A Brief History of Grunge

Early grunge gig posters

As my project is centred around a modern day grunge band/nu-grunge/grunge-nouveau (whatever you want to call it,) I thought it would be appropriate to consider the history of the grunge genre and in particular, the history of its graphic design.

The grunge genre emerged around the mid 1980s as a subgenre of alternative rock music and is characterised by its sludgy, distorted guitars and angsty, growling vocals.  The genre largely originates from Seattle, Washington whose music scene saw the rise of  famous grunge bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden.  Alt rock bands outside of Seattle such as Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr and Melvins (fun fact, Nirvana had a van dubbed "The Melvin Mobile") heavily influenced the scene, sharing the same slow, distorted style.  This clip from the documentary Pearl Jam Twenty (2011) successfully illustrates the Seattle Sound spirit and community.  (1:40 onwards)

After the explosive success of Nirvana's lead single for Nevermind, "Smells Like Teen Spirit," in 1991, grunge became mainstream and it wasn't long before the genre reluctantly expanded in to a fashion trend.  Fans of grunge tended to dress in the likes of "ripped jeans, untucked flannel and stomping boots" and shortly after the media latched on to the sound and style, fashion designer Marc Jacobs, "who has never even been to Seattle," was given the title "guru of grunge" for his angsty designs.  (Marin 1992, p.9)
   

Grunge is also closely related to the punk, known partly for its raw "do-it-yourself" attitude.  This is evident in early grunge gig posters, many of which were hand-made with crudely hand-drawn lettering and collages.  It is also related to the Riot Grrl genre - an underground feminist rock movement originating from punk and grunge in the early 1990s - whose early gig posters cultivate a similar style.  

Riot Grrl gig posters

Though many grunge bands have disbanded since the peak of the scene, there are still a few grunge bands active in the current decade, including Mudhoney, Alice in Chains, Candlebox, The Melvins, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam to name a few.

Pearl Jam are an interesting case study when observing the evolution of grunge.  Their present sound "owes more to classic rock than punk rock."  Moreover, according to Yarm (2011)  it is perhaps due to the bands collective "genealogy" (two members originate from arguably the first grunge band, Green River) that this "well-polished musical outfit"   is still considered grunge.  Bassist, Jeff Ament claims that as their musical style aged they wanted to become a "chameleon type of band" (Pearl Jam twenty, 2011) and this drastic evolution of style is particularly evident in the comparison of their early and present graphic design.

Pearl Jam's early discography Ten (1991), Vs (1993) and Yield (1998.)

Early Pearl Jam posters were simple and to the point, sometimes featuring unpolished illustrations as was the norm for the majority of early grunge bands.  Their first three album releases, Ten, Vs and Yield, all feature photographic cover designs. 

Pearl Jam's more recent releases, Self-Titled (2006,) Backspacer (2009) and Lightning Bolt (2013.)

More recent Pearl Jam album releases are much more illustrative and colours noticeably more vibrant.  Their latest release, Lightning Bolt, has a particularly abstract and modernised vector design.  Poster designs have become much more elaborate and vary drastically from poster to poster.


Another interesting example of a modern day grunge band is Mudhoney.  Frontman Mark Arm and guitarist Steve Turner were also founding members of Green River however, unlike Pearl Jam, throughout the years the band have maintained their style of fuzzy guitars and strained vocals.

Mudhoney's early discography Self-Titled (1989,) Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge (1991) and Piece of Cake (1992.)

Early Mudhoney album covers featured relatively primitive illustrations with muted colour schemes or edited photography.  Poster designs echoed the muted colour tones and tended to include make-do scribbled illustrations.  

Mudhoney's more recent releases, Under a Billion Suns (2006,)  The Lucky Ones (2008) and Vanishing Point (2013.)

Mudhoney's recent graphic design has undeniably matured.  Album covers tend to be noticeably more artful with colourful, abstract designs whilst logo designs use custom type for an edgy yet rough look, complimenting the abstract style.  Their latest release, Vanishing Point, features photography with a grungy, aged paper overly.  Poster designs covey a psychedelic theme whether through distorted type, complicated patterns or colour choice and are usually very polished.      

References

Marin, R.  1992.  Grunge:  a success story.  The New York Times.  [online]  Nov 15:p.9.  Available from New York Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/15/style/grunge-a-success-story.html?src=pm&pagewanted=1 [Accessed 16 February 1014].

Pearl Jam twenty, 2011.  Directed by Cameron Crowe.  Washington: Seattle.


Yarm, M.  2011. Everybody loves our town: a history of grunge.  London:  Bloomsbury.