Mother Love Bone, Green River, etc.). The fact that they're still around today, in the environment they're in, with the kind of integrity they hold is staggering (oh, and the fact that they haven't self-destructed or gotten sick of the music industry yet).

Pearl Jam are the mainstream's Fugazi. Or the new Clash. Or Gen X's U2. I'm not sure which. Maybe not the new Clash...

I suppose Pearl Jam may be the most influential band to me too, but only for their powers of dissuasion. Anything that I hear that sounds like Pearl Jam or something that reminds me of Eddie Vedder's voice makes me want to be sick all over myself.

Perhaps those who say nirvana was the least talented of the grunge bands are right, but they are still my favorite. I don't really give a shit for talent when talent (ie technical skills on guitar, drums, bass) doesn't produce albums with the sheer power of nevermind or especially in utero.

Nirvana is far from the most influential grunge band. What they did though was bring over 15 years of underground music that had been building up and brought it to the mainstream. It was the perfect timing.

When you look in terms of influential Nirvana would have to be at the top, no matter the discussion on who was the best or whether they were any good, they are clearly going to be more influential cause they topped the charts the world over and were beamed into everyone's homes.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kyla,

I would agree with the people who say Pearl Jam were more influential (at least for what's on the radio today).

All the bands on the radio these days sound like Creed and we all know that Creed ripped off Pearl Jam completely.

As for the metal sound of today, I think the bands owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Melvins. It's a sound that has been rehashed over and over but never been commercialized.

They're the only influential grunge band... grunge was the sum of older influences Sabbath, Black Flag, Pistols it wasn't innovatory it was the only musical movement I can think of (off the top of my head) to reach mainstream commercial audiences that didn't offer up anything new of it's own. Maybe that's why it imploded so totally when Kurt died, most of the main protagonists really were just the same guys that can be found playing dead end heavy rock / metal in small bars the world over.

quote:

Originally posted by Peanut66:
They're the only influential grunge band... grunge was the sum of older influences Sabbath, Black Flag, Pistols it wasn't innovatory it was the only musical movement I can think of (off the top of my head) to reach mainstream commercial audiences that didn't offer up anything new of it's own.

Most musical movements are just the sums of other movements that came before it. Name any musical movement that's occured in the last ten years that wasn't based, in part, on a preexisting genre of music.

Oh, and I'd be willing to bet you that half the bands you find musically exciting right now will be playing their greatest hits at dead end bars in 5-10 years. If they're still together, that is. And five years after that, some new generation of hipster kid will be wondering how you ever listened to any of that crap.

This is quite simple really. Nirvana were the most popular and the biggest selling Grunge band so if "influential" means influencing the most people to learn guitar and start a band then Nirvana wins hands down. If your talking about the band whos "sound" has been copied the most (for better or worse) then i would have to go for Nirvana again; eg - Think about who are the most important bands in Britain right now? Oasis? Radiohead? Muse? Artic Monkeys? It might not be obvious right away but all these bands have copied Kurt Cobains sound (some more the others) - Creep by Radiohead anyone? I don't see Soundgarden or Pearl Jam in any of these bands.
Nivana wern't the most inventive or original Grunge band though. In fact i don't think there was anything remotly original about Grunge at all. The fact is, people were distorting guitars in the 60's. If there was a Grunge sound it most certainly didn't start with Nirvana. That particular honour should perhaps go to Dinosaur Jr who were doing everything that Nirvana and the Pixies got so much credit for (heavilly distorted guitars, quiet verse/loud chorus, heavy riffs mixed with catchy melodys, mumbled vocals ect) but in the mid 80's! They even looked like a Grunge band. I guess it's possable to be too far ahead of your time for your own good.

Let see who the contendors are:

Alice in Chains
Meat Puppets
Mother Love Bone
Nirvana
Pearl Jam
Stone Temple Pilots

As much as I am a huge fan of Meat Puppets - the most influential grunge band goes to Nirvana

I shudder when I see Nirvana lumped in with the punk and post-punk genres... although a lot of bad music came out of both, it just disgusts me for Nirvana to be thrown in. Mostly because their sound is in no way real punk (no matter where it's from) or post-punk.

I just don't see it.

quote:

Originally posted by Funkymonk:
That particular honour should perhaps go to Dinosaur Jr who were doing everything that Nirvana and the Pixies got so much credit for (heavilly distorted guitars, quiet verse/loud chorus, heavy riffs mixed with catchy melodys, mumbled vocals ect) but in the mid 80's! They even looked like a Grunge band. I guess it's possable to be too far ahead of your time for your own good.

try Husker Du, early 80s