What are the best grunge album openers of all time?
The sequence of an album is pretty important to support the overall message the artist is trying to convey, but the opening track has an especially difficult job because it’s typically the listener’s first impression.
Back in the day, artists didn’t release four to five singles before the record came out. So unless people heard the first one or two singles on the radio or music channels like MTV, buying and listening to an album was how anyone became familiar with them.
Think back to the first time you listened to one of your favorite albums, and the feelings that were evoked by the very first song. Chances are, if it’s a really good album, then it has a really good opener, otherwise it may not have pulled you in so strongly.
READ MORE: The Best Ballad by 10 Big Grunge Artists
We decided to look back on some of the biggest albums of the grunge era and pick which of them had the most enticing opening tracks. The ones we chose were from albums that came out between 1990 and 1994.
The selections may be somewhat predictable, but they’re popular songs for a reason — they’re that damn good. These artists clearly knew the importance of first impressions and did their damndest to make sure they drew listeners in right off the bat.
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1
Mother Love Bone, ‘This Is Shangrila’
Mother Love Bone were projected to be one of the biggest rock artists of the ’90s, if vocalist Andrew Wood hadn’t unexpectedly died at the age of 24. Their sole album Apple came out a few months later in 1990, and you can tell they had something special as soon as opener “This Is Shangrila” kicks off.
All of the bands on this list sound vastly different from one another, and Mother Love Bone were no exception. “This Is Shangrila” has a punchy, anthemic rhythm to it, and you can visualize the enigmatic Wood prancing around onstage singing it. He was a showman, and Mother Love Bone definitely had what it takes to fill arenas. It’s a shame they never got to.
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2
Pearl Jam, ‘Once’
Fortunately, some of the members of Mother Love Bone have been able to experience selling out arenas with their next band, Pearl Jam. What’s really cool about their debut album Ten is that the atmospheric intro at the beginning of “Once” is really a hidden track called “Master/Slave,” and it’s also the outro of closing song “Release,” essentially serving as audial bookends at the beginning and end of each album.
But once “Once” (ha) actually starts, it’s an eruption of sound topped off with a menacing guitar riff from Stone Gossard. Eddie Vedder eventually comes snarling in and then sings a pre-chorus so fast you it makes your head spin. All of these elements work together to create a sense of panic and urgency, leaving listeners on the edge of their seat for the next song “Even Flow.”
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3
Nirvana, ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’
Not only does one of the most iconic albums of all time have “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on it, but it actually starts with it too. The song practically started a revolution on its own, and while that’s partly due to its heavy rotation on the radio and MTV, it wouldn’t have gotten as huge as it did it it wasn’t a kickass song to begin with.
Kurt Cobain’s riff that opens the song is so recognizable that you can hear it anywhere — sporting events, DJ sets, commercials and beyond. But the anthemic chorus is what really elevates it and makes it the definitive song for that entire generation of artists. It helped Nevermind knock Michael Jackson from the top of the Billboard 200 in early 1992, and from there, grunge became one of the biggest musical subcultures in the world.
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4
Alice In Chains, ‘Them Bones’
“Aah!”
If Alice In Chains know how to do anything really well, it’s creating an incredible piece of music that makes people feel uneasy and freaked out at the same time. That’s exactly what “Them Bones” does at the start of their 1992 release Dirt, though it was pretty tough picking between it and “We Die Young” on Facelift.
Jerry Cantrell’s ferocious guitar riff is enough to knock you right off your seat, and as if that weren’t enough, Layne Staley comes in with spine-chilling screams. In such a short amount of time, “Them Bones” packs an unsettling punch, forces listeners to face their own mortality and then leaves them craving more.
There are few album openers in rock that compare at all, let alone grunge.
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5
Soundgarden, ‘Let Me Drown’
This one seems to be an underrated gem in Soundgarden’s discography, but the opening track on 1994’s Superunknown is a really solid representation of all the band members’ strengths. The rhythm section keeps the pace quick, Kim Thayil’s guitar riffs are thick and sludgy, and Chris Cornell’s vocals are as sharp and crisp as ever.
The song is intense and powerful right from the start, creating a dark and moody atmosphere that’s sophisticated and poetic at the same.
