7 Underrated Rock Bands From The 90s You Need To Listen To Today

Musical Treasures

The ’90s music had its highs and lows but we still think it had so much to offer when it came to rock. Sure, it’s peppered with cheesy bands and overrated songs (which are a bit tacky too) but the era also gave us some underrated musicians who deserve some attention and appreciation.

1. Blind Melon

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œNo Rainโ€

They will change your mind about the โ€˜90s. You might even think the decade was pure magic. Blind Melon was formed with two members (the guitarist and bassist) who came from Mississippi and met their vocalist Shannon Hoon who hailed from Indiana. It was back in March 1990. Hoon was friends with Guns โ€˜n Roses frontman Axl Rose and he even provided backing vocals for some of the tracks of their Use Your Illusion I and II albums. Blind Melon also hit the road on a tour in support of Soundgarden. Their self-titled debut album was a commercial failure but thanks to the regular airplay โ€œNo Rainโ€ received from MTV, it helped the band reach an international audience until the album was eventually awarded with the quadruple-platinum certification. Still, however, the group is unfairly overlooked most of the time. So if you havenโ€™t listened to any of their songs yet, nowโ€™s the chance to rediscover something from the โ€˜90s.

2. Tonic

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œIf You Could Only Seeโ€

Does anyone else feel the need to turn back time now? โ€˜90s isnโ€™t exactly the best decade in rock but it sure had its moments. Take this gem for example. Tonic was an alternative rock, post-grunge band who earned two Grammy nominations. Is that even surprising? This group showed us how music should be made โ€“ with soul. Founded by long-separated childhood friends, Emerson Hart and Jeff Russo suddenly crossed paths at a pool hall in Los Angeles, California. After agreeing to collaborate, they added bassist Dan Rothchild and drummer Kevin Shepard to their lineup. They played gigs around the area before landing a record contract in 1995. Music critic Shawn M. Haney wrote about Tonicโ€™s debut album saying, โ€œThe record as a whole is full of the heavy, distortion-laden Tonic sound, and guitars that make them who they are.โ€ They should easily be among the top bands in this era.

3. Temple of the Dog

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œHunger Strikeโ€

Weโ€™re actually baffled why Temple of the Dog didnโ€™t get the attention they so rightly deserved. This semi-supergroup consisted of members from other legendary bands like Soundgarden and Pearl Jam. At one point, Eddie Vedder even had a special appearance by providing the lead and backing vocals. Now thatโ€™s supposed to be something, right? Sadly though, theyโ€™re underrated. Chris Cornell founded the band and the first recording materials he wrote were melodic and slow โ€“ a bit far from the music he made with Soundgarden. He even said this about his duet with Vedder on โ€œHunger Strikeโ€: โ€œHe sang half of that song not even knowing that I’d wanted the part to be there and he sang it exactly the way I was thinking about doing it, just instinctively.โ€ Also their album received some pretty favorable reviews, it wasnโ€™t a huge success since it failed to chart. Rolling Stoneโ€™s David Fricke even commented that it โ€œdeserves immortality.โ€ Enough said.

4. Our Lady Peace

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œStarseedโ€

Sometimes, it boggles us why music videos like this only get a million hits while other trashy and vomit-inducing songs get more than 100M views. Why, just why? There are people who donโ€™t like the group because they just donโ€™t offer anything new or spectacular or stuff that makes you say โ€œWow.โ€ We beg to disagree. They released timeless tunes like โ€œSomewhere Out Thereโ€ which sound so amazing even until today. This is one of the tracks you wish you learned to appreciate back then โ€“ you know, when music wasnโ€™t all about booty, twerking and auto-tune. โ€œStarseedโ€ in an absolute masterpiece, we always get chills listening to it. Their vocalist Raine Maida was once referred to as โ€œtruly unrivaledโ€ in the vocal department. This alternative rock act had their hit singles and their debut album โ€œNaveedโ€ sold over 480,000 copies in Canada by 1998.

5. Belly

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œFeed the Treeโ€

Their most successful single, โ€œFeed the Tree,โ€ ranked at no. 24 on VH1โ€™s list of โ€œ40 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 90s.โ€ Thatโ€™s not bad, right? Thanks to the heavy airplay from MTV, the band ended up with two Grammy nominations and also sold around 800,000 copies of their album in the US. But still, thatโ€™s the only thing most people remember about them, if at all. And itโ€™s unfortunate because theyโ€™re a really good rock act. Their music isnโ€™t as heavy as others but itโ€™s catchy enough and the lead vocalistโ€™s raspy voice is the perfect cherry on top. They only released two albums and the group split up after the release of the second one โ€“ and yes, you need to listen to both. It was in 1993 when they hit the road on a joint headliner tour with English rock band Radiohead.

6. Candlebox

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œFar Behindโ€

There are so many things going on in their music but in a good way. They infused grunge, hard rock, alternative, metal and blues. Their self-titled debut album was a huge success and it sold four million copies. Some of their biggest hits include โ€œFar Behindโ€ and โ€œYou.โ€ Their second album received gold status but it was the start of their decline in popularity. Their not-so-popular songs that didnโ€™t chart are still worth your time, however. Theyโ€™ve had several remarkable and outstanding performances. They sound the same live as they do on recording, if not, even better. The group just oozed with talent and while they rose to fame and enjoyed the limelight even for just a short while, weโ€™re still mighty glad we were introduced into their music. Itโ€™s no wonder why they earned a slot at Woodstock โ€™94. Listen to โ€œCover Meโ€ and weโ€™re sure youโ€™ll love them too.

7. Fastball

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What You Need To Listen To: โ€œThis Wayโ€

Youโ€™ve probably already heard this but maybe you just didnโ€™t know the title of the song and who sang it. Well, itโ€™s Fastball who used to call their group โ€œMagneto U.S.A.โ€ Okay, we are just so glad they decided to change it otherwise, weโ€™d think theyโ€™re a bubblegum pop band. Lol. They had so much to offer for all alternative and pop rock fans. Itโ€™s relatively common for people to mistake them for singing โ€œClosing Timeโ€ and even โ€œCounting Blue Cars,โ€ but the thing is, their music didnโ€™t sound like any of those. Fastball received two Grammy nominations and their second album, โ€œAll The Pain Money Can Buyโ€ earned platinum status just six months after it was released. Although they scored several hits, the third wasnโ€™t as successful since it sold only 85,000 copies. Then again, you can still find numerous musical gems in their catalog.