The Chaotic Rise & Fall of Alternative Rock | Underground Inc | Amplified

‘Underground Inc tells the story of the rise and fall of the alternative rock scene, in the wake of Nirvana’s success. Starting with its roots in the eighties underground punk scene - witness the meteoric rise to mainstream dominance and how it all came crashing down against a world of excess and greed. This is the story of the music business colliding with some of the most important and overlooked musicians of the period, finally telling this story in their own words!
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#alternative #underground #amplified

[@tacob69]

I toured with my friends band in the early 90's to give them a hand doing whatever needed done.The singer loved to hold his farts till we were in the small camper we drove in.I warned him I have a VERY weak stomach and he decided to not believe me.Well sitting next to me he dropped a horrible fart and when it hit me I leaned over and threw up all over him.He never farted in the camper again and I was a hero to the other band members.

[@GasGotti]

That’s gnarls barkley

[@BrandonToy]

And that singer was….Tiny Tim

[@calvinguile1315]

PUNK ROCK!

[@rjo8570]

Great story should be on video! 🤘🤮👍

[@rnrpeg1]

... and thus the Golden Rule of Touring was born. NEVER SHIT ON THE BUS. 🖤☠️🖤

[@buddahbubba]

No Shudder to Think? Also more time should've been spent on Shawn Smith stuff. Satchel's EDC was a masterpiece!

[@piet6790]

Amphetamine Reptile Records had a lot of great Bands under their thumbs back in the days.....

[@Krrrimmi]

As '90s kid. '90s Alternative Rock is d music I listened to since sophomore high(1993). My 1st love is '80s METAL. UNtil by 1992, NIRVANA jusr 1st appeared & released "Smell Like Teen Spirit". O was surprised when I first watched them on MTV. They don't look like rockstars. Clad on t-shirts, faded jeans, Chucks, & no accessories. They are totally different. Until by 1992, SMASHING PUMPKINS was 1st appeared & released "Cherub Rock". & they were in cleancut hairdo. It's d start pf '90s Alternatine Rock". '90s started forming Alrernative bands. '90s bands "stripped away" d rockstar image on stage. Cleancut hairdo(not long-haired), wearing t-,shirts, vintage jeans, & classic sneakers: Chucks, Vans, slip-ons, Adidas Samba,& Puma suede. & bandmembers turned nerdy. Clean living: no dugs & no alcohol. They even have college degree. ( Dexter Holland of OFFSPRING). They stripped away d rockstar lifestyle. '90s Alternative bands are d pinoneer of "simplicity"on stage. 🤘😃

[@screemin187]

Very good doc, can someone connect the dots for me ref Matt Tecu & Rollins Band? Is it touring?

[@miller_6700]

“Rich kids got psychiatrists and us poor kids played punk”

[@squeeeeit]

Hardest quote

[@TheAggromouse]

I feel so lucky to have seen 99% of these bands live, in small clubs, and still listen to them today. Especially, Monster Magnet!

[@Sumner1028]

Never got into monster magnet. Kyuss were monsters though

[@ponzo1967]

​@@Sumner1028 Monster Magnet has some bangers

[@Issicra]

Not gonna lie, I wasn't really that into most of the bands featured here, but my roommate was, and he got free tickets to go see Monster Magnet and CoC. Around 97 or so. That was a kick ass show.

[@coyleigh]

I've never heard of Monster Magnet

[@rnrpeg1]

​@@coyleighSIGH I believe that's part of the point.

[@mikec6733]

Rich kids went to psychiatrists, poor kids played Punk Rock.... Good line 👍

[@springbloom5940]

Except it wasnt true. Most of these bands were full of rich kids, trying to be contrary.

[@mikec6733]

@@springbloom5940 interesting 🤔

[@User-54631]

I’ve talk a boomer about the scene then he said the same thing. Punk rock is what the rich kids pretending to be be poor listened to. A band called snot wrote a record talking shit about Bret from bad religion basically calling him a rich kid playing poor.

[@pricila6511]

@@springbloom5940 egggggggxactly!

[@chrismicro]

@@springbloom5940 Which bands are you referring to, specifically?

[@williamjosephdunn5879]

It's awesome that you featured Cop Shoot Cop so prominently. They were a super under rated band in the 90's and one of the best live bands I saw back then.

[@brentb5303]

That was my older brother's favorite band at the time. I thought they were alright. I didn't get what Tod A was talking about because I was too young. During the Firewater days I went back and found that Ask Questions Later is easily in my top 25. I wish they had better production on that album because it sounds like it was recorded in a basement. Very unique band that never got their due.

[@allenschmitz9644]

basment tapes was the 90's sound...best shows.@@brentb5303

[@paulsteel9127]

When I first heard them on KROQ, I thought they sounded like a grunge Adam Ant and loved it.

[@rftutd9409]

I listened the the bassline, at least a dozen times, that the member of Cop Shoot Cop played. Is that one of their songs, if so, which, I'm not familiar, am going to explore this band.

[@TheOpenSociety777]

​@@paulsteel9127A documentary of alllllll Biden supporters....but theyre "punk rock" 😂😂😂🎉🎉🎉

[@jasonpeters9716]

DJ Shadow/"Entroducing.." UNKLE/"Pyscience Fiction"

[@Itsthatoneguy371]

Clutch is awesome. Seen them 15+times. Love them. They don’t need big labels.

