After the second half of the 1980s had been dominated by commercial pop and cheap dance acts, the 1990s started highly promising. Depeche Mode’s Violator, AC/DC’s The Razor’s Edge, Nirvana’s Nevermind, Metallica’s Black Album, Guns N’ Roses’ Use Your Illusion I & II, and U2’s Achtung Baby marked the return of great handmade music and greatly produced albums.

But the positive momentum rapidly vanished, and the 1990s will finally be remembered for teen pop, dance, techno, boy bands, and girl groups, as well as for vocal-driven songs.