R.E.M. tops the alternative chart for the last time with "Bang and Blame," a sonic blast of guitars and angst, showcasing the emotional dynamics of relationships
Another great article Matt! Just jumped into the comments to say how much I loved that Murmurs album. For quite a while it wasn’t available on streaming platforms. I’ve just checked and it’s up on Spotify (in the UK anyway) so I’m excited to revisit it.
Now you’ve got me wondering what the Weezer #1 MRT was, perhaps “Islands in the Sun”, will have to research that one. If it is, not that it’s a bad song, but it doesn’t hold a candle to some of their 90s songs
It's interesting, but I'd never heard of The Murmurs till I saw them on the chart researching this. The song is decent, and their cover of Jefferson Airplane ain't bad. But weird that I was living and breathing all things alt rock in this period and completely missed that group. Even when things were more mono-cultural, it was still possible for acts to fall through the cracks.
Weezer actually has EIGHT #1 hits on the MRT chart, and they didn't score their first #1 single until their FIFTH album. I consider myself a pretty big fan of Weezer, but I can only really make a case for one of those songs to be an alternative #1. I'm still floored by "Buddy Holly" peaking at #2.
I’m not sure how I came across The Murmurs but it’s quite possible I saw the video for “You Suck” on the music video channel The Box, which is where I discovered a fair bit of alternative music in the mid to late 90s. Although I remember loving their debut, I listened to it again yesterday and found it only ok. Not bad, but not seemingly worthy of the love I remember having for it.
I didn’t realize Weezer had that many MRT #1s. I kinda lost touch with them quite early (after Pinkerton really, although I did have the green album) but I’m shocked that nothing from the blue album hit the number 1 MRT spot and also shocked that “Islands in the Sun” didn’t peak higher than 11.
Far too few people remember this song. They remastered and remixed the album and there’s a “new” version of BnB that I think is much stronger and more interesting. The guitar tones on this whole record are exceptional
As time goes on, “Bang and Blame” definitely gets far fewer spins than some of the band’s biggest crossover hits in the early ‘90s, so it gets lost in the shuffle. That, and I think Monster was criminally underappreciated at the time of its release, so a lack of fond memories for the song’s singles probably reduces their influence among modern-day radio programmers and, in the streaming era, gets left out of algorithms.
Are you referring to the “remix” version that Scott Litt did on the album’s 25th anniversary? I have to give that a listen; I missed that there was a remix reissue of the album with the 25th anniversary edition, so I haven’t heard any of the tracks yet.
Oh wow, The Murmurs. I haven't thought about "You Suck" for decades. I remember that was the era where it was still sort of taboo to say "suck". That's a fun song for a sing-along.
Great read, Matt! I'd kinda checked out on R.E.M. by this point, but came back around in due time. Didn't hurt that Monster is a great record, even if every used CD bin in the world is stuffed with copies of it.
Never heard of the Murmurs until I saw this. Bad Religion rules.
Another great article Matt! Just jumped into the comments to say how much I loved that Murmurs album. For quite a while it wasn’t available on streaming platforms. I’ve just checked and it’s up on Spotify (in the UK anyway) so I’m excited to revisit it.
Now you’ve got me wondering what the Weezer #1 MRT was, perhaps “Islands in the Sun”, will have to research that one. If it is, not that it’s a bad song, but it doesn’t hold a candle to some of their 90s songs
It's interesting, but I'd never heard of The Murmurs till I saw them on the chart researching this. The song is decent, and their cover of Jefferson Airplane ain't bad. But weird that I was living and breathing all things alt rock in this period and completely missed that group. Even when things were more mono-cultural, it was still possible for acts to fall through the cracks.
Weezer actually has EIGHT #1 hits on the MRT chart, and they didn't score their first #1 single until their FIFTH album. I consider myself a pretty big fan of Weezer, but I can only really make a case for one of those songs to be an alternative #1. I'm still floored by "Buddy Holly" peaking at #2.
I’m not sure how I came across The Murmurs but it’s quite possible I saw the video for “You Suck” on the music video channel The Box, which is where I discovered a fair bit of alternative music in the mid to late 90s. Although I remember loving their debut, I listened to it again yesterday and found it only ok. Not bad, but not seemingly worthy of the love I remember having for it.
I didn’t realize Weezer had that many MRT #1s. I kinda lost touch with them quite early (after Pinkerton really, although I did have the green album) but I’m shocked that nothing from the blue album hit the number 1 MRT spot and also shocked that “Islands in the Sun” didn’t peak higher than 11.
Far too few people remember this song. They remastered and remixed the album and there’s a “new” version of BnB that I think is much stronger and more interesting. The guitar tones on this whole record are exceptional
As time goes on, “Bang and Blame” definitely gets far fewer spins than some of the band’s biggest crossover hits in the early ‘90s, so it gets lost in the shuffle. That, and I think Monster was criminally underappreciated at the time of its release, so a lack of fond memories for the song’s singles probably reduces their influence among modern-day radio programmers and, in the streaming era, gets left out of algorithms.
Are you referring to the “remix” version that Scott Litt did on the album’s 25th anniversary? I have to give that a listen; I missed that there was a remix reissue of the album with the 25th anniversary edition, so I haven’t heard any of the tracks yet.
the litt version, yeah, that's what i meant. it is fantastic. it's really different.
Oh wow, The Murmurs. I haven't thought about "You Suck" for decades. I remember that was the era where it was still sort of taboo to say "suck". That's a fun song for a sing-along.
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Great read, Matt! I'd kinda checked out on R.E.M. by this point, but came back around in due time. Didn't hurt that Monster is a great record, even if every used CD bin in the world is stuffed with copies of it.
Never heard of the Murmurs until I saw this. Bad Religion rules.