10 Songs That Defined The '90s

Songs that end up defining a time normally boil down to a certain aesthetic that the artist in question evokes. Much like Michael Jackson did for pop in '80s and Elvis did for rock and roll in the '50s, a lot of the appeal of these artists seem to be how well they fit the cultural definition of what constitutes a star. And when it comes to the age of flannel and disaffected youth, you can't really do much better than Ironic.

Granted, it's not like the discourse around this song hasn't been discussed, with many English aficionados being more than willing to point out to Alanis Morissette that half of these instances are not in fact ironic. Most of these just come down to inconveniences or coincidental things that happen in everyday life. Then again, does it really have to make sense to be a classic like this?

Compared to the nonsense lyrics that were coming out of the alternative scene at the time, the fact that the definition is skewed here just adds to the appeal, with the crux of the song still being about the nature of existence and how fed up with the world this generation has become. Even though this is far from Generation X's greatest moment, it might be the definition that fits the best.