"Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's second album, Nevermind (1991), released on DGC Records. The unexpected success of the song propelled Nevermind to the top of several albums charts at the start of 1992, an event often marked as the point when grunge entered the mainstream. It was Nirvana's biggest hit, charting high on music industry charts around the world in 1991 and 1992, and was number one on the charts in Belgium, France, New Zealand and Spain. It was met with wide critical acclaim, and described as an "anthem for apathetic kids" of Generation X. Although Nirvana grew uncomfortable with the mainstream and commercial attention the song brought to them, listeners and critics continue to praise "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as one of the greatest songs of all time.
Daydream Nation is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth, released on October 18, 1988. The band recorded the album between July and August 1988 at Greene St. Recording in New York City, and it was released by Enigma Records as a double album.
Albert Hammond Jr. is an American musician. He is best known for his role as rhythm and lead guitarist, as well as occasional keyboard player and backing vocalist, in the rock band The Strokes. Hammond Jr. released his debut solo album Yours to Keep in 2006 and followed up with ¿Cómo Te Llama? in 2008. Since then, he has released the 2013 EP AHJ, and the albums Momentary Masters and Francis Trouble in 2015 and 2018, respectively.
"Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" (or "Time of Your Life (Good Riddance)") is a song by American rock band Green Day, released in December 1997 as the second single from their fifth studio album, Nimrod (1997). Although different from the band's usual sound, it is one of their most popular songs. It has also become a staple of their concerts and is usually played as the final song.
"Under the Bridge" is a song by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers and the eleventh track on their fifth studio album, Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991). Vocalist Anthony Kiedis wrote the lyrics while reflecting on loneliness and the struggles of being clean from drugs, and almost did not share it with the band. Released in March 1992 by Warner Bros. Records, "Under the Bridge" was praised by critics and fans for its emotional weight. The song was a commercial success and the band's highest-charting single, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, number one on the Cash Box Top 100 and certified platinum. It was also a success in other countries, mostly charting within the top 10. Gus Van Sant directed the song's music video, which was filmed in Los Angeles.
"Alive" is the debut single by American rock band Pearl Jam. It was released on July 7, 1991, 51 days before the release of the band's debut album, Ten, on which "Alive" appears. Written by guitarist Stone Gossard, the song originated as an instrumental titled "Dollar Short" and was included on a demo tape circulated in hopes of finding a singer for the group. Vocalist Eddie Vedder obtained a copy of the tape and wrote lyrics that describe a somewhat fictionalized account of the time when he was told that the man he thought was his father was not actually his biological parent.
"Jeremy" is a song by American rock band Pearl Jam, with lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music composed by bassist Jeff Ament. "Jeremy" was released in August 1992 as the third single from Pearl Jam's debut album, Ten (1991). The song was inspired by a newspaper article Vedder read about Jeremy Wade Delle, a high school student who shot himself in front of his English class on January 8, 1991. It reached the number 5 spot on both the Album and Modern Rock Billboard charts. It did not originally chart on the regular Billboard Hot 100 singles chart since it was not released as a commercial single in the US at the time, but a re-release in July 1995 brought it up to number 79.
The Academy Is... is an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2003. Before temporarily disbanding, they were signed by the Decaydance imprint of the Fueled by Ramen label. They were originally known as "The Academy", but added the "Is..." in 2004 to avoid legal complications with other established bands already under that name. The band has released three studio albums: Almost Here (2005), Santi (2007) and Fast Times at Barrington High (2008), along with four EPs. The band announced their disbandment on October 8, 2011. In May 2015, lead singer William Beckett announced that the band would reunite at Riot Fest 2015 in Chicago. In addition, the core members of the band, being Beckett, Mike Carden, Adam Siska, and Andy Mrotek, as well as Jamie Reed Schefman and Ian Crawford, reunited for a farewell tour that took place during December 2015. They announced that they would be reuniting again on May 11, 2022, alongside the announcement of their participation in the 2022 Riot Fest.
Peter Lewis Kingston Wentz III is an American musician who is best known as the bassist and lyricist for the rock band Fall Out Boy. Before Fall Out Boy, Wentz was a fixture of the Chicago hardcore scene and was the lead singer and songwriter for Arma Angelus, a metalcore band. During Fall Out Boy's hiatus from 2009 to 2012, Wentz formed the experimental, electropop and dubstep group Black Cards. He owns a record label, DCD2 Records, which has signed bands including Panic! at the Disco and Gym Class Heroes.