[@veiledrecalcitrance4314]

Man it was great to be a music lover in the 90s, there was just so much of it that was so close to you as a kid. Todays music almost is separated from the public, but to see a band you liked in the 90s wasn’t that difficult, and so much of the music was so good. I hate the term grunge because everyone was so different (of course there opportunist bands but there were a lot who weren’t) you couldn’t really label all of it. I would love if a resurgence of this type of music happened again. It’s almost been purposely buried for some reason

[@BrandonToy]

Yeah, it was so exciting. So many great bands and just awesome rock music.

[@miller_6700]

I’m glad there’s beginning to be a new rock scene nowadays.

[@robertlittle7314]

Great presentation, great content, letting the musicians pretty much speak for themselves with just the right number of indy font text screen splotches to emphasize key phrases that hammer the point home. Well done, thank you!

[@sorrynotsorry5589]

What did I take away from this? ....... farting in a van is an act of aggression

[@damianmann]

Prince was not "shit". A friend gave me 2 tickets to go see him. I didnt want to go because I equated him with Michael Jackson and Madonna, both of whom I didnt care for. But he was great. It was like a history lesson in funk. There was James Brown, Funkadelic, Hendrix, all in one guy. Sorry too cool for school dudes. You're wrong. I was wrong. I thought he'd be terrible. Sidenote: I was on some really good Texas LSD that night. So I don't know. I saw bauhaus for the first time later that night. It was all great

[@michaeldennistooley4271]

You're saying what I am thinking my friend. Thank you 💜 🕯️

[@akaerik1]

Steve albani is a good musician and great engineer but he has some of the shittiest hot takes on music he's ignorant of. Prince had more musical juice in his pinky than Steve will ever dream of having

[@jasonsawyer123]

This was the last rock n roll revolution. I don't care what anyone says about cycles. Because of the loss of regional sounds, new technology (A.I. pro tools), and especially the internet, rock and roll will never make a real comeback. I believe there are amazing bands still making fantastic inspiring music and if you care to search, you'll find amazing stuff. However, the vast majority of people will ever care enough to make a difference.

[@chrisdrake447]

Epic freakin’ documentary. Not being from the US, several of these bands are only vague memories, but, oh my, what a revelation. Cheers to all involved.

[@Zonum420]

Took my Son to go see Clutch, Helmet, and Quicksand about 4 months ago. They all killed it. Saw Failure last year for the first time. I was blown away. Really great documentary. Thanks for sharing it!

[@chuck6033]

Lolla ‘92 should get more respect for how absolutely legendary it was. The line-up. The vibe. The madness of the time.

[@shaun9901]

I hadn't heard of Ministry before that show and wondered why they were going on next to last. About 60 seconds into their set it was apparent why. The crowd added to the spectacle by lighting bonfires and tearing up the sod lawn of the venue. One of the best shows ever!

[@KrashyKharma]

Woodstock 94 as well \m/

[@jasonpeters9716]

1995 Lollapalooza? You go look at the lineup. Outside 1992 Lolla? 95 was TRUE example of what this Tour was meant to be. Pavement, Sonic Youth..

[@jasonpeters9716]

@@KrashyKharma NIN at Woodstock 94 was arguably THE performance of early-mid 90s.

[@chuck6033]

@@jasonpeters9716 was at both. 1992 was crazier. Though 1995 was incredible too.

[@SS-gx7tg]

Man this is easily one of the best comprehensive documentaries on early-mid 90's indie I've seen. Seriously amazing job with this! I cannot believe how many people you got to sit down and talk, such a great variety of awesome bands, and discovered some great stuff too! Will probably watch this a few more times as there's so much packed in here, I love it!

[@phillippettit2138]

Agreed

[@465marko]

Just sayin, I don't think this channel actually makes the documentaries; they just upload them. I remember seeing this one quite a few years ago. It's a good channel though, they have a lot of great documentaries.

[@aclark903]

Focuses on the American scene. There was a lot going on in Britain also.

[@TheOpenSociety777]

​@@aclark903A documentary of alllllll Biden supporters....but theyre "punk rock" 😂😂😂🎉🎉🎉

[@TheOpenSociety777]

​@@phillippettit2138every single artist in this documentary would be the first to tell you that they support open immigration and Biden..... But would be the very first people to move out of town once it becomes immigrants 😂😂😂🎉😢🎉😅

[@elosoguapo8137]

Music is a horrible business. I do it for fun not money.

[@3rdmm]

However good Nirvana was, they were promoted to the max by MTV, like no other band before or since.

[@rjo8570]

Ya because people kept calling them up to request them!

[@daveyboy8907]

You didn't call mtv..They played them to the max to start a music revolution and make tons of cash..

[@Buckseed]

The Butch Vig promotion!

[@aisle_of_view]

Not as much as Phil Collins

[@grimmwerks]

God I loved the lower East side early 90s. Cop Shoot Cop were destined for greatness. Tried out for them when they added guitar - and I sucked on guitar but it was a great time jamming with them.

