Slacker – Rob Janicke – Book Review 

First-time author Rob Janicke tells the story of the early ’90s Seattle-centred grunge music movement through his own personal experience of having been there.  While obviously a personal story, it’s given context by organising the story chronologically, with various years being given a chapter.  As well as the grunge bands which take centre stage, he also interweaves other musical movements such as rap and hip-hop into the story.  These tales are set against the backdrop of significant world events in politics and pop culture.

Janicke carefully unfolds the story of the different bands Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Alice In Chains, their precursors and influences (Green River, Mother Love Bone, Pixies, etc,) but also the less prominent bands (Mudhoney, Screaming Trees, etc).  He also discusses how the era provided a platform for female artists to shine through their musical ability.  His story is written with so much enthusiasm that it’s an infectious read.  Interestingly, he makes the case for the Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness as the great unsung grunge album, released after what many would consider the peak grunge period, scuppering the myth held on this side of the Atlantic that the movement died in 1994 with Kurt Cobain.  Janicke shifts the demise of the movement to 1997, when Soundgarden split up.

Part music book and part 90s cultural history through a US prism, he documents the transformation of the music scene in the early 90s and subsequent transformation at the end of the decade, culminating in Napster.  It’s very US-centric, but that was where the movement took place.  It’s well worth reading for both those who remember the Seattle musical explosion and also those who missed out on it the first time around.