The Cranberries, No Doubt and
Garbage, 3 names that may or may not ring a bell to the people today who love
Lady GaGa and OneDirection today but back in the 90s those were huge names in
the music business. What made these bands so special, besides their undeniable
talent, was that those 3 rock bands had a female lead (which has become very
rare lately): Dolores O’Riordan, Gwen Stefani and Shirley Manson respectively
made a huge name for their bands and themselves.
Take a trip down memory lane
with these 3 songs listed below that probably you sang at the top of your lungs
at one point in life, and if you don’t know who these 3 bands are, please get
informed:
The Cranberries – Zombie (1994)
I would dare to say this is the
most well known song from this Irish band. Dolores O’Riordan wrote it in 1993,
while on tour, in memory of two boys who were killed in the
Warrington bombings in England. In the music video we see children playing and
soldiers on patrol. Personally
it takes me to a really good place in life because I learned about this song
during middle school, a few years later from its release, from my friend (who
was very much into rock) who would listen to this song non-stop and I ended up
liking it too. We would walk around school with our Discmans on listening to
the music we knew not many people in our school would listen to (or understand)
because it was in English. It was our own little world really.
Listen to the song and watch the
video below:
No Doubt – Don’t Speak (1995)
No Doubt has got to be one of my
all-time favorite bands and we all know this song; it’s a classic after all. It
is probably one of the most famous break-up songs ever done. Gwen Stefani wrote
this song with her brother Eric in 1993 about her break-up with the bassist of
the band Tony Kanal. The song went through many re-writes (you can listen to
the original demo HERE). I am sure it was very awkward to sing this song live
in the beginning but 20 years later, when they are both married with kids they
are cool with it, like she says in “Cool” her 2005 single which to me is the
continuation to “Don’t Speak”.
Listen to the song and watch the video below:
Garbage – Stupid Girl (1996)
While we wait for Shirley Manson
& Co to release a follow up to their 2012 album “Not Your Kind Of People”
and hopefully those 2 new songs they promised to release on April 19th
2014 for the Record Store Day, let’s talk about “Stupid Girl” which Manson told
Seventeen Magazine its kind of their version of Madonna’s “Express Yourself”
but a little more subversive. In 1996, she also told Billboard Magazine she aimed
the song as a rebuke towards a friend's foolish behaviour: "A lot of
females still find it difficult to find their own voice in society. It's just
that women have a different set of problems from men... make the most of your
potential.” This
song is their most successful song in the US earning them 2 Grammy nominations
in 1997 for “Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group” and “Best Rock Song”.
In my opinion, when Garbage
first came out it was very refreshing since it was rock –alternative rock I would
say- mixed with the right amount of electronica and pop which made them unique
at the time.
Listen to the song and watch the video below:
Listen to the song and watch the video below:
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