This is the main tour page and introduction of the Alternative Rock, Grunge, and Seattle Tour

Welcome to Alternative Rock, Grunge and Seattle: an exploration of the geographical places that were part of the history of alternative rock and grunge in Seattle. The aim of this tour is to educate, inspire, and share a story about the alternative rock music that developed in the Pacific Northwest, and culminated regionally in Seattle from the mid 1980s through the mid 1990s, which came to be known as "grunge" or "the Seattle Sound".

It's important to note that these were somewhat controversial terms. In fact, many of the musicians involved with the music came to despise the terms. Many bands who did not fit the grunge aesthetic did not experience the same popularity as bands that were labelled grunge.

Also, though these labels came to represent a lot of alternative rock coming from Seattle, they didn't necessarily account for the creative diversity of all the bands that were labelled "grunge". Many musicians felt the term put boxed them in with other bands or put boundaries around their music. While bands may have sounded similar and had similar elements, most were unique and different in their own right. Seattle was in fact home to a diverse, tightly knit music community, at least until commercialization took place.

Though the music was alternative rock at its roots, grunge has become such an identifiable word with many of the bands that came out of Seattle, and so I will refer to the bands associated with grunge in this tour as "grunge".

Seattle tells a fascinating story of youth culture carving out a space for themselves. Alternative rock music started as a collective rejection of commercial pop music, and it revolutionized rock music from the 1980s onwards. Of course, it turned into a massive, overblown, and even ridiculous commercial phenomenon as grunge became an extremely lucrative commercial label that spread throughout mainstream popular culture. But the music speaks for itself. Regardless of grunge as a label, the music remains in the hearts and minds of the generation that witnessed its birth, and continues to influence generations that have followed.

I cannot provide a complete history of what happened with "grunge" in Seattle, but I'd like to give you an integrated, overview of what happened here, by tying the history of "grunge" to the physical places and spaces where it happened.

We can't cover all the bands which were an important part of the music culture in Seattle in a limited walking tour like this, but I hope I'll be able to give you a good overview of the music associated with "grunge". We will talk about how the music developed, and how it transitioned into the mainstream. The focus will be on the more well-known Seattle bands that have come to define "grunge", these include bands such as (though not limited to) Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and Mudhoney. We will also have to leave out many locations that are significant to the grunge narrative. But I hope the tour gives you new insights into this important and influential musical phenomenon.

Our tour begins at the Central Saloon, at 207 1st Avenue South.

Main Tour Points of Interest

1. The Central Saloon

2. The OK Hotel Apartments

3. Sub Pop Records (original location)

4. The Moore Theatre

5. The Crocodile

6. Black Dog Forge

7. Sub Pop Records (current location)

8. The Paramount Theatre

9. Re-Bar

10. El Corazon

11. The Seattle Centre

The purpose of this tour is educational. This tour was created under the auspices of an independent research course at Brock University. This tour is a critical overview of the alternative rock music that developed in the Pacific Northwest, and culminated regionally in Seattle from the mid 1980s through the mid 1990s, which came to be known as "grunge" or "the Seattle Sound".

All copyrighted material used within this tour rests with the original copyright holders, no infringement is intended.

Enjoy the tour, but always take caution while listening to audio through headphones, or ear buds. We advise you to listen to audio with one ear when crossing roads, and to always use pedestrian crosswalks.

This work was created by Kyle Huisman

Contact: seattlerock@outlook.com