[@russell_szabados]

Hell yeah, Cop Shoot Cop were the shit ca. '91-92 and the E Village and lower east side were still spilling over with the bands that defined the NYC underground. And then Cop Shoot Cop got that DJ w/ the really deep voice from WNYU's New Afternoon Show to talk on side two of Consumer Revolt. I heard he moved to Wisconsin to teach middle school after he graduated from NYU. Do you remember Missing Foundation? They played in Tompkins Square Park in the summer of '88 when all the NYC Hardcore kids showed up and started a riot in defense of squatters the NYPD was messing with. Me and my friend Mark sat on a wall with a big bag of Doritos and 40's of Old E and just watched the chaos unfold. Good times in NYC.

[@Hispandinavian]

The 1990s was quite an eclectic time for hard and heavy music. Back then I was really into punk, hardcore, industrial and the extreme metal (insert sub genre here) going on at the time.

[@gallopingglen1]

yes same as myself, extreme punkrock, industrial, the harsher sounds, and a few of the more mainstream bands with videoplay like the surfers, pixies, helmet, L7, fugazi . by the time most of these bands were touring i was too much into underground sounds to give these groups a listen, but i can appreciate it some more now as well.

[@ludlow555]

So many great bands from this era that should have changed the world. I was going to audition for Sugar Tooth when they were called She Died. Also, the only time I was scared to open for a band was For Love Not Lisa. They were amazing.

[@subsanity667]

Wow! I'm good friends with former FLNL drummer Aaron P, he is still a beast behind the ki t.

[@professorwalter1284]

It takes something special to stand out. Quality. A voice. A vibe. Indefinable yet you know it when you hear it. These bands are all good. But the great ones are the great ones.

[@SS-gx7tg]

And also luck.. right place, right time. Can't remember who said it but the quote was something like "there's nothing more common in the world than unrecognized genius", which is depressing but true.

[@arturoandrade9089]

Agreed. Too much focus on a bunch of mediocre bands.

[@wadeguidry6675]

Lifes a crapshoot no matter what you do for a living. I hope some of these guys are grateful for getting as far as they did.

[@Inequities]

Eh, there’s a lot more to this than simplifying it like that. The mid 90s was the most healthy time ever for alternative music in history. There weren’t just a few great bands. There were a few UNBELIEVABLE bands, but the number of great bands was a in the mid to high HUNDREDS. You didn’t just have the pick of a few bands. You got to pick the bands you liked in a specific alternative rock NICHE. There was shoe gazing rock (Pumpkins), Britpop (Blur and Oasis), punk (Bad Religion), hardcore (Rollins), geek rock (Weezer), art rock (Sonic Youth), loud grunge (Nirvana), grunge metal (Soundgarden), soft grunge (Pearl Jam), stoner rock (Queens of the Stone Age), indie rock (Pixies), synth/dance rock (New Order), complain-y rock lol (Smiths), Garage Rock (White Stripes), independent rock (Fugazi), rap rock (Limp Bizkit), and on and on. What is there today? Autotune crap. And that’s it.

[@rnrpeg1]

​@@InequitiesHear, hear, brotha. But nobody that didn't live it will ever quite understand. 🤘

[@scottlucas9551]

The discontent which provided the catalyst for much of the "alternative" music/scene is perfectly illustrated by Mike Judge and "Beavis and Butthead".

[@kckstnd8]

I strongly disagree. Bevis and Butthead didn’t represent discontent. They were the representation of people to stupid and ignorant to get the underground ethos. That’s why they were funny.

[@ericbush3399]

@@kckstnd8 What's the difference between too and "to"? Please keep your mouth shut!

[@robashton8606]

What _are_ you talking about? Bevis and Butthead were the kids who didn't get it, the mindless consumers that were MTV's bread and butter. People laughed _at_ Beavis and Butthead, not _with_ them. They were too stupid to be discontent.

[@ericbush3399]

I can only assume I'm missing your point. From your personal perspective, was Beavis and Butt-Head a mindless representation of 90's Alt music? If not, I'm afraid I don't understand your post at all.

[@AdolfStalin]

In OPs defense, B&B were actually big fans of Soundgarden and bands like Helmet, so yeah

[@crazycatman5928]

17:03 oh man Helmet!! A coworker in the early 90s turned me on to them. I still have the album “in the meantime” on CD. So aggressive heavy. Very under rated. Another band that’s criminally underrated is “Hum”. The album “so you’d prefer an astronaut” is beautifully ethereal.

[@Francis-rs7zu]

My band used to practice next door to their practice room in the NoLiTa area of NY. Heard all their songs before they came out. Tight fricken band

[@Jettraha]

Quicksand and Failure are good to

[@jordansiqueido2101]

Finally someone has taken this music on as a serious music history topic. Expand more if you can. Unwound, Polvo, No Knife, Faraquet, Rocket From the Crypt, etc.. You should also cover San Diego's hidden underground scene. For decades now San Diego has had even more great bands than Seattle. San Diego's vast underground music pedigree is perpetually overlooked, and insanely listenable. Labels like Head Hunter, Cargo. Main stream producer Mark Trom Trombino (Blink & more) was/is the drummer for Drive Like Jehu

[@russell_szabados]

I just got into Drive Like Jehu maybe a year ago after hearing the name for over 30 years. I wish I paid more attention back in the day.

[@jasonpeters9716]

I think Bob Mould's side band in early-mid 90s? Sugar/"Copper Blue" 1992 album. Was as good or BETTER than anything he did with Husker Du.

