4 Alternative Rock Bands That Wouldn’t Exist Without Black Sabbath

Black Sabbath helped pioneer heavy metal, and hearing the band’s influence on Judas Priest, Metallica, and others is akin to spotting the fingerprints of Robert Johnson on anyone playing Delta blues. But Black Sabbath also had a profound influence on another underground movement: alternative rock.

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James Hetfield once said, “Sabbath got me started on that evil-sounding sh*t, and it’s stuck with me.” He wasn’t the only one.

The Smashing Pumpkins

With the alternative rock boom in the early 1990s, many focused on bands’ punk roots. The whole point of “alternative” was to be something outside the mainstream. Eventually, these groups sold enough records to become mainstream, but initially, alt-rock was largely reactionary. However, listening to The Smashing Pumpkins, you cannot ignore Billy Corgan’s progressive rock and heavy metal influences. Corgan’s anthems were built with heavy riffs, and he probably wouldn’t get there without the riff lord, Tony Iommi.

Rage Against The Machine

When Rage Against The Machine dropped “Bombtrack” in 1992, it helped spawn an entire generation of rap metal groups. But all of them paled in comparison. Minus the rap skills of Zack de la Rocha and the scratch-DJ noises of Tom Morello, the others failed to reach the kind of power of “Bulls On Parade” or “Guerrilla Radio”. And you don’t need to be guided by the lights of Noam Chomsky or even have any idea what de la Rocha is rapping about to appreciate Rage Against The Machine. It’s hard to imagine Morello constructing these furious riffs without “War Pigs” or “Paranoid”.

Faith No More

Faith No More had multiple singers before Mike Patton, including, briefly, Courtney Love. But it wasn’t until Patton, one of the best voices of his generation, that the band finally experienced commercial success. The band’s first album with Patton, The Real Thing, is most known for “Epic”. But check out Faith No More’s blistering cover of “War Pigs”. In a sped-up rendition, guitarist Jim Martin stays true to Iommi’s frantic guitar solos, while drummer Mike Bordin and bassist Billy Gould echo Bill Ward and Geezer Butler. Few humans possess the vocal skills required to cover Ozzy Osbourne. And then there’s Mike Patton.

Alice In Chains

Alice In Chains was one of the gloomiest-sounding grunge bands to emerge from Seattle. Most vocal harmonies are meant to sweeten the melody, but Jerry Cantrell and Layne Staley opted instead for sinister intervals. Meanwhile, Cantrell’s bleak grunge shares a blueprint with Iommi’s factory blues. The gritty music video for “Man In The Box” shifted pop culture and helped clear the way for fellow alternative rock acts blending heavy metal with Gen X angst. And the title track to Dirt features the kind of sluggish doom groove Black Sabbath had perfected in Birmingham.

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