The new rock sound of the 90's was called Alternative Rock, in which the sound of overdriven guitars (borrowed from Neil Young)mixed with overwrought vocals (heavy metal meets new waves). It belonged to the U.S city of Seattle and was recorded on the local Sub Pop label, whose major bands included Nirvana and Pearl Jam. The early pionners of Alternative music were 1984's Green River, a loud,long-haired band that brought together guitarist Stone Gossard and Montana-born bassist Jeff Ament, with vocalist Mark Arm.

The remaining members found a new singer, the charismatic and unpredictable Andrew Wood, and renamed themselves Mother Love Bone. It wasn't until 1990 that they released a full-length album, "Apple", by which time Wood was dead from a drug overdose. Mother Love Bone fell apart,and Gossard and Ament teamed up with Mike McCready and two members of Soundgarden to record a tribute to their late vocalist. This was "Temple Of The Dog"(1991), an album which has since assumed cult propotions.

'Temple Of The Dog' closed one chapter in the city's musical history and opened another by spawning Pearl Jam,whose formation came about when vocalist Eddie Vedder teamed up with Gossard and Ament. Pearl Jam followed Nirvana,another former Sub Pop outfit (formed by guitarist/vocalist Kurt Cobin), into the UK and US charts,while a third band, Alice in Chains also hit the US Top 10 in 1993 with 'Dirt'.