Top Ten Best American Bands of the Nineties

A top 10 list.   For the 90s.  Do we need any rules?   Not really.  Well, they have to be a band (no Lenny Kravitz, Tom Petty, or Matthew Sweet), and they have to be American (no U2, Radiohead, or Oasis).

So, in no order, how about


Nirvana
Smashing Pumpkins
Pavement
REM
Hole
Sonic Youth
Pearl Jam
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Guns N Roses
Wilco




Since Nirvana is our lodestar here, it is perfectly ok for a band to only have two great albums in the 90s.  Let's break down the primary triumphs of each (studio albums for here and now):





Nirvana (Nevermind, In Utero)
Smashing Pumpkins (Gish, Siamese Dream, Mellon Collie)
Pavement (Slanted and Enchanted, Crooked Rain Crooked Rain, Wowee Zowee)
REM (Out of Time, Automatic for the People, Monster)
Hole (Live Through This, Celebrity Skin)
Sonic Youth (Goo, Dirty, Washing Machine, 1000 Leaves)
Pearl Jam (10, Vs, Vitalogy)
Red Hot Chili Peppers (Blood Sugar Sex Majik, Californication)
Guns N Roses (Use Your Illusion I and II)
Wilco (Being There, Summerteeth)

Bands that will get some love and support, but not crack our top 10 here, are likely

Green Day
Pixies
Black Crowes
Foo Fighters
Weezer
Metallica
Alice In Chains
Nine Inch Nails
Rage Against the Machine
Jane's Addiction
Soundgarden
Screaming Trees
Flaming Lips
Yo La Tengo
Counting Crows
Guided By Voices

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