There was a lot going on musically in the 1990s. Pop was changing, rock was really changing, electronica was becoming a mainstream genre, and the digitization of music was changing everything. A lot of musicians made it big in that decade, only to be labeled “obscure” in later years after they disappeared from the mainstream charts completely. I think a few of these artists deserved better. Let’s take a look!
She Moves
Alright, I know “Breaking All The Rules” by She Moves is your typical run-of-the-mill late-90s girl pop group song. However, I think this trio really had the potential to be the next big thing. And yet, they were only together for a handful of years, and “Breaking All The Rules” was their only Top 40 song in the US. The group was dropped from their label in 1999 after failing to maintain their charting success. Each member has gone on to pursue new ventures, but I can’t help but wonder what could have been.
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Eels
I’m showing my age here, but I became an Eels fan after hearing “I Need Some Sleep” from the Shrek soundtrack. It’s a great soundtrack, okay? And it led me to the rest of Eels’ discography at the time, all of which is indie rock goodness.
Oddly enough, Eels only had one major hit in the 90s, and it wasn’t from the Shrek soundtrack. That hit was “Novocaine For The Soul” from the 1996 album Beautiful Freak. That song peaked at No. 39 on the Billboard Radio Songs chart and No. 1 on the Alternative Airplay chart. After that, the band never had another big US hit again. It just doesn’t make sense to me.
Kevon Edmonds
Let’s get really obscure, shall we? Kevon Edmonds makes it to our list of obscure musicians from the 90s who disappeared from the charts after his song “24/7” made it all the way to No. 10 on the coveted Billboard Hot 100 chart. That’s pretty hefty success. His follow-up, “No Love (I’m Not Used To)”, found moderate success at No. 25 on the R&B chart. And after that, it’s as if he disappeared completely.
In reality, Edmonds struggled to push his solo career forward. He released a second album in 2009 and has been more or less quiet ever since. Though, his R&B group After 7 kicked off a comeback in 2016.
Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images
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