The music of the 1990s wanted to reset things a bit. This is especially true at the beginning of the decade. The 1980s ended with overworn pop and hair metal, and grunge was a reaction to that.
One thing remained true into the 1990s, though. Great rock is always going to be made. Plus, rock lends itself to a wide variety of sounds so there is no limit to creativity.
Of the five songs that follow, all are still worthy of listening to. Some are slick, and some are weird. All are brilliant.
Five excellent songs from the 1990s
Matthew Sweet - "Sick of Myself" (1995)
Matthew Sweet has made a lot of different kinds of albums over the decades, and he has been busier than most might assume. In fact, he has released 18 studio albums. This single was off of his third record, 100% Fun. The album was also his highest-charting LP but only reached 65 on the Billboard charts in the United States.
The problem for Sweet was a fewfold. One, he could not seem to focus on any one subgenre, and messed around with anything from acoustic power pop to grunge. This caused his records to be a bit of a mess. His strength, though, was in his high-end singles that he found a way to almost accidentally make.
"Sick of Myself" is the perfect track for the name of the album it is off of. The song is ridiculously entertaining ear candy. The music had to come first and then the lyrics just layered on because the cadence of the vocals at first is, well...rather boring, but the music keeps driving forward. Maybe Sweet only has had a handful of notable songs, but this track is brilliant.