Tour Nostalgia: Some of our past favorites still hitting the road strong
Presented by TourBeat. All words courtesy of Lyly Villanueva.
Today, alternative rock has become a very overarching term, an umbrella to a multitude of sub-genres all living under the same roof. It wasn’t always this way. Alternative rock first came into existence in the 1980s with bands such as R.E.M playing college circuits in the U.S and The Smiths taking over the U.K with their synthesizer-heavy tunes. The term “alternative’ identified a difference in sound from the mainstream, defined by subversive lyrics, distorted guitar, and an anti-establishment vibe.
With the emergence of Nirvana’s grunge in Seattle in the early '90s and the explosion of Britpop in the U.K, alternative rock was jettisoned into commercial success giving way to super stars like Soundgarden and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Many would argue that the ‘90s were the “Golden Age” of alternative rock, a decade that produced a plethora of good bands creating great music.
2014 and 2015 mark a milestone for many of the bands that formed or came to fame in the ‘90s, and as a result we are seeing a number of the former heavy hitters reuniting for tours. Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, Bush, Weezer, and Pearl Jam have all either gone on tour in 2014 or are set to tour in 2015. How did these band come to be? How have their live performances evolved over the years? And where are they now?
Foo Fighters:
The Foo Fighters formed in Seattle in 1994 when Nirvana drummer, Dave Grohl decided to start a solo project shortly after Kurt Cobain’s death. Grohl started alone, and later recruited Nate Mendel on the bass, William Goldsmith on the drums, and fellow Nirvana touring mate Pat Smear on guitar. Over the years, the Foo Fighters recorded eight studio albums, four of which won them a Grammy for Best Rock Album. In November 2014, the band released their eighth studio album, Sonic Highways, and are going on the “Sonic Highways World Tour,” in 2015.
Their first live performance was in February 1995 in a room over a boathouse. Over the course of the subsequent 20 years they have toured extensively. In their beginnings, they were a bunch of baby-faced kids with a grungy sound, clearly heavily influenced by punk rock and the late Kurt Cobain. They were simply having fun… in one Brixton concert, Grohl actually burped into the guitar between songs. They played that classic '90s sound that got us all hooked on alternative rock. The crowds at their concerts were often mosh-pitting or crowd surfing and the raw energy was palpable not only throughout the crowd but in the band themselves.
As the years went on, Grohl and the band evolved, became more charismatic, and refined their sound. Grohl grew into his role as the band’s frontman, not only playing for the crowd, but performing for themselves. By the time 2001 came around, the Foo Fighters were doing massive plays for massive crowds with full lighting and set designs.
This live energy was immortalized in Live at Wembley Stadium, a DVD release of the 2008 live show. This show is on another level, hundreds of thousands of people singing along to every word. During the show Grohl talks a lot to the audience and gives them some insight on his feelings. At one point he is visibly nostalgic before he sings Best of You. The same songs that used to sound grungy and with some static now have an edge and crispness to them that project their legendary status. There is much to look forward to in their 2015 tour. Grohl is sure to deliver a heart-stopping show filled to the brim with amazing music.
Smashing Pumpkins:
Smashing Pumpkins gained popularity specifically because they disavowed their punk rock forefathers and played an infusion of goth rock, metal, pop and even some electronica in their later work. The diversity in their music on top of dense layers of guitar gave them a unique sound allowing them to break into the mainstream. A true alternative band, the Smashing Pumpkins were victims to internal fights, drugs, and a decrease in sales that eventually led to their breakup in 2000. In 2006 Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin got back together to record Zeitgeist and did a 2007/08 tour where they brought in Jeff Schroeder. Most recently, Corgan announced the title of the bands new two-part album set to be released December 9, 2014, Monuments to an Elegy and Day for Night. The band will play a short December 2014 tour supporting their new release.
Being from Chicago, IL, some of the first real shows the Pumpkins played were at The Metro. It was from these performances that the Pumpkins were able to propel themselves to stardom. Like all the other bands that got their start in the early '90s, these first performances had that grunge sound, but Corgan’s guitar layering technique made his songs distinct. In fact, in studio recordings Corgan would layer guitar tracks so extensively that the songs had to be modified for live shows because they would be impossible to play otherwise. In the late ‘90s, Smashing Pumpkins played a number of festivals and really grew as a band.
By 1997, the Pumpkins were playing the 39th Annual Grammy Award show, and at this point their whole show was altogether different from their early days. Large-scale audiences and a crisp sound served as evidence of the bands transition into the mainstream markets. The band continued to evolve through the 2000s playing festivals and eventually stadium tours. By 2013 they were playing strictly stadiums for hundreds of thousands of people and their sound was much more sophisticated. Despite their growth and evolution as a band, Corgan’s performance style and demeanor stayed constant throughout their 15+ years playing live. His consistency through his career gives fans reassurance that their late 2014 tour will live up to their expectations.
Bush:
Bush is a London rock band that was formed in 1992 by Gavin Rossdale and Nigel Pulsford, who then recruited Dave Parson and Robin Goodridge. They decided to name themselves Bush after the area they lived in London, Shepard’s Bush. They released their debut album, Sixteen Stone, in late 1994 with Interscope taking the U.S airwaves by storm, despite being English. Bush is considered to be one of the most commercially successful alternative rock bands of the '90s, selling over 10 million records in the U.S. alone. The band separated in 2002 but reunited in 2011 to record their album The Sea of Memories, featuring the single “The Sound of Winter”. In August 2014, they announced the release of their 6th album, Man on the Run, and most recently announced a 2015 tour kicking off in San Francisco, January 30.