[@rebeccaleegabbard]

I grew up about an hour north of Seattle, graduated in 1994. There were so many non grunge bands that kinda got screwed by grunge getting big. I’m so thankful I got to see many of these bands along with many other amazing local bands.

[@rjo8570]

Those were the days with free bands playing in a different park in Seattle all summer long!!! The girls sooo many dancing dreadlock GIRLS! 💃🏽💃💃🏻

[@rnrpeg1]

**Shawn Smith** 💜💚💙🚀🚀🚀

[@DaveVargas90012]

Bad habits like doing drugs and alcohol never end well in the rock and roll circles. This is such a cliche in the industry and is actually encouraged. But the traps that those binding contracts hold over the bands heads takes them years to climb out of that hole from the gate. And in the end if you're not willing to basically sell your soul then the record company will not do the magic to get the group to quick rockstardom. That's why in the end if you're truly talented and want to avoid the industry drama artist choosing a route of becoming a hired gun to pay the bills. It's was kind of explained here at the end of this piece. I believe bands like Linkin Park were the last to trudge the trenches and bend some of the old rules in their favor by being hands on when it comes to marketing producing and branding themselves without having to much middle men influencing and meddling in the core structure of the band. They paved the way for artist to really go about it without having the industry sign a group off to make profit. The new era of technology helped usher in the truly independent musicians though these platforms set up on the internet online and dyi home studios. Rock on to future bands out there. Set sail and create new landmarks!

[@SS-gx7tg]

Shudder To Think = greatest band ever

[@jasonpeters9716]

Yep

[@denverrandy7143]

I saw them open for the Foo fighters on their first tour. Dave came out to do a song with them.This was 95-96 time x french t shirt time... Awesome!!!

[@christophermyers8157]

Hillarious! These people have no idea evidently the part the CIA and DEA played in the advent of "alternative" rock! Literally all of "alternative" rock was approved for pushing drugs, Atheism, and Satanism on the youth, identical to the Stones, Beatles, and Pink Floyd, etc. in the previous generation. Not a single one of these venues that these bands played at could've existed without the approval of the CIA and the intelligence industry, and that is disregarding the local police. While alternative music was being allowed to flourish all over the world, metal, country, and jazz clubs were being shut down and raided on a routine basis. Metal did have the exceptions of the big cities, but no where in my youth within a 100 miles of my house could you see metal by an amateur band, unless you paid to go to a professional concert and watched them open for a more successful act. Meanwhile, 5 places in town at least twice a week were playing alternative rock, and being allowed to do so despite breaking dozens of laws at all of these venues including minors drinking, not paying taxes, and not obeying the fire codes. Oh ya, and just like the Hippies that railed against the establishment, these alternative rockers are now the establishment that they claimed to be originally fighting against!

[@antonhaq3503]

One of the things I miss is that night time culture, where the earliest you'd see a band was 11pm.

[@MrEthanlevy100]

Man these days a fell asleep on the couch before 11

[@antonhaq3503]

@@MrEthanlevy100 LOL

[@the1ucidone]

I had to do a bit of searching through some lyrics but I found the name of the song that Sunny Day Real Estate was playing. It's called Pillars. Now I hadn't heard of this band until I saw this documentary and holy mother of God these guys don't seem to have a weakness. Truly amazing! Upon further research I was unable to find the Live performance they used in this video as it had really great vocal quality and I wanted to hear that particular version but alas my search was to no avail. If anyone else knows where I can find this please drop the link in the comment section below. Much love y'al.

[@Sumner1028]

Hey brother I can help! I'm terrible with links but just type sunny day real estate live 2000 pro shot it will take you right to it. The first time I heard sdre was in 2001 from the college radio station of Shepard college, shepardstown, wv!! Good luck buddy

[@philipibaugh2925]

So would the Dead Milkmen fit into this category? I was obsessed with them as a young teen in early 90s. Nobody ever talks about them in punk circles I always put them in that category. They are silly are they art rock? Alternative rock? Noise rock like butthole surfer's? Scatterbrain at end I forgot about them I had the cd never knew about the video till now.

[@kckstnd8]

Yes. The dead milkmen def count and were vital to the underground scene. Long live Philly

[@philipibaugh2925]

@@kckstnd8 I'd love to see a documentary on their career. They have a lot of albums and they are funny and fun.

[@subsanity667]

Dead Milkmen toured the US playing lots of out of the way towns bringing punk rock to the Bible Belt. I would say that the initial D.I.Y. Hardcore scene was imploding by 1986 and the network of people involved (promoters,clubs,zines,local bands)was in decline.They could have slagged off playing to 30 people in Oklahoma City or the wastelands of Kansas but they set up gigs in dive bars and VFW halls helping underground music scenes while they flirted with MTV .

[@PoweredbyRobots]

The problem for the 'lesser' bands is that the all ended up sounding the same; with the same producer, same tired songwriting memes and weak, whiney vocals

[@freehahahafree]

This was a fun watch. Reminded me of some bands I hadn’t thought of in a while. And actually introduced me to some bands I missed during the time period. Never heard of them until today, but I kind of dig “Cop Shoot Cop.”

[@grimmwerks]

They were fantastic. Like Big Band industrial.

