Oh, what a year 1994 was in the world of hard rock.
The grunge movement continued to dominate the rock scene thanks to bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden.
Unfortunately, Nirvana’s time would be cut short when frontman Kurt Cobain took his own life in April. But than band’s sound helped push another form of rock music to the forefront
As grunge chugged along, a punk revival hit the mainstream with breakthrough releases from multiple acts.
READ MORE: The Best New Rock/Metal Band for Each Year of the 1990s
Green Day’s Dookie delivered a radio-ready punk sound that produced hit single after hit single. Fellow California punk band The Offspring achieved similar success with their 1994 release, Smash.
Somewhere in the middle of all of this came a wave of industrial-influenced rock hitting the the airwaves thanks to acts like Nine Inch Nails.
Rock music in 1994 was hard-hitting and, often times, chaotic. Here are the 10 best hard rock albums from the year.
10 Best Hard Rock Albums of 1994
The year 1994 was one of the best for rock music, offering a variety of options for those who liked it loud and upbeat. It was the year that punk re-entered the mainstream, grunge continued its dominance and Woodstock proved to be a tipping point for several bands on the verge of massive popularity.
With that in mind, we flash back to glimpse this landmark year in rock music at its peak and provide you with the 10 Best Hard Rock Albums of 1994.
Gallery Credit: Chad Childers