With Nirvana’s frontman dead less than years before the movement that made him its reluctant figurehead had time to understand what had just happened, the 1994 Pazz & Jop singles results presented a delightful mishmash; it’s as if the gods said, “You want grunge? Take a pop house smash instead.” Fortunately, “100 % Pure Love” was 100 percent pure hook — as she admitted in a later (lesser) hit, Crystal’s gonna make it clear. Sometimes clarity is a vice; the Cranberries mattered when they sighed over jangles, not barking over, through, and under power chords.
The Hague
The Cranberries – Zombie
Meh
Des’ree – You Gotta Be
Nine Inch Nails – Closer
Sound, Solid
Freedy Johnston – Bad Reputation
Bruce Springsteen – Streets Of Philadelphia
Coolio – Fantastic Voyage
Hole – Miss World
R.E.M. – What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?
Sheryl Crow – All I Want To Do
Liz Phair – Supernova
Soundgarden – Black Hole Sun
Ini Kamoze – Here Comes The Hotstepper
Good to Great
Crystal Waters – 100% Pure Love
Warren G – Regulate
Beck – Loser
Beastie Boys – Sabotage
Salt-N-Pepa – Whatta Man
Veruca Salt – Seether
Pretenders – Night In My Veins
Hole – Doll Parts
Snoop Doggy Dogg – Gin And Juice
Blur – Girls And Boys
Pavement – Cut Your Hair
Madonna – Secret
Offspring – Come Out And Play
Humanizing The Vacuum 