Britpop had well and truly arrived when Blur ‘woo-hooed’ their way to number 2 in the charts with ‘Song 2’ in April 1997. Propelled by a gigantic guitar riff and layered with a warm overdrive, with plenty of bottom end, punk guitarist Graham Coxon enabled ‘Song 2’ to redefine heavy music that the song purported to be making fun of.
Buy this song at iTunes or Amazon. The official band site is here.
‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ was by far the biggest rock song to come out of America – hell, out of the entire world – in 1991. The single came with a video clip that became a cultural meme in its own right, with its dark tones and angst-ridden close-ups often copied by bands well into the alt-rock and nu-metal era. The death of Cobain aged only 27 has lent the song a certain heavyweight gravitas that the singer probably never envisioned.
Buy this song at iTunes or Amazon. The official band site is here.
The Ultimate Rock Riffs 