Nineties Alternative Songs Trivia Quiz

Answer: Radiohead

"Creep" was the debut single by the British band Radiohead, from their "Pablo Honey" album. It was released in 1992 and became popular on college radio in the US but didn't chart at first. It was re-released in 1993 and went on to become a massive hit for the band.

This song is not really like much of their subsequent music and the band didn't like the fact that it was their biggest hit yet unrepresentative of them. For years, they didn't perform it. Despite recording several albums after "Pablo Honey" and having many hits including "Karma Police" and "Just" and a massive following, "Creep" remains their most successful single.

Answer: Nirvana

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was released in 1991, instantly filled a void in music and launched a movement. It was the opening track and first single from Nirvana's second album "Nevermind" and was a surprise hit for the band. The success of this song brought grunge to the mainstream and led the way for success for other bands such as Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. Nirvana only released three studio albums during their short career: "Bleach", "Nevermind" and "In Utero".

The group disbanded after the death of frontman Kurt Cobain in 1994 but have had an incredible influence on the alternative music scene.

Answer: Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam released the song "Alive" in 1991, almost two months before the release of the band's first album, called "Ten". It was released internationally in 1992 and reached top ten on the charts in Australia and number sixteen in the UK. Originally written by the band's guitarist, it was released as a demo tape under the name "Dollar Short" while the band was looking for a vocalist. Eddie Vedder who was in California at the time, added lyrics to it and mailed the tape back to the band in Seattle.

They heard the tape, invited him to join them in Seattle and he joined the band. By 2018 Pearl Jam had sold more than eighty-five million albums worldwide.

Answer: Jane's Addiction

"Been Caught Stealing" was released in 1990, off the Jane's Addiction album "Ritual de lo Habitual". It reached number one for four weeks on the US Modern Rock Charts and the accompanying video won an MTV Alternative Video Award. If you're familiar with the song you know there's a dog barking in the song and apparently this was singer Perry Farrell's dog who he didn't want to leave alone so brought her to the studio.

She got excited and started barking and the sounds were left on the song. The band initially broke up in 1991 and frontman Perry Farrell arranged the concert tour Lollapalooza as a farewell to the band.

The tour included a diverse mix of alternative bands and became an annual event, featuring different artists every year.

Answer: Tool

"Sober" was the first song from the debut Tool album called "Undertow". It was released in 1993 and is accompanied by a pretty creep stop motion animation video. Guitarist Adam Jones wrote the song and created the main character from the video. Most of the video is the animation however you can see little flashes of the band throughout.

This was the first Tool video using stop-motion animation.

Answer: Weezer

"Buddy Holly" is the second song released from Weezer's debut album, known as "The Blue Album". The song was released on what would've been Buddy Holly's 58th birthday and reached number two on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart. It was accompanied by a fantastic video, directed by Spike Jonze, that had the band playing at Arnold's, the diner from the TV show "Happy Days".

It mixed footage of the band with footage from the show. Weezer have released several albums and been nominated for several awards, including "Best Alternative Video" and "Breakthrough Video of the Year" at the MTV Video Music Awards for the video for "Buddy Holly".

They won both awards.

Answer: Sonic Youth

"Bull in the Heather" was the only single released from their eighth studio album "Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star." It reached number thirteen on the US Billboard Alternative Chart and reached number twenty-four in the UK. Sonic Youth have been incredibly influential with their innovative approach to music.

They formed in 1981 in New York City and broke up in 2011 after Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore, band members who were married, broke up after twenty-seven years of marriage.

Answer: Nine Inch Nails

"Hurt" was released as a promotional single for the second Nine Inch Nails album "The Downward Spiral". The song was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Song and was later remade rather famously by Johnny Cash. The only permanent member of the band between 1988 and 2016 was singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor. Nine Inch Nails have released several albums and been quite influential, they've been credited with making the 'industrial rock' sound popular.

Answer: Hole

"Violet" was written in 1991 and played live by Hole in 1991 and 1992 and then included on their second studio album "Live Through This". It was released as the third single from that album in 1995 and reached number twenty-nine on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. Hole was founded by Courtney Love, widow of Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain, and guitarist Eric Erlandson in 1989 in California.

They have received four Grammy nominations for their music and were influential on female rock singers, particularly because of the aggressive nature of their music and violence portrayed in the lyrics.

This helped pave the way for young female rock singers to tap into their loud, aggressive sides.

Answer: Foo Fighters

"Monkey Wrench" was the first single from the second Foo Fighters album "The Colour and the Shape" and was released in 1997. It reached number nine on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart and number twelve in the UK. Foo Fighters were formed by Dave Grohl after Nirvana disbanded due to the suicide of their singer Kurt Cobain. Grohl was drummer with Nirvana and singer/guitarist and occasional drummer with Foo Fighters. Foo Fighters have won twelve Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times.

They have been together since 1994 and perhaps that's a little too long because they are now cynically referred to by some people as "mom rock".