Bush’s story is unique in the sense that they rose to success incredibly quickly. Their debut album was certified six-times multi-platinum and their live performances evolved just as quickly. By 1995, only a year after the release of their debut album, they were already playing sold-out shows at CBGB and similar rooms across the States. Like many of their contemporaries, Bush’s live show continued to evolve through the '90s. Rossdale grew even more charismatic, fitting securely into his role as the face of Bush. Despite their years apart, Bush’s 2011 tour shows them invigorated and playing their classics to perfection for a crowd of people all elated to see them back together. With the release of their new album it will be interesting to see how Bush performs in their 2015 and how they will balance the classics with their new material.
Weezer:
Weezer came together in 1992 in Los Angeles and in their conception was made up of Rivers Cuomo, Patrick Wilson, Brian Bell, and Matt Sharp. Over the next 22 years, the bassist changed three time; in late '90s when Matt Sharp left the band, in 2001 when the band came back together with Mikey Welsh as their bassist, and again in late 2001 when Welsh was replaced with current bassist, Scott Shriner. Most recently they released their ninth album, Everything Will Be Alright in the End, and spent all of 2014 touring in support of it.
When Weezer first started playing live they played garages and house parties. In their first years, their sound was so raw it's hard to discern the lyrics, even after spending the last 15 years listening to “My Name is Jonas” it was not an easy tune to recognize. By 1996, Weezer was playing huge festivals where entire crowds screamed their name in anticipation. Despite their quick ascension to fame, it’s quite clear that the boys did not take themselves too seriously. They joke around on stage interacting casually with the crowd and each other. Their sound was grainy and grimy with witty lyrics and catchy chorus lines, a recipe for success. There was one thing that specifically defined them, setting them apart from other rock bands of the 90s; they all seemed to play equal parts in the live performance. Even though Cuomo was the lead signer, during their first decade of performances he wasn’t clearly the frontman. All of the band members spoke on the microphone and introduced songs.
By the year 2000 they had grown into proper rock starts with simple but impactful lighting and set design. They had more stage presence and like their contemporaries began performing for the audience instead of simply playing. As they continued to tour and perform live they grew older and more serious and perfected their classics, as well as their new material. They added another member to the band in the 2008/09 tour which granted Cuomo more flexibility on stage and their show became even more performance-based.
Their 2014 tour was all about giving the fans what they wanted. They played all their classics to perfection, with unparalleled energy for fans who knew every word.
Pearl Jam:
Pearl Jam formed in 1990 in Seattle and since its inception has been made up of Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. The band has changed drummers five times; the current drummer, since 1998, is Matt Cameron from Soundgarden. Pearl Jam was one of the most important bands that came out of the Seattle grunge movement. Throughout their career they have maintained their original subversive and anti-establishment vibes and have consistently refused to follow traditional formulas or rules in the music industry. They have declined to make music videos, give media interviews or concede to media requests and even participated in the boycott of Ticketmaster. Most recently they released their 10th studio album, Lightning Bolt, and spent 2014 touring the world in support of their new release.
For the first year Pearl Jam played together they actually played under the name Mookie Blaylock, in a number of small clubs and venues in Seattle. It wasn’t until March 1991 that Vedder and Ament announced that the band was now called Pearl Jam on a live radio show where they played the “Release” and “Once” demos over the airwaves. Especially in the beginning, their performances were wild and crazy with all of the boys jumping around and head banging. The sound was actually pretty crisp but it was their looks, hair, and actions that made them really grunge. Vedder’s role as lead signer gave him a flexibility most bands did not have. Since he was not attached to an instrument his focus was all on the performance and even in these early days watching Pearl Jam play was watching a show. Constantly joking, poking fun at himself and their music, Vedder gave their live performances an edge that most of the bands at their level did not have.
By 1998, Pearl Jam had morphed into a proper rock band with a full set and light design. The boys dressed and took themselves a little more seriously. They weren’t just kids making noise on instruments anymore, they had grown into musicians with a huge following. As they evolved and released new music their fan base grew; by the time it was 2004, they were playing huge rooms and selling them out. They refined their sound and mastered their older material while still releasing new songs that keep the crowd engaged and interested.
Their latest tour in 2014 serves as proof of their legendary status, playing stadiums and the likes, filled to the brim with people. Even though the guys look older you can still feel the grunge in the songs because their spirit and have Veder’s voice have remained unchanged. Pearl Jam is considered by many to be one of the best rock bands of all time. While I think such statements are relative and opinion-based, there is no doubt Pearl Jam falls in the short list of candidates, in my book.
Music has the power to bring back one memory or thousands of memories at once. It can, in an instant, connect us to a different place, with different people, in a different time. In a sense, that is why seeing bands such as these can be so powerful; because they connect you with previous versions of yourself. When I listen to the Smashing Pumpkins, I am teleported into “the garage,” a hang out my high school friends and I made in my parents’ garage. I am shifted back to a time with no worries, good friends, and less problems. When I listen to Pearl Jam, I am transported to my first car, to a time before Google Maps, when you would actually get lost and need directions. There aren’t many things worth more than memories, so go out there and re-live some of your favorite moments while listening to one or all of these epic bands, live. In a time of computers and electronically generated music, we must pay homage to our roots.
You can check Tourbeat.com for tour dates for all these bands and others touring in 2015.
