The Dark and Depressing Backstories Behind 3 Classic Grunge Songs

Grunge music is known for its sound more than its common subject matter. Grunge musicians and bands would sing about tons of different things, from love to loss to anti-establishment ideals to anything else that came to mind. However, there are quite a few grunge songs out there that have truly dark and depressing backstories. Let’s take a look at just a few.

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“Polly” by Nirvana

This tune from Nirvana’s 1991 album Nevermind isn’t quite a deep cut. I mean, is any song from that album truly a deep cut? Still, “Polly” doesn’t get as much love as hits like “Smells Like Teen Spirit” or “Something In The Way”. “Polly” is a solid tune. And the story behind it is about as dark as one would expect from Kurt Cobain.

“Polly” was written about a real-life woman who was kidnapped and tortured in Seattle back in 1987, after attending a concert, which Cobain read about in a newspaper. The story got under his skin. So, he wrote “Polly” from the perspective of the torturer in question, and the lyrics are quite sinister. Though, considering Cobain’s vocal feminist stances, this song becomes more meaningful when you consider it as an attempt to show just how risky being a woman can be in the modern age.

“Rooster” by Alice In Chains

“Rooster” by Alice In Chains might just be the most well-known song by this grunge outfit. However, I have to admit, I’m a bigger fan of “Man In The Box”. Still, “Rooster” is an enduring hit. And the story behind this song is quite dark.

This song was written about Jerry Cantrell’s father, who was nicknamed “Rooster” during his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. The song tells a dark story about what war life was like, complete with the gore and death one can only imagine. It seems like this tune was an ode of sorts to Cantrell’s father’s emotional scars after surviving his time in service.

“Jeremy” by Pearl Jam

This wouldn’t be a list of grunge song backstories without mentioning the tragic “Jeremy” by Pearl Jam.

“Jeremy” was written by Eddie Vedder and Jeff Ament about the real-life tragedy of one 15-year-old Jeremy Wade Delle. That young man had infamously taken his own life in front of his classmates back in 1991. It was an awful event that shook the town of Richardson, Texas. To the rest of the world, though, it was yet another horrible news story that went ignored. Until Pearl Jam wrote a song about it the following year, that is.

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