"Sugar, We're Goin Down" is a song by American rock band Fall Out Boy, released to US radio on April 4, 2005 as the lead single from their second album, From Under the Cork Tree. Two different CD singles were released with different B-sides, Part I with a green cover and Part II with a red cover. With music composed by vocalist Patrick Stump and lyrics penned by bassist Pete Wentz, the single reached No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Fall Out Boy's first top-10 hit and exploding the band into the mainstream, exposing them to a new audience. It spent five weeks in the top 10 and 20 weeks in the top 20 out of its 42 chart weeks.
The Fray is an American rock band from Denver, Colorado, formed in 2002 by schoolmates Isaac Slade and Joe King. Their debut album, How to Save a Life released in 2005, was certified double platinum by the RIAA and platinum in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Their first single, "Over My Head ", became a top ten hit in the United States. Their second single, "How to Save a Life", charted in the top three of the Billboard Hot 100 and was a top 5 single in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
"Not Ready to Make Nice" is a song co-written and performed by American country music trio Dixie Chicks. It was released in March 20, 2006 as the first single from the band's seventh studio album, Taking the Long Way. The Dixie Chicks wrote the song in response to the backlash they experienced in 2003 after criticizing President George W. Bush.
"This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" is a song by American rock band Fall Out Boy and the second single from their commercially successful third studio album Infinity on High (2007). The song officially debuted on November 21 at the American Music Awards and impacted US radio on December 5. The music was composed by vocalist and guitarist Patrick Stump and the lyrics were penned by bassist Pete Wentz, following the band's songwriting approach which first began with some songs on their 2003 album Take This to Your Grave. Production was handled by Neal Avron, who also produced the band's previous From Under the Cork Tree album. Commenting on the band's decision to pick the track as the first single, Wentz said "There may be other songs on the record that would be bigger radio hits, but this one had the right message."
"Nine in the Afternoon" is a song by the American rock band Panic at the Disco, and the lead single from the group's second album Pretty. Odd.. It was the band's first song release that did not include the exclamation mark at the end of the "Panic" in the group's name.
"Time to Pretend" is a song by the American indie band MGMT, released as the lead single from their debut studio album Oracular Spectacular (2007) on March 3, 2008. An earlier version had been released on their Time to Pretend EP. The single was released as a 7" and CD single featuring the B-sides "Weekend Wars" and "Metanoia", respectively. In early 2009, the song was re-released in the UK. The song was ranked at number 493 on Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and its parent album, Oracular Spectacular, was ranked at number 494 on the publication's additional list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". The song was also ranked at number 90 on NME's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
"Viva la Vida" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their fourth album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008). The lyrics to the song contain historical and Christian references, and the track is built around a looping string section in unison with a digitally processed piano, with other layers gradually being added as the song builds.
Nate Ruess is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as the founder and lead singer of the indie pop band Fun, and of The Format. As of 2015, he also performs as a solo musician.
Travis Lazarus "Travie" McCoy is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the rap rock band Gym Class Heroes, in addition to having a solo career. McCoy became involved with punk rock scenes as a teenager. He formed the band Gym Class Heroes with childhood friend Matt McGinley; after several line-up changes, the group was signed to Fueled by Ramen, which released their debut album.
"Best Friend's Brother" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Victoria Justice, billed as Victorious cast featuring Victoria Justice. It was produced by Kool Kojak, who also co-wrote the song with Savan Kotecha and Victoria Justice, for Victorious: Music from the Hit TV Show (2011), the soundtrack to the Nickelodeon television series, Victorious. It was released as the album's third single on May 20, 2011 through Columbia Records in association with Nickelodeon. Musically, the song runs through an electropop oriented dance beat with teen pop lyrics, and the lyrics speak of a girl's crush on her best friend's brother.
"Bored to Death" is a song recorded by American rock band Blink-182 for the group's seventh studio album, California (2016). The song was released as the lead single from California on April 27, 2016 through BMG. "Bored To Death" was written by the band's bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, drummer Travis Barker, guitarist and vocalist Matt Skiba, and producer John Feldmann. It is Skiba's first single with the band, and the first single to not feature original guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge. The song was among the first written for California, and was begun on the first day writing with Feldmann.
