5 Rock Bands From the 1990s That Deserved More Success

Rock bands were a dime a dozen back in the 1990s. We all know the big names like Nirvana and Soundgarden, and dozens upon dozens of other big-name bands in rock subgenres. But what about the unsung heroes of 1990s rock? Let’s take a look at just a few bands from the turn of the century that I believe deserved more love back in the day.

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1. Letters To Cleo

Letters To Cleo fell through the cracks of the riot grrrl alternative movement of the 90s in favor of bigger bands like Bikini Kill and Sleater-Kinney. It’s really not fair, considering their two biggest hits “Here And Now” and “Awake” were really killer tunes. They were like a more high-energy Veruca Salt, but they were far from mere imitations.

2. Our Lady Peace

Our Lady Peace was one of many Seattle outfits to hit the airwaves in the 1990s. Sadly, too, they were often accused of jumping on the grunge bandwagon. It’s a shame, because Our Lady Peace was far from a cookie-cutter clone grunge band with nothing new to offer. Some of the most timeless songs of the 90s were produced by this band, including “Clumsy” and “Starseed”. 

3. Sloan

Remember Sloan? This Canadian rock band never really took off, but they totally should have. “Underwhelmed” was their only big hit to get any attention outside of the Great White North. A little bit shoegazey and a whole lot of glittery, smooth guitar work, Sloan could have made it big if they were a little rougher and not so polished.

4. White Zombie

White Zombie was an unusually groovy band for their era in the 90s. They were also one of few bands that stuck to the creepy, occult-leaning imagery of 80s rock, rather than move on to the doom and gloom of 90s grunge attire. Their music was great for an industrial rock band that didn’t get much attention. “More Human Than Human” is essential listening, but don’t expect it to sound much like Rob Zombie’s solo work.

5. Better Than Ezra

This entry on our list of underrated rock bands from the 1990s deserved a lot more than what they got. Better Than Ezra was always dangling on the edge of something; they weren’t pop enough for mainstream charts nor sludgy enough for alt-rock fanbases. They occupied a space in-between. And while songs like “Good” charted well, so much of their other material didn’t get as much love as the band deserved, even from the experimental crowd.

Photo by Robby Klein

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