Dinosaur Jr. – Freak Scene (1988)

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Before the release of their third album Bug, Dinosaur Jr. was not really on my radar. The single ‘Freak Scene’ changed all of that. The mid-80s had been fallow times for garage rock, with glam metal bands running riot to the detriment of the guitar. Three suburban friends from Amherst changed that. ‘Freak Scene’ was released in September 1988 as the lead single from and would thereafter influence the sounds of Pixies, My Bloody Valentine and Pavement, which isn’t a bad roll call.

My Bloody Valentine – Only Shallow (1991)

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In 1991, rock was also going through a game change. The layers of My Bloody Valentine’s 1991 album Loveless would alter post-rock forever. ‘Only Shallow’ was the first track off the album – it takes off with a drum roll followed by the squall of droning guitars in unison. Within seconds, the Irish band would become synonymous with shoegazing. Such was the song’s influence, they released it as a single in 1992. Have a great weekend.

Cocteau Twins – Iceblink Luck (1990)

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The Cocteau Twins were Robin Guthrie, Will Heggie and the signature vocals of Elizabeth Fraser. In 1990, they released the charming ‘Iceblink Luck’. As with Lush’s ‘De-Luxe‘, this was a full year before My Bloody Valentine released the shoegazing manual Loveless. Like Lush, the band was already combining distorted guitars with haunting vocals to great effect. Unlike The Twins, Fraser’s vocals were almost intelligible.