Blind Melon
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Every once in a while, I’ll hear an old song on the radio, and it’ll remind me of an old album that I once played over and over and over—and then I’ll resurrect that album and once again play it over and over and over. Recently, that song was Blind Melon’s “No Rain”—and that album was the band’s self-titled debut.

I remember when I bought the CD—I’d heard “No Rain” a million times on the radio, and I still liked it. But part of me just assumed that “No Rain” would be the only good song on the album. So I bought it at a used CD store just to be safe—but I later realized that it would have been worth every penny of the full price.

Blind Melon is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated albums of the 90s. At a time when everyone (like me) was listening to heavier albums like Pearl Jam’s Ten and Nirvana’s Nevermind (both of which came out a year earlier, in 1991), Blind Melon was Alternative Light. It’s the kind of stuff they probably played in grocery stores and elevators in Seattle. Blind Melon’s music still has the occasional grunge edge to it—enough to keep the kids in their flannel shirts and combat boots (once again...me) happy—but it’s also got a little something different. It mixes in a groovy hippie feel—and sometimes even a touch of bluegrassy mandolin—to make the music danceable (as opposed to mosh-able). And while the lyrics carry the same old Gen-X disillusionment and angst (“Why am I even here?” ... ”Nobody here really understands me.”), they still manage to have a positive spin—and they’re still just as powerful now as they were when the album first came out. (As an added bonus, unlike many of the songs at the time, Blind Melon’s lyrics are usually clear enough that you can actually understand them and sing along in your best impersonation of Shannon Hoon’s high, raspy voice.)

Blind Melon has aged tremendously well—it was great in 1992, and it’s just as great today. If you don’t already have a copy of this album in your collection, you should.

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