10 Songs That Defined The '90s

Right around the time that the '90s started, you could feel that the generational divide was beginning to shift. Alongside hair metal and synthesizers making their way out of style, the new version of rock and roll didn't really have a name or style to call its own. As we all decided to find out what the next big thing was, Kurt Cobain gave us the clearest way forward with just 6 words: Here we are now, entertain us.

Just from the opening notes of Smells Like Teen Spirit, all of the hair metal from the past decades was rendered virtually dead, with rootsy rock and grunge becoming the new magic word for everyone to follow. Even if this was the next version of rock, the lyrics are absolute gibberish, almost like Kurt Cobain's frustration is coming from his own disability to articulate what he really wants to say.

Then again, for something that was this visceral, the meaning behind the lyrics is almost secondary to how it makes you feel. As much as people called it whining back in the day, this was the sound of a revolution happening in real time, with everyone jumping on the alternative bandwagon and reinventing they way they looked at their music and lifestyle as a whole. After a few years of searching, Generation X had officially found their national anthem.