[@judsonsnell]

I'm just so glad to see Cop Shoot Cop get some love. Insanely overlooked and way ahead of their time.

[@Legendkiller6945]

Wow! This movie took me back to a time when life was good. A few bands that I haven't heard or thought about for years, and many I have never heard of.

[@JoelligerentTV]

Mention Husker Du in the first minute but no replacements? They were 5 years too late n 5 years too early. I hope theres some Killdozer

[@danpearce4547]

Nothing about Bob Mould, Paul Westerberg, REM, Sugar, Mike Watt....??

[@JoelligerentTV]

@@danpearce4547 yeah they skipped a few bands that helped shape the Left of the Dial sound Maybe couldn’t get interviews Or clearances Maybe just not in the know

[@SS-gx7tg]

@@JoelligerentTV Not even being sarcastic, they should've hired you to give guidance to the makers of this doc as you hold the secrets the rest of us have searched even the most remote corners of the Earth for. I beg thee, sir, bequeath us your wisdom for the fate of music history depends on it.

[@magnuslemainmann]

Yeah, I think Albini or someone mentioned Killdozer just once, and that was the only time the band's name was mentioned...Here's what I think: I think somebody, if someone has not yet done this proper, needs to create a full-length, in-depth documentary of the TOUCH&GO record label from their creation, up through the last of the '80s and through the entirety of the '90s (up until, or perhaps a bit after the band SEAM came out). Joe Shannahan, owner of the label & also owner of the Metro, should still be around, I believe...

[@Mospeada76]

Just remember kids... Industry rule #4080: Record company people are shaaaadddyyy.

[@thesaints-7-andrew.]

Watching from Greece.hi everybody. Great documentary.

[@faeryegrrl777]

I met Danny Rollins, at a wreck on 1-20, in Shreveport, LA. We were completely stopped, and a huge white, SUV was stopped beside me. I was on the way to my bartender job, and suddenly the back window of the HUGE S.U.V. they rented, rolled down and I was staring at someone's ass...lol. Henry Rollins got out and asked if I would go to the casino with him, and I sadly had to say no. I worked at a 'college bar' and took care of the bands that played there. I invited him and never saw him again, but that was really cool. It was around 2006.

[@daveyboy8907]

The good ol daze...So glad to have been a part of the 90s music scene..Nothing will ever compare pro tools ruined real music.

[@vr6swp]

My band got caught between the death of the hair bands and the Nirvana explosion. We got a development deal and ended up probably 250K in debt, with a record Geffen refused to release.

[@nu-metalfan2654]

I think there was a lot of confusion with the Alternative Rock movement in the 90’s, just every band under the sun were being called Grunge or Alternative Rock, that were either Punk bands, Metal bands, Indie bands, Hardcore bands, etc etc. These bands were all different and appealed to different fanbases but the media just wanted to call them Alternative Rock or Grunge and thought they were all the same but weren’t obviously. How the fuck can you call Sunny Day Real Estate, Monster Magnet, Ministry, and Garbage the same thing when they were all different and appealed to different fanbases.

[@PainInTheS]

So where's the anger now with Biden? Where was it with Obama....Clinton? Musicians are a joke. 🤣

[@williamkelley1783]

so glad to find this. We didn't know what we had. I graduated Austin High in 1984, and this video really gets closer to the heart of those times more than any I've seen. I went on the road occasionally; NYC and Chicago were mostly my second homes-one aspect of that time is reflected in that festival poster--we had such variety of styles coming together with the only common ground being that we were all outsiders to the mainstream, and we most all were in it for the music and the scene itself.

[@russell_szabados]

I grew up in Manhattan and graduated HS in '85. You nailed the 80's underground ethos and the feel of that whole alternate universe humming alongside the mainstream poodlehead "metal" and quasi-Madonnas through 1991. In the 80's, I listened to everything from Big Black to Bongwater, not just because it was all "underground" in the often abused sense of that label, but because it was all fearless music that I connected with from the moment I found hardcore in 10th grade. So many greats making great music & art. The bands that I loved the most who have stuck with me to now at age 56 are Swans, Butthole Surfers, Killing Joke, Big Black, Sonic Youth, Scratch Acid...and across the pond were Wire, PiL, Current 93 and first-wave European industrial like SPK, Throbbing Gristle and especially Coil. Thankfully, by the late 80's I was aware of how amazing it all was as it was happening and I made a point to enjoy it.

[@perry4777]

I have listened to all of these bands catalogues and can honestly say its not surprising they didn't make it big. The grunge scene was alternative but still had a commercial appeal. These noise rock and post hardcore bands just didn't appeal to a mass audience. Bad singing combined with sloppy musicianship wow shocker you didn't sell records who would've guessed. Sure their are some bands that are exceptions but the majority of them just aren't that talented.

[@Misserbi]

"...farting is a violent display of aggression..." I heard: "It is a natural biological function." I came to learn it is nature's way of reminding you you like to be in a warm place and eat home cooked meals. A dog would bite you if you farted on it? I don't recommend you try that with a dog that is unhappy.

[@shawnhuff3920]

This is as dead as the alternative music scene boring 😴

[@christophercheney1006]

That was great! Some bands covered here that I only took a quick glance at back in the day. Time to deep dive into some stuff. Man, Only Living Witness was such a great band! Thankful that I got to see them live, amazing! Eric Stevenson, R.I.P.

