10 Best 1990s Alt-Rock Albums You Need To Hear

When he formed a band post-Hüsker Dü, nobody expected punk rock legend Bob Mould to make an album quite like this. Following the split of his formative post-punk band, Mould rewrote his own framework for emotion and musicality, and consequently penned one of the great feel-good albums of all time. He washed away the bleak reality of one band with the summery brightness of another.

Copper Blue is massive: full of enormous power-pop bangers, Mould's excellent songwriting and jangly guitars. It broke into the mainstream effortlessly and without losing anything that made Mould a punk legend.

Don’t be confused though, this album attacks and is just as ferocious as it is impressive. Mould masks dark subject matters with catchy repetitive one-liners and brilliant choruses (making a song about a man drowning his lover feel like a blast). He writes with care and a closeness to his own emotion.

This album is a 1990s essential: it’s big, fun, crafted to perfection guitar rock. Standing out from the strange beasts on this list, Copper Blue is the rare straight-forward beauty that will never get boring.