Dig Me Out: 90s Rock

Kill Holiday - Somewhere Between the Wrong Is Right | 90s Album Review

Kill Holiday, formed by members of San Diego hardcore band Unbroken, made a surprising shift from aggressive post-hardcore to dreamy shoegaze with their 1999 album Somewhere Between the Wrong and the Right. Released on Revelation Records, the album channels British influences like Ride and The Stone Roses, with shimmering guitars and laid-back, melancholic melodies. Despite its shoegaze and Britpop sound, the album resonates with the emotional core of the emo genre, more in feeling rather than form, standing out as a reflective, genre-crossing record from a label known for hardcore.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Somewhere Between the Wrong Is Right

11:49 - Someday You Will Lose and I Will Win

18:21 - Know You Your Friends Are

Outro - In Closing (Memorial Day)

 

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Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted | 90s Album Review

Pavement's 1992 debut album Slanted and Enchanted is a landmark in 1990s alternative music. Featuring cryptic lyrics, jagged guitar riffs, and a laid-back, DIY aesthetic that defined the band's early sound and the emergent lo-fi movement. The low budget recording contributes to its raw and unpolished sound, blending noise rock, pop hooks, and experimental structures with an ear for unusual melodies and hooks. While not everyone's cup of tea thanks to out-of-tune guitars and the unpolished recording quality, even those not familiar or fans of lo-fi might still find something to check out.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Conduit for Sale!

15:35 - Perfume-V

18:35 - Here (alternate mix)

24:05 - Two States

30:51 - No Life Singed Her

34:57 - Loretta's Scars

Outro - Trigger Cut/Wounded-Kite at:17

 

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Squarepusher - Hard Normal Daddy | 90s Album Review

A groundbreaking fusion of drum and bass, jazz, and experimental electronic music, the 1997 album Hard Normal Daddy by Squarepusher showcases Tom Jenkinson’s virtuosic bass playing and intricate programming. Blending frenetic breakbeats with lush, jazz-inspired melodies, tracks like “Coopers World” and “Beep Street” highlight his unique ability to balance chaos and groove, creating an experience that’s both cerebral and rhythmically infectious. Dense and detailed production reward repeated listens revealing new textures and layers bold, resulting in a genre-defying record that pushed the boundaries of IDM at the time.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - E8 Boogie

22:00 - Beep Street

26:03 - Papalon

32:05 - Coopers World

39:22 - Fat Controller

46:06 - Chin Hippy

Outro - Rebus

 

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Chevelle - Point #1 | 90s Album Review

​"Point #1," Chevelle's 1999 debut album, showcases the Chicago-based Loeffler brothers' fusion of alternative metal and indie rock. Produced by Steve Albini, known for his work with Nirvana and PJ Harvey, the album delivers a raw, unrefined sound that captures the band's early energy. Coming in at the end of the decades, it's not surprising to hear similarities to bands like Tool and Helmet, particularly in tracks such as "Skeptic" and "Anticipation," which feature syncopated riffs and dynamic shifts between aggressive and mellow passages. While the album's repetitive structures and lack of big hooks pin this is a debut, , "Point #1" definitely laid the groundwork for Chevelle's evolving sound and hinted at their future success in the alternative metal scene.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Black Earth

19:08 - Mia

29:32 - Open

37:49 - Anticipation

42:23 - Long

Outro - Peer

 

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Thelonious Monster - Beautiful Mess | 90s Album Review

Upon its release in 1992, Beautiful Mess by Thelonious Monster received plenty of critical acclaim yet not the sales or media exposure to launch the band into the new alternative explosion. Lead singer Bob Forrest’s deeply personal lyrics explored themes of addiction, relationships, and self-destruction, not all that different from other bands at the time, but musically the band sounds more in step with Minneapolis bands like The Replacements and Soul Asylum the late 1980s. Featuring a slew of notable names from bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Porno for Pyros, and more as his backing band, the band succeeds at bringing Forrest's stories to life even if a few lyrics choices didn't stand the test of time.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Song For A Politically Correct Girl From The Valley

28:33 - Vegas Weekend

35:36 - Body and Soul

39:20 - Adios Lounge

46:57 - I Live In A Nice House

Outro - Bus With No Driver

 

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Interview with Tom Beaujour, Co-author of Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock's Wildest Festival

With 2024's 3-part documentary LOLLA: The Story of Lollapalooza, and our own Lollapalooza episode many years ago, you might wonder what's left to learn about the famed traveling music festival of the 1990s. Turns out, a lot. Thanks to the hundreds of interviews and thousands of hours of work by authors Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock completed for their second book "Lollapalooza - The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock's Wildest Festival," this extensive oral history talks with everyone involved: artists, tour founders, festival organizers, promoters, publicists, sideshow freaks, stage crews, record label execs, reporters, roadies and more. 