[@AugustMedia]

Why couldn't they use lavaliere mics for the interviews with this doc?

[@pinger5000]

There were so many great bands, now there are a million rappers named lil' whatever.

[@rockerbob949]

Yeah man don’t freakin’ fart in closed areas around your bandmates.

[@derrickcarone3373]

Alt/rock is dead

[@joesmith9216]

nope, all those bands live on.

[@routinehead2481]

LET THIS SINK IN,,,Alternative rock began sometime in the late 70s and carried over to the 80s with college radio,,,and ceased to exist at the very moment MTV premiered the video for "Smells like teen spirit". After that, regular people were going to see these horrible sounding bands, stage diving and crowd surfing,,,doing all of this in what was the new mainstream, thinking it was some alternative to "something". Then people started getting tattoos and piercings,,,,see what I'm getting at? If you were a teen in the 80's and disregarded pop, hair metal and the like , and more favored punk rock and other bands, anyone from REM, to the Cure, to Echo and the bunnymen, to Bauhaus,,I could go on,,, then you know what alternative is , and what mainstream is.

[@tracisundari1950]

How come none ov these guys can sing ?

[@alfonsogutierrez1392]

The guy talking crap about the 80' s is an idixt. I don't know much about this scene, but whatever little I have heard hasn't struck me like a lot of the 70's 80's awesome music. So, spare me your condescending points of view. I still am not impressed by nirvana or many of the, supposedly great bands that temporarily paused rock. I did like pearl jam's black ending the first time I heard it, and now I love it.

[@chuck6033]

Dear Lord. Your taste in music sucks.

[@alfonsogutierrez1392]

@@chuck6033 no need to call me lord komrade. U don't have a clue 🤣

[@blkmtl96]

Funny enough i was going to see hatebreed/ winds of plague and goatwhore, oddly winds of plague wasn't allowed to play but goatwhore played such songs as carving out the eyes of God, invert the virgin, etc.... clearly someone didn't do any research 😂

[@fuckcensorship69]

goatwhore rules

[@brianbrain2627]

Is this a mockumentary? I'm an elder Millennial who has been a fan of rock music since the late 80s and I had never even heard the names of 98% of bands in this documentary until today. This is a joke, right?

[@mikepj67]

Elder one yes these are real bands (from a youthful gen xer)

[@lethrbear32]

I miss these days. What a time be alive! This will never happen again, though. Not like this, ever.

[@kckstnd8]

Anyone attempting to listen to music after the 90’s, will never have a concept of what a great independent original music scene is like.

[@Zonum420]

Well said. We were lucky. Going to Tower Records every pay day when I didn't have to worry about adult bills. New week, new band.

[@lethrbear32]

@@kckstnd8 There's still a very vibrant indie music scene here in Portland. It's still Seattle 2.0 in that respect. Except there's lots of metal and psych bands now instead of punk.

[@scoggzap]

Your are right my friend most assuredly!

[@rjo8570]

@@lethrbear32 that’s good to hear! I’ve had lots of fun in PDX town 🙌🏽

[@djsaeg]

wow this docu is so great for 3 reasons , 1 never realized how lucky i was groing up in the 90s unique freedom of expression, 2 as a frustated underground rock musician i felt so releaf to see this many cool people passing for the same surviving strugle and 3 because i heard bands ive never met before. If you are an underground head you know the value of art regardless of recognition and that never changes, we are the same all over the world much respect from Mexico City carnales

[@boblazaar]

Love your city so much! Great music scene as well! On a huge Son Rompe Pera kick at the moment!

[@djmoonchild01]

I'm half way through and still not a single peep of babes in toyland😤☠️

[@jewelsandbinoculars1]

100min description of this tangent in musical history unnecessary…great late 80s bands that got shafted by the label’s growth and shitty idea of “direction”

[@CutmeMick]

There was no word ‘alternative’ until Janes Addiction came on scene.. Most will NEVER understand the impact Janes had on the world

[@smedleybutler8787]

I saw helmet ,sepultura and ministry at sportatorium in Dallas. I went there to helmet but they crashed her bus so they weren't there. The most violent concert ever been to.

[@lastonanisland1111]

I saw that tour in Seattle. The Sepultura set still ranks as the biggest and most brutal pit I've ever seen. Ministry was really on point back in those days as well.

[@fuckcensorship69]

so you didnt actually see Helmet?

[@malakisands8180]

Only pit bigger was Slayer Seasons in the Abyss Than Pantera Vulgar Display of Power both in Dallas Sepultura was right up there as people getting rowdy Ministry it was fun and scary with Megadeth shows 80’s and 90’s

[@mahenderspider]

wow, this era of music was complete garbage.

[@johnspaulding1681]

where are they now?...no where...lots of crap...dross...

[@markanderson3870]

At 27:29, the girl in the background, in the park with a mirror tweezing her eyebrows. So random. Yet distracting to the interview.

[@magnuslemainmann]

Haha, good one. Here's what I think: My hypothesis: She is the girlfriend/wife/partner of the dude from Quicksand that they were interviewing...is that the girl you're talking about or am I thinking of someone else? The girl in the red swimsuit on the grass?

