How Did the Word ‘Grunge’ Come About?

How did the word “grunge” come about? It’s a question that’s been asked a lot, especially in recent years as the style has made something of a comeback. Here’s a look at the history of the word and how it came to be associated with the music and fashion of the Seattle scene.

The Early Days of Grunge

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Seattle music scene gave birth to a new genre of music called grunge. Grunge bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden became household names and defined a generation. But where did the word grunge come from?

The music scene in Seattle in the early 1990s

The music scene in Seattle in the early 1990s was very different from the music scene in the rest of the country. The biggest difference was the sound of the music. The Seattle sound was based on a heavy, distorted guitar sound, and it was this sound that would come to be known as “grunge.”

So how did the word “grunge” come about? According to one story, it was coined by Mark Arm, the singer for the band Mudhoney. In an interview with The Seattle Times in 1992, Arm said that he and his friends used to refer to the Seattle music scene as the “grunge thing.”

The first use of the word ‘grunge’

In October 1987, Mark Arm, lead singer of Mudhoney, used the term “grunge” to describe his band’s music in a letter to The Rocket, a Seattle music magazine. He wrote: “We’re the grungeiest band in the world.” The word appears to have come from Arm’s use of the word in rehearsal; he would tell his bandmates to play “grungier.”

It’s likely that Arm first heard the word “grunge” from Seattle musician Jeff Stetson, who used it to describe his band, Green River. Stetson told University of Washington professor Calvin Johnson that he heard the word from a friend who worked at a localTower Records store. This friend was referring to a type of music that was beginning to be called “punk rock.”

As punk rock became more popular in the early 1980s, many different subgenres emerged. One of these subgenres was grunge, which was characterized by its raw, distorted sound and dark lyrics. Grunge bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden became hugely popular in the early 1990s and helped make Seattle the center of the alternative rock universe.

The Rise of Grunge

Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged in the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. grunge music is characterized by its heavy guitars and angst-ridden lyrics. The term “grunge” was first used in print in the Seattle zine Desperate Times in 1985, when editor Mark Arm used it to describe the music of his band, Green River.

Nirvana and the popularity of grunge

Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed in Aberdeen, Washington, in 1987. The group’s best-known line-up consisted of lead singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain, bassist Krist Novoselic, and drummer Dave Grohl. Nirvana rose to mainstream popularity with their second album, Nevermind (1991), which topped multiple international charts and has sold over 30 million copies worldwide. The success of Nevermind was credited for bringing alternative rock music into the mainstream in the 1990s.

The word “grunge” was originally used to describe the dirty, scruffy fashion of Seattle musicians in the early 1990s. It later came to be associated with a specific music genre, characterized by heavy guitars and angsty lyrics. The grunge scene was centered around a few clubs in Seattle, including the now-famous Crocodile Cafe. Some of the most popular grunge bands included Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains.

The grunge look

The grunge look is characterized by dirty, unkempt hair; tight, ripped jeans; and flannel shirts. It became popular in the early 1990s among punk and alternative rock fans in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, particularly in Seattle.

Grunge bands such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam brought the style to national attention with their music. The popularity of grunge fashion spread to other parts of the country and even to other parts of the world.

The word “grunge” is thought to have come from the word “grungy,” which means dirty or filthy. It’s also possible that it comes from the word “groovy,” which was used to describe anything that was cool or trendy in the 1960s.

Grunge Today

Grunge music first came about in the 1980s in Seattle. It was a type of music that was influenced by punk and heavy metal. The word ‘grunge’ was first used in print in 1985 by Mark Arm, the singer of the band Mudhoney. He used it to describe the Seattle music scene.

The influence of grunge today

The word grunge first came about in the late 1980s when music fans used it to describe the dirty and unkempt look of many popular Seattle bands. Grunge fashion – characterized by ripped jeans, flannel shirts, and Doc Martens boots – became incredibly popular among young people in the 1990s. The popularity of grunge fashion was largely due to the fact that it was affordable and easy to find in stores.

While the grunge aesthetic is no longer as popular as it once was, there are still many elements of grunge fashion that have remained popular over the years. For example, flannel shirts and ripped jeans are still often worn by people who identify as part of the punk or alternative subcultures. Additionally, many modern fashion designers have been inspired by grunge fashion and have incorporated elements of it into their designs.

If you’re interested in learning more about the history of grunge fashion, I recommend checking out this article from Refinery29: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2016/04/107290/grunge-fashion-history

The legacy of grunge

Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in Seattle. It became commercially successful in the early 1990s, due in part to the success of Nirvana, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam.

The word “grunge” was used in print as early as the Saturday Review of Literature to describe Seattle bands such as Green River and Mudhoney. By 1986, when Seattle music writer Chuck Klosterman used the term in his article “Rock and Roll Will Eat Itself”, published in Esquire magazine, grunge had come to mean a dirty, scruffy style of rock music typified by bands like Nirvana and Mudhoney.

In the 1990s, grunge was taken up by mainstream fashion designers such as Marc Jacobs, who featured models dressed in flannel shirts and ripped jeans in his 1992 show for Perry Ellis. Grunge clothing was also adopted by celebrities such as Kate Moss and Courtney Love.

The popularity of grunge soon began to wane, however, and by the end of the decade it had been largely overshadowed by Britpop. Nevertheless, many aspects of grunge culture – including its DIY ethic and its focus on authenticity – have continued to influence subsequent generations of musicians.