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Terrible Lie by Nine Inch Nails (Live at Lollapalooza 1991)

Outro - The Last Beat Of My Heart by Siouxsie and the Banshees (Live at Lollapalooza 1991)

 

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Billy Squier - Surviving The 90s

In our second installment of Surviving the 90s, we're revisiting one of the hitmakers from the first half of the 80s - Billy Squier. Responsible for such hits as The Stroke, Lonely Is The Night, Everybody Wants You, My Kinda Lover, and Rock Me Tonite, to name a few, Squier was all over radio and early MTV. Albums like Don't Say No, Emotions in Motion, and Signs of Life each went Platinum, and while musical trends changed, Squier still managed radio airplay into the early 90s. But by 1998, he was done, releasing his final record, Happy Blue, an all acoustic affair. We revisit his greatest hits, his 90s releases, and try to determine if Billy Squier thrived, adapted, or died in the 90s.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - The Stroke (from Don't Say No)

10:32 - 42nd Street by Piper (from self-titled)

17:41 - The Big Beat (from The Tale of the Tape)

28:19 - Rock Me Tonite (from Signs of Life)

38:28 - Young at Heart (from Creatures of Habit)

1:02:42 - Happy Blues (from Happy Blue)

Outro - Angry (from Tell The Truth)

 

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Idlewild - Hope Is Important | 90s Album Review

Previously we revisited Idlewild's 2000 breakthrough sophomore album 100 Broken Windows, but for this episode we're going backward to their 1998 debut. The punkier, more aggressive Hope Is Important leans into noisy, almost unpolished intensity, while moments of introspection hint at the more refined songwriting the band would develop on following albums. Frenetic guitars and urgent vocals create a chaotic yet compelling sound, with tracks like "When I Argue I See Shapes" showcase their knack for anthemic hooks. Though it may lack the polish of their later work, Hope Is Important captures Idlewild’s youthful spirit and unfiltered passion.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Everyone's Says you're so Fragile

19:58 - You've Lost Your Way

25:54 - I'm Happy to be here Tonight

30:27 - A Film for the Future

34:34 - When I Argue I See Shapes

Outro - Paint Nothing

 

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Guided By Voices - Alien Lanes | 90s Album Review

Alien Lanes by Guided By Voices, their first for Matador Records, expanded upon the lo-fi, hook-driven bursts of songs from previous release Bee Thousand. Its chaotic, collage-like structure packs 28 tracks into just over 40 minutes, thanks to the raw, four-track production gives the album an intimate, unpolished feel. Songs end abruptly, vocals are buried, guitars are out of tune, yet the melodies emerge from the fuzz with a mix of power pop charm and punk spontaneity.Widely considered one of their best works, Alien Lanes remains a cult favorite and a defining record of '90s indie rock.

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Watch Me Jumpstart

17:09 - Motor Away

20:20 - Closer You Are

30:38 - Ex-Supermodel

36:20 - Strawdogs

38:19 - My Valuable Hunting Knife

Outro - Blimps Go 90

 

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Cock Sparrer - Two Monkeys | 90s Album Review

Two Monkeys, the 1997 album by veteran punk band Cock Sparrer, blends old school British pub rock and Oi! with surprising melodic elements. Despite being released twenty-five years into their career, the album retains the raw energy of their early work, featuring socially conscious lyrics while tackling themes like working-class struggles and personal resilience. The production is cleaner than their classic albums, but it still maintains a gritty, pub-rock feel, though a few of the faster tracks could benefit from a remix due to overly-compressed and thin sounding drums. 

 

Songs In This Episode

Intro - Bats Out

21:10 - Back Home

24:36 - A.U.

29:05 - Time To Be Me

32:52 - Battersea Bardot

37:00 - Goodbye

Outro - Lies

 

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Listen to the episode archive at DigMeOutPodcast.com.