3 Incredible Grunge Albums From the 1980s You Need to Hear ASAP

When people today think about grunge music, it’s often the 1990s that come to mind. The era where MTV showcased flannel shirts, stringy hair, and loud, buzzy guitars to an audience of tens of millions. Ah, to be young again!

But before the 1990s—indeed, before albums like Nevermind, Ten, and Dirt—grunge music was bubbling up in the Pacific Northwest, ready to explode. That’s when artists were creating the sound and defining the terms that would come to label the music.

Below, we wanted to explore three grunge albums from the 1980s that remain valuable today. A trio of LPs that originated from Seattle helped shape what grunge became later in the genre’s golden era.

These are three incredible grunge albums from the ’80s…

1. Bleach, Nirvana (1989)

The debut LP from the iconic grunge band Nirvana, this album was recorded in a matter of hours in Seattle by the band and engineer Jack “The Grungefather” Endino. It includes songs like “Love Buzz” and “About a Girl” and set the trajectory for the group that would make them a global phenomenon within a handful of years.

Before Nevermind and before In Utero, there was Bleach. Released in 1989, before the dawn of the 1990s, this was the spark, the introduction of lead vocalist Kurt Cobain, which set the table for so much more.

2. Ultramega OK, Soundgarden (1988)

While Nirvana and Pearl Jam may be the first bands music fans think of today when considering the grunge genre, the first grunge band to earn a Grammy nomination for their music was Soundgarden. Led by banshee singer Chris Cornell, the group got the nod for their debut 1988 LP, Ultramega Ok.

Today, that recognition helped the band find a trajectory that landed them an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year. It’s well deserved, of course, and began way back in 1988.

3. Clairvoyance, Screaming Trees (1986)

While the “core four” of grunge include Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and Alice in Chains, the fifth band to add to that list is assuredly the Mark Lanegan-led group, Screaming Trees. And their glorious grunge careers kicked off in 1986 with the release of their debut LP, Clairvoyance.

The bombastic album helped define what the genre of grunge would become a decade later. With Lanegan’s Pacific Northwest skid row poetry and gravely voice, Screaming Trees would soon find a place in grunge lore that would have fans remembering their music many years later.