favourite alt-rock albums of the 90s

As a decade for music, the nineties was pretty great and so I thought that I would write about some of my faves in the all-encompassing alt-rock genre. I decided to leave out all albums from U2, Pearl Jam, REM, and the Hip because that would be too obvious and too easy. From Seattle to Minnesota here are a few choices of the Bing Dynasty:

1. Tomorrow the Green Grass--The Jayhawks: I fell in love with this album the first time I dropped it on the CD tray and still throw it in there quite often. I love all the Jayhawks albums but this one and Rainy Day Music (2003) are the best two. This has it all: the great writing, inspired playing, mournful coyote harmonies, and the RIGHT kind of twang (think Gram Parsons rather than Dwight Yoakam). Still their best effort on record. Standout tracks: "Blue", "Miss Williams' Guitar."

2. Jar of Flies--Alice in Chains: A mostly acoustic seven song EP, this album is moody, depressing, bleak, brilliant, and beautiful (no alliteration intended). Stunning playing and singing throughout, my only complaint is that I wish that it was a full album. A poignant piece of work, I like this album even more than Dirt. The harmonies between Staley and Cantrell are very beautiful, but also haunting and slightly disturbing. Standout tracks: "Rotten Apple", "No Excuses", "I Stay Away".

3. Being There--Wilco: A sprawling, epic double album, this was a huge step forward from Wilco's first album A.M. in that it was far more kick-ass, Stonesy, bluesy, and psychedelic. Also an interesting trip through the psyche of funny, quirky, sometimes troubled, yet ultimately triumphant leader Jeff Tweedy. Unbelievable! Standout tracks: "Kingpin", "Misunderstood", "Sunken Treasure", "Monday".

4. Superunknown--Soundgarden: Cornell and Co.'s magnum opus, this 70 minute hard-rock tour de force is one of THE defining albums of the decade. Pretty much not a weak track on the entire album. The monstrous shriek of Cornell, the sludgy psychedelia of Kim Thayil's guitar and the underrated rhythm section of Ben Shepherd and the brilliant Matt Cameron(who now drums with the legendary Pearl Jam) bring so much depth and breadth to a set of fantastic songs. If the late-era Beatles copulated with Physical Graffiti-era Led Zeppelin, this is the album that would result. A masterpiece. Standout tracks: "Spoonman", "Fell on Black Days", "Black Hole Sun", "Superunknown", "Mailman".

5. Crash--Dave Matthews Band: I realize that this albums has been played to death and many of its songs have been brutally covered by aspiring guitarists the world over. That should not diminish the fact that it is a wonderful, jam-rock, funky jazz masterpiece. 'Nuf said. Standout tracks: "Two Step", "Tripping Billies", "#41", "Cry Freedom".

6. OK Computer--Radiohead: This album is pure genius and I will say nothing more than that. Standout tracks: every song.

7. Rage Against the Machine--Rage Against the Machine: By far the best RATM album from the only so-called 'rap metal' band worth listening to. Warning: not for the faint of heart. From the cover shot of a Tibetan monk lighting himself on fire (!) to some of Zack de la Rocha's diction choices, this album is edgy, furious, political (duh!) James-Brown-spanking-Metallica funk metal and I love pretty much every track. Few bands settle into the pocket like these guys and bring such groove to political and social outrage. Sometimes, I wish Zack could just lighten up a little! Standout tracks: "Bombtrack", "Killing in the Name", "Take the Power Back", "Know Your Enemy"

8. Throwing Copper--Live: The-Band-Who-Wanted-To-Be-U2-But-Were-Never-Even-Close-To-Being-That-Good- Despite-Making-One-Amazing-Album came up big with this 1994 effort which is solid from opening to closing. Especially check out the fantastic drumming of Chad Taylor, one of the most underrated skinsmen in rock. Live may have had some great songs post-Throwing Copper, but never came close to equalling the bombastic power of their sophomore effort. Standout tracks: "Selling the Drama", "I Alone", "Lightning Crashes", "All Over You".

9. Grace--Jeff Buckley: One of the few albums ever where my jaw dropped open the first time I heard it and stayed open for a week on end. I have my good friend Amy K to thank for this one as she performed an obscure Buckley song at an open mic and I thought it was so beautiful I asked her about who wrote the song. She recommended Grace, Buckley's only studio album. It is a melancholy, eclectic, brooding, gorgeous masterpiece of an album, absolutely perfect in every way. His cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" brought me to tears the first time I ever heard it. The voice is stunning in range, timbre, and intensity while his guitar playing borders on virtuousic. Truly one of the finest singer-songwriter/alt-rock albums of all time. Buckley drowned in a freak accident in a branch of the Mississipi River in 1997, another case of losing a genius far too young. Standout tracks: "Grace", "Last Goodbye", "Hallelujah", "Lover You Should Have Come Over".

10. Urban Hymns--The Verve: Yes, this is the album with "Bittersweet Symphony" on it, but the band was better than just that song. They were no overnight sucess either, with a couple albums under their belt before they released their swan song, Urban Hymns, in 1997. This album was given to me by a buddy in college and it didn't leave the player for a good long time. Twisting, psychedelic, British guitar rock that puts to shame anything released by either of their more famous contemporaries at the time, Oasis and Blur, this album is giant in scope and vision and though it is long, it is never boring. An astonishing way to end a career, for the band broke up not long after the release of this album. Standout tracks: "Sonnett", "The Drugs Don't Work", "Space and Time", "Weeping Willow", "Lucky Man".

If any of these reviews cause anyone to go and check out one or more of these albums, then I will have done my job. These a just a smattering of proof about how amazing and creative the nineties were in contemporary rock. Keep it real...