10 Obscure Grunge Albums You Need To Listen To

Green River only released one full length album, but it might just be the most influential 28 minutes and 40 seconds of the era. One can debate precisely which band originated grunge until the cows come home, but there are few better contenders for the throne than Green River.

They were strutting their stuff before the movement became worldwide, and before it all turned so serious. On Rehab Doll, these guys are having fun. Opener “Forever Means” has the thumping bass and thick guitars we associate with the genre, but they’re matched with sleazy riffs and glam-esque solos along with the sneering vocals of Mark Arm.

The title track is more indicative of what the genre would become, though there’s a clarity to Green River’s sound that a lot of later acts would eschew. Also underrated in the genre is the sheer quality of the musicianship on display, much of it coming from guitarist Stone Gossard, later of Pearl Jam.

The closest the band got to a real hit, “Swallow My Pride”, almost sounds like the ground zero for grunge, though, with the chorus asserting “this ain’t the summer of love”. A whole new scene was just beginning.