RETROSPECTIVE – A Year in Music: 1996

1996 saw grunge breathing its final breath, Britpop at the height of its popularity and industrial metal dominating the alternative music scene. Few remnants of the 1980s still existed; instead, a new generation of young musicians had emerged and, inspired by the likes of Pixies and Nirvana, begun to conquer the charts with their new brand of pop rock. A few veterans were still releasing new material, however, with Deep Purple and Scorpions producing albums that failed to achieve the attention of their earlier work. Several hit singles were released in 1996 that first appeared on albums that debut the previous year, such as Stupid Girl by Garbage, Big Me by Foo Fighters and Ironic by Alanis Morissette.

Babylon Zoo, the brainchild of Sikh multi-instrumentalist Jas Mann, achieved instant success when their track Spaceman was used on a Levi’s jeans advert. The song went straight to number one in the United Kingdom and the subsequent album, The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes, enjoyed considerable critical acclaim. Stabbing Westward, whose music had appeared on the soundtrack to Michael Bay’s action hit Bad Boys, released their second album Wither Blister Burn & Peel on January 4th. Although failing to enjoy the same kind of commercial success as fellow industrial metallers Nine Inch Nails, the album received positive reviews and included the modest hits What Do I Have To Do? and Shame. Although he had yet to break into the mainstream, Kid Rock’s third record Early Mornin’ Stoned Pimp was released five days later and featured a collaboration with Uncle Kracker. Ministry, who first began in the early 1980s, had remained more of a cult oddity than a mainstream group (with the exception of their 1993 track Jesus Built My Hotrod). Their sixth album, Filthy Pig, was released at the end of the month through Warner Bros. and included a cover of the Bob Dylan classic Lay, Lady, Lay.

February saw new releases from Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, whilst Sepultura‘s sixth full-length album Roots featured elements of Brazilian tribal music, far-removed from their thrash metal roots. Gravity Kills, yet another industrial metal band to make waves in their native America, had first appeared on the soundtrack to David Fincher’s 1995 classic Seven, which had also included contributions from Nine Inch Nails and David Bowie. Rage Against the Machine caused a stir once again with Evil Empire, their sophomore record that included the singles People of the Sun and People of the Sun. Veruca Salt – named after a spoilt character from Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – had first appeared in 1994 with their excellent debut American Thighs and the track Seether. Two years later they released the EP Blow It Out Your Ass It’s Veruca Salt, which featured writing contributions from both singer Louise Post and guitarist Nina Gordon. Popular singles released around this time would include Aeroplane by Red Hot Chili Peppers, Don’t Speak by No Doubt and two track from The Wildhearts (Sick of Drugs and Red Light-Green Light), as well as cover versions by Joyrider and China Drum.

Following the release of the EP Trailer and the hit singles King Fu, Girl from Mars and Angel Interceptor, teenage Irish post-grungers Ash recorded their debut album with Owen Morris, previously known for his work with Oasis and The Verve. Their debut album 1977 would also feature two further hits, Goldfinger and the ballad Oh Yeah, before the trio recruited London-born guitarist Charlotte Hatherley. The same day would see the release of Wild Mood Swings, the tenth studio album from goth legends The Cure. The same week Pitchshifter released Infotainment? and Pantera unleashed The Great Southern Trendkill, arguably the heaviest and most intense album of their career. May would prove to be the most active month of 1996, marking the release of new music from Def Leppard, Manic Street Preachers (their first since the disappearance of guitarist Richey Edwards the previous year), Soundgarden Porno for Pyros and Slayer.

Although they had become darlings of MTV with their eponymous 1991 album, Metallica would spectacularly fall from grace with their follow-up, Load, which debut on June 4th. Bryan Adams produced by far the most embarrassing album of his career with 18 til I Die, which included such dubious song titles as The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You and (I Wanna Be) Your Underwear. Prior to becoming radio-friendly hit-makers, Feeder boasted a rawness on their EP Swim, which was released on the same day as Opeth‘s classic Morningrise and one day before KMFDM‘s Xtort. On July 16 Placebo‘s self-titled debut was released, following the minor success of their singles Come Home and 36 Degrees, which was distributed around the same time as the album. The tracks Teenage Angst and a reworking of Nancy Boy would launch the band into the mainstream soon afterwards. Further pop rock came from Jimmy Eat World, whose Static Prevails failed to break into the charts, whilst grunge veterans Alice in Chains received the MTV Unplugged treatment.

August saw the release of two classic albums – October Rust by Type O Negative and Pearl Jam’s No Code – as well as Turn the Radio Off from Reel Big Fish. Ænima, the second full-length album from Tool, took its central concept from late comic Bill Hicks and spawned two popular music videos, whilst Weezer, most known for their hit Buddy Holly, returned with the less commercial Pinkerton. October continued to see rock dominating the charts, with albums from Skunk Anansie and Korn gaining major acclaim, whilst Marilyn Manson‘s commercial breakthrough Antichrist Superstar transformed him into both a scapegoat and bona fide rock star. The remainder of the year saw contributions from Dio, Blind Melon, Less Than Jake, Bush, Cradle of Filth and The Bloodhound Gang.