3 Grunge Bands That Should Have Blown up and Been Huge

If you had happened to walk through the Pacific Northwest in the mid-to-late 1980s, you probably would have heard some huge guitar sound coming out of a window somewhere. Some up-and-coming band was playing some new sludgy rock song. Perhaps it would go nowhere, perhaps it would become the soundtrack to a generation.

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Indeed, in the 80s and 90s, there were many bands in the PNW that were blowing up. We all know names like Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam. But for every famous group, there were others that never saw the mountain top. That’s what we wanted to examine below. These are three grunge bands that should have been huge.

Mother Love Bone

If you listen to “Stargazer” by Mother Love Bone, it’s impossible not to think about what could have been. Sadly, just weeks before the band’s debut LP, Apple, was released, the group’s lead vocalist, Andrew Wood, passed away. He was one of many rising stars who passed away too young in the 90s rock scene. After his death, his friend and former roommate, Chris Cornell, created the tribute band Temple Of The Dog in his memory. But just listen to “Stargazer” today and dream about what could have been.

Bam Bam

When you have fans like Kurt Cobain, band mates like Matt Cameron, and a unique look and sound like Tina Bell, then you should be huge. Bam Bam boasted all those things in the mid-80s in Seattle. But somehow they never became the sensation they should have. Why? Some point to racial reasons, that record companies back then didn’t have time for Black frontpeople, let alone Black frontwomen. But whatever the reason is, what’s important today is to remember Bell, Bam Bam, and their influence on the grunge scene decades later.

The Gits

The story of The Gits is another tragic one. Right before the band was about to get signed by a major label, frontwoman Mia Zapata was murdered. For years, the crime went unsolved, but then new DNA technology helped to uncover the killer. Sadly, though, the promise The Gits showed would never come to bear after Zapata was killed. Who knows what heights they could have seen—just like the other groups on this list.

Photo by Joe Hirsch / Courtesy Sub Pop