Rock and roll has always been about rebellion and going against the norm, and each decade acted as a revolution against its predecessor. Hair metal was the king of the rock scene in the 1980s, but something was brewing in the Pacific Northwest toward the end of the decade that no one quite saw coming.

Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam were the first four bands to explode into the flannel-wearing, messy hair-flaunting Seattle rock scene. Everything that grunge was about was the opposite of what hair metal had come to be. In all honesty, Aqua Net probably would have run out of resources to keep making hairspray if grunge hadn't come in to save the day.

This new wave of angsty, emotional and socially aware rock music scared the heck out of the big '80s rockers. Members of Twisted Sister, Van Halen and Warrant were even vocal about their fears that they were losing their place in the rock 'n' roll dynasty.

Grunge came in like a limo wreck and ended with a shotgun blast. In April of 1994, Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain was found dead at absolute peak of his career. The other big grunge bands slowly started to fade away as well, and post-grunge and nu-metal took over the second half of the '90s. We're still not sure whether that was a good thing or not.

To hear more about grunge's takeover and how it was truly the last major revolution in rock music, watch the video above.

The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time

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