The Birthplace
The grunge music born in Seattle, Washington. The city was an isolated place culturally and economic poor. The major bands didn't include Seattle in their tour plans. Some local bands moved the close cities like Tacoma, Olympia and Aberdeen to find a better life. Those who didn't have the chance to get out stayed most of the time making lot of noise in their garages to escape from boredom, cold weather and the heavy rain. So after a while they started to play small gigs set up for themselves to an audience mostly of other bands in tiny venues or clubs. It was a friendly scene playing to entertain themselves and escape to the grey side of Seattle.


Origin of the Word Grunge
The word grunge is believe to be a back-formation from the US slang adjective grungy that means the same as "dirty" or "filthy". Mark Arm, the actual singer of Mudhoney was credited as being the first to use the term grunge in 1981 to describe this sort of music. This happend when he wrote a letter to the Seattle zine, Desperate Times, criticizing his band Mr. Epp and the Calculations as "Pure grunge! Pure noise! Pure shit!" But Bruce Pavitt of Sub Pop was the one who popularized the term in 1987–88, to describe Green River in the band promotion.


The Pioneers
Grunge started to emerge in the beginning of the 80's with the creation of Sub Pop Records, started by Bruce Pavitt in Olympia, Washington in 1980 as a fanzine called Subterranean Pop (shortened to Sub Pop after the first issue). This creation was inspired by the cassette fanzine Fast Forward. Sub Pop began alternating issues with compilation tapes of underground rock bands. They released nine issues, six magazines and three cassettes. In 1983, Pavitt moved to Seattle, Washington where Sub Pop continued life as both a column in the Seattle newspaper The Rocket, as well as an independent-label specialty show on KCMU. In 1986, many bands started to have enought material to record an album but most of them didn't have money to pay for a recording recording session, so a local producer released in March 1986, a compilation with six bands called Deep Six. It was the first release by C/Z Records. After some months Sub Pop released their first LP, Sub Pop 100


The First Label
In 1987 Sub Pop release the first non compilation EP: Dry as a Bone EP by Green River again by Sub Pop. In this year Pavitt team up with Jonathan Poneman thanks to the suggestion of Kim Thayil of Soundgarden. After this Sub Pop decided to turn the label into a full-fledged record label and they released the debut EP by Soundgarden entitled Screaming Life. Over the next few years they released many influential records from independent rock artists such as Nirvana, Mudhoney, Sunny Day Real Estate, Screaming Trees and Tad. They also created two important aspects for the label promotion: the first was the Sub Pop Singles Club, a subscription service that would allow subscribers to receive singles by independent bands on a monthly basis by mail. The fist release of the Singles Club was also Nirvana's first single, Love Buzz/Big Cheese, in November 1988. The second was working together with Everett True of the British magazine Melody Maker, who flight to Seattle to write an article on the local music scene. Over the next few years they released many influential records from independent rock artists such as Nirvana, Mudhoney, Sunny Day Real Estate, Screaming Trees and Tad. They also created two important aspects for the label promotion: the first was the Sub Pop Singles Club, a subscription service that would allow subscribers to receive singles by independent bands on a monthly basis by mail. The fist release of the Singles Club was also Nirvana's first single, Love Buzz/Big Cheese, in November 1988. The second was working together with Everett True of the British magazine Melody Maker, who flight to Seattle to write an article on the local music scene.


The Success
So in 1989 the success came to Sub Pop, when they released the first debut album of Nirvana, Bleach, which gave the first one platinum record to the Pavitt and Poneman label. And with this buzz the big labels started opening their eyes to the most important bands of Seattle like Nirvana (signed by Geffen Records); Soundgarden (signed with A&M Records); Alice In Chains (signed with Columbia Records), Pearl Jam (signed with Epic Records). And as you may now in 1991 the music revolution came to the masses when Nirvana released their second album through Geffen Records, Nevermind. This album was never meant to change the world, but since the release nothing was ever quite the same. Nirvana popularized punk, post-punk, and indie rock, unintentionally bringing it into the American mainstream like no other band to date. The Nirvana first Nevermind single Smells Like Teen Spirit pull off Michael Jackson from the Top's and this anthem was everywhere (television, radio, magazines etc)! Thanks to this release everyone started to know and to be influenced by grunge music. It was the boom of this sub genre of alternative rock music. Grunge transform the groups of Seattle in worldwide superstars.


The Music and Social Impact
After this revolution or change in the music panorama, the labels understood that Nevermind established the cultural and commercial viability of alternative rock in general. So a new need and priority appear on most off the music record companies: sign grunge bands, principally from Seattle. So every artist or band that looks grungy (long hair, heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting with song dynamics, and apathetic or angst-filled lyrics) at this time were a true potential targets to the hungry record labels. This generated two things: the first was the bigger influx of american bands to Seattle to get a label contract and the second was the forced need to play grunge because it was a fashion for most of the people. Grunge became mainstream, and many commercial shit started to be sell in the name of grunge, but in other way gave a great opportunity to other quality music stuff to rise up and say to the world: "we exist". As you see at this time everything that were grunge, smells like money, and it wasn't only the music, the clothes orginally used by the Seattle bands (cheap flannel shirts, rotten jeans, all starts and Dr. Marteens) were adopted by fashion clothe designers all around the world. They transfrom cheap cloth in expensive collections associated with big trade marks companies. The industry use grunge to make their profits get higher. So a simply and minority style borned in Seattle were transform in a big culture of masses.


The Roots and Influences
Grunge evolved from the local punk rock scene, and was inspired by bands such as The Fartz, The U-Men, 10 Minute Warning, The Accused, The Fastbacks and by the slow, heavy, and sludgy style of Melvins. This bands already got the most general influences of the grunge bands that were:

- Proto-Punk: MC5, The Stooges, Neil Young, New York Dolls

- Punk: Black Flag, The Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Germs, The Heartbreakers, Flipper

- 1970s Hard Rock / Heavy Metal: Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Cheap Trick, Aerosmith

- 1980s Alternative Rock: R.E.M., Husker Du, The Replacements, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Pixies, Jane's Addiction

Basically bands began to mix metal and punk in the Seattle music scene around 1984. Most of the credits for this fusion goes to The U-Men.


The Artists of this Era
Nirvana

Pearl Jam

Alice in Chains

Soundgarden

Mudhoney

Green River

Mother Love Bone

Melvins

TAD

Screaming Trees

L7

Babes in Toyland

Mark Lanegam

Skin Yard

Malfunkshun

Temple of the Dog

Mad Season

Hole

Dinosaur Jr.

Stone Temple Pilots

Love Battery

Dandelion

Paw

Grunge on TV

Grunge Years