[@magnuslemainmann]

HEYO! Great documentary! Finally someone did a thorough investigation of the veritable cornucopia of the indie bands and the major labels who swooped in trying to nab them. Boy oh boy, what a grand era 'twas! I'll never forget my very first concert: It was 1994 and I saw SEAWEED & BIVOUAC at the Metro in Chicago, and then I saw BRAINIAC and then...THE JESUS LIZARD (They actually played at Lollapalooza 1995 with Fishbone, Hole, Sonic Youth, Sinead O'Connor, etc.)!!!! They became my favorite band...saw them at The Vic theater and the Metro in Chicago several times as well as the Lollapalooza '95 and at the Fireside Bowl, where they opened for MELVINS, and I even travelled to see them at Club Soda in Kalamazoo, Michigan in '97 or '98 (me and my friend, Mike, drove David Yow up to that show). I believe it was STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT who opened up for them. This was for the tour to promote their newest album, their sophomore record on a major label (Capitol), titled Blue. David gave me a homemade cassette version of the album, with his own homemade insert. I wish I still had it, I lost it somewhere along the way. And how can I forget to mention GIRLS AGAINST BOYS! What a great band. I saw them open up for The Jesus Lizard a few times as well as when they opened up for Rage Against The Machine at the Aragon Ballroom in the Chicago neighborhood of Uptown in 1996! Damn, son. Don't forget STEVE ALBINI's band SHELLAC (post Big Black)... I was kind of hurt by the way the singer of COP SHOOT COP treated his bandmates...I had no idea he did that. I was a fan of them. I learned of them by way of Kurt Cobain and how he would often give a shout out to the more underground bands he liked. This is how I also found out about SCRATCH ACID - David Yow's band from Austin, Texas, pre The Jesus Lizard (Scratch Acid was doing their thing in the early '80s - "The Greatest Gift" came out in 1982, I believe. Another band that also came out of Austin, Texas around the same time was the BUTTHOLE SURFERS... ...then there were the other bands, KILLDOZER, LAUGHING HYENAS, SKINYARD, BIG BLACK, etc. Yow once told me that what his band and some of the others were trying to do was to see who could sound the most like THE BIRTHDAY PARTY (Nick Cave's band from Melbourne, Australia 1979 - 1983 - at first they were called (the) Boys Next Door. ...The common denominator in the majority of the bands I've listed was the record label they were on - certainly my favorite label of all time - TOUCH & GO RECORDS - out of Chicago, Baby... ...Anyhoo, I could go on forever and ever on this and it's quite possible that this is to go unnoticed anyways, so...if you've made it this far I have this to ask of you: If you have watched this video, I cordially demand that you write down some of the bands you have never heard of and then check them out, as well as any of the bands I have mentioned here in this post...s'il vous plait...😁 With Love, Magnus

[@oriongoodrich7629]

What’s the opening song? The “ what the fuk r we talkin about again” harmonic guitar into that double bass drum triplet!!! It’s rad! Please, someone tell me🙏

[@leonardsalinas2002]

My father was 21 years old when Nevermind came out in 1991, he first heard “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on the radio he went from being new wave to grunge

[@rnrpeg1]

~"Noone will ever care more about your own shit than you"~ 😅 Truer words were never spoken. 😂 Thank you for the glorious trip back in musical time. That was harrowing and invigorating, too. Happy to watch these dozens of worthy bands getting a bit of their due. R.I.P. Shawn Smith. If ever there was a musical God...he sure shined it all down on that man. 🤘🤘🤘 Pepper, et al.

[@theblurredcrusade.2557]

45 minutes into this video the amount of bands/artists who are confused about a record contract is staggering 🤔 a one million record contract is not what you make, that's what you instantly owe 🤔 it's then up to you you make 2 million pounds to pay back your debt and everyone else who helped you make that 2 million pounds, or dollars 🤔😳😆

[@Shoeg4zer]

Nice to see Failure included. Would have been nice to include Hum and Spoon (who managed to survive being dropped and achieve a decent level of success in the long run).

[@Shoeg4zer]

We can get by great on playing shows until a pandemic comes along. :(

[@Chaz4543]

Hum should have been included. Either the director wasn't a fan or he tried to get them and they couldn't do it.

[@thomassschwarz5998]

I had almost every band mentioned on cd or cassette and I've met a few of these semi forgotten icons. Glad I stopped by for this nostalgic trip thru my 90s music journey

[@chrisryan7283]

Clutch and Monster Magnet still killing it today

[@johnbristow4981]

A hard fart is a turd!! Just sayin_

[@klaytonvonkluge4905]

Wow, Pepper Keenan has one of the wildest stories here, that's a trip ! Very cool, I needed to hear a different kind of memory like that, thank you Pepper and OP ! -Respekt

[@jasonpeters9716]

I've been turning people onto COC/"Deliverance" last 28yrs.

[@milanalexich6149]

They had alternative in the 80s and the 90s now it's all country and rap

[@davidfurino2987]

What a bunch of freaking noise

[@JamesFletcher-c7j]

I agree with Steve Albini. The Jesus Lizard the best band of the nineties. Best band i have ever seen too except for maybe Eddie Current Suppression ring where the lead singer is just as awesome as David Yow and the musicians are just as good and the music rocks and is different. I watched instrument by Fugazi last night. This Doco tonight. Any suggestions for more great doco's on this type of music. Butthole Surfers, Killing Joke or Fluf the poor man's Nirvana. Btw Shellac put on a good show back in the day with Jon Spencer Blues explosion, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Fugazi and Mclusky.

