Mix 06: Aged to Perfection - 1994 Revisited (Part I)

Aged to Perfection is the first volume in a multipart series set to explore the musical environment of 1994. To help in this undertaking, friend and blog contributor Carl Beach has agreed to alternate weeks and mixes with me—giving you an overview of 1994 from two distinct perspectives.

Looking back on the 1990s, I find at least two exceptional years for music: 1991 and 1994. In 1991, college radio and alternative music crept into the mainstream and began its meteoric rise to cultural dominance. Grunge would destroy the already imploding bands of hair metal, while bands like U2 would help ignite a renaissance in musical experimentation. In the next couple of years, a plethora of new and exciting bands would debut, substituting formulaic stock with more original ingredients.

The scene would essentially peak in 1994. In that year, Kurt Cobain took his own life, placing a final exclamation mark on grunge—a genre marked by angst, despair and nihilism. But 1994 was also a year marked by exceptional albums, debuts and artistic triumphs. In the years to follow, radio and MTV would succumb to the sounds of recycled post-grunge, watered-down “alternative” and teen pop. But for a few years in the early 90s, the music scene was ripe with remarkable work.

Aged to Perfection is primarily rooted in classic rock—capturing the authenticity of spirt and the musical exploration first mined by veteran bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and The Rolling Stones. That bands like Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots and The Black Crowes would borrow heavily from these masters is simply a testament to the timeless appeal of the music generated in the late 60s and early 70s.

Hope you enjoy this first volume in our series. I’m not sure what Carl has planned for Volume Two, but I can tell you that Volume Three (tentatively titled Style and Substance) will be vastly different from this first entry. Stay tuned...

01. Vasoline • Stone Temple Pilots
02. A Conspiracy • The Black Crowes
03. Backwater • Meat Puppets
04. Struttin' • Primal Scream
05. What Do You Want From Me • Pink Floyd
06. Head Down • Soundgarden
07. Moon Is Up • The Rolling Stones
08. Send Me On My Way • Rusted Root
09. Friends • Page & Plant
10. Where Did You Sleep Last Night? • Nirvana

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