[@musicglenn]

i enjoyed this, though i wish for more of the bands that stayed indie and kicked ass in the 90’s - fugazi, neurosis, godspeed you black emperor, dog faced hermans, the ex, iceburn, grotus, brainiac, shellac, polvo, nation of ulysses, sleater kinney, superchunk, thinking fellers union local 282, unwound, tsunami, don caballero, as well as some favorites who did go major - boredoms, bjork, deftones, jawbreaker, pj harvey, babe the blue ox, pavement, radiohead …

[@musicglenn]

other major goodies - swans, rage atm, at the drive in, butthole surfers …

[@fuckcensorship69]

​@@musicglennrage is just a corporate/ political mouthpiece

[@lot2196]

GBV! GBV! GBV!

[@missingmissmoss]

What band is playing @5:03 ?? Thank you

[@ScottQ1]

I believe as said, Sunny Day Real Estate

[@LanceisLawson]

All that volume , all that angst and it didn't change a thing.

[@fuckcensorship69]

it changed me. for the better? maybe

[@jasonpeters9716]

Hum, made 2 fantastic albums.. "You'd Prefer an Astronaut." 1995 "Downward is Heavenward." 1997

[@aovermont]

The bands in this movie all suck

[@usualdosage7287]

Better then survivor and poison

[@dloc8007]

The Kings of american alternative college rock scene in the eighties were R E.M. - everyone else jocked for opening act status : Let's Active, Guadalcanal diary, Rain Parade, three o clock, 10k maniacs, the dream syndicate, swimming pool Q's, concrete blonde, throwing muses, the dB's, golden palominos, opal, etc. Countless bands thriving scene, years & years before Nirvana broke.thru.

[@mdamailmail]

Did you even watch this ?

[@champdeluxe3720]

r.e.m. still sucks

[@jasonpeters9716]

REM was best of those 80s bands. Actually? REM best work was arguably made in 90s. All those bands ? None them were Nirvana. Nirvana was that f'ing good.

[@champdeluxe3720]

Nope r.e.m. sucks

[@mdamailmail]

@@champdeluxe3720 🫵 that’s right, simple into the point.😁

[@douglasbuck8986]

I will never forgive the music industry for abandoning hair rock.......like you COULDNT have BOTH.

[@kenfrederick6223]

Interesting to see how Corrosion Of Conformity got pulled into all of this as they came from the hardcore punk scene and slowly progressed into a southern rock/stoner metal band. They continue to be successful to this day. Both Jesus Lizard and Cop Shoot Cop had a very unique sound. In hindsight, some of these other bands are not really all that original. As for the lack of success of so many, you can blame much of the general public that were perfectly content to listen to the biggest 4 or 5 "grunge" groups over and over again and nothing else.

[@gagemoss1075]

I was hoping to get a timeline of the rise and fall of alternative music as I witnessed it-- whether it's Social Distortion at the local VFW or its or it's the Red Hot Chili Peppers opening for Camper Von Beethoven at Big Surf (yeah that's Tempe AZ). I saw the first lollapalooza concert and attended the funeral for Doug Hopkins from the Gin Blossoms. So I can say I witnessed it first hand and it all started with college radio and bands like Husker Du, the Replacements, the Godfathers, the Smithereens and the Screaming Blue Messiahs......

[@SS-gx7tg]

But this doc is specifically about what happened in the wake of Nirvana's success and every label swooping in to cash in. You're talking about stuff from much much earlier. Husker rules tho

[@kckstnd8]

Yes. You are spot on. Thank you for including the replacements and husker du, those bands laid the foundation for the underground scene to explode in the 90’s. Without the mats and husker du, the 90’s music scene wouldn’t have been the same.

[@SGtem]

@@SS-gx7tgh so this doc is post Nirvana alt rock any mentions of Guided by Voices or Pavement ? If not may not watch , like y’all say pre Nirvana time was better : Husker, Early Dinosaur, Mats Pixies etc ..

[@robbie_the_mastermind2176]

Growing up in the early 2 thousands I was exposed to alternative rock. 24:19

[@russmccullough2368]

Here’s a thought: maybe a lot of these bands just weren’t very good and got signed because of the Nirvana/grunge craze. Lots of blame going towards everyone around them for their failures except looking at the fact that maybe your music just wasn’t very good.

[@justingurley836]

Really well done. Great research, filming and editing.

[@LannieLord]

OPEN TOPIC: Name some bands , from back then, that either never made it OR never made it bigger. I go first: Game Theory (and the 1990s incarnation The Loud Family) . They were shoe-gaze meets 1970s Todd Rundgren / Big Star with Elvis Costello touches while being 100% unique . They have a SOLID backlog of albums with the best bets being "Lolita Nation" (Game Theory) and "Plants & Birds & Rocks & Things" (Loud Family).

[@hedlesssNYC]

these bands are ok..I can see why NIRVANA and Alice In Chains and GREENDAY and RANCID and RADIOHEAD and BLUR and Garbage and others rose to the top....these bands are not as good....don't forget Smashing Pumpkins had D'arcy