17 newly created threads in the span of 2 days lol is this some sort of SH Forum record you are shooting for? Anyways, I would say because with the emphasis on the heavier guitars and more dense production with each core instrument employing darker sounds, there just wasn't much room sonically or heavy keyboards although sometimes piano and various keys are used (Mailman by Soundgarden uses a mellotron for example)
Keyboards aren't used much in either heavy metal or post punk/indie guitar music which are the two things that grunge comes from. Some folks (me included) don't like the way that keyboards colour and often soften the sound. That's not to say that I don't enjoy keyboards per se. Plus, the 80's was awash with keyboard washes. It seemed a standard thing to put keyboards in the background of tracks to fill out the sound. I hated it and I expect many others did too and rebelled against the practice.
My guess is that keyboards conflicted with grunge's punk ethos. Mudhoney's Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge had some keyboards but this is pretty much a post-grunge album. Released before Nevermind, both albums had a slow start (just like GN'R's Appetite). There was no internet to speak of.
I'm not shooting for any kind of record. If it's not allowed to make so many threads, please let me know, and I'll ease up on it. All of my threads have been sincere and serious, though, and I'm not posting just for the sake of posting.
It was mostly in jest, no worries, I just noticed many of the threads the past 2 days I clicked having the same author and such high volume is not typically seen on here ha
Why aren't there much keyboards in Grunge? Probably because Black Sabbath are a bigger influence on the genre than Deep Purple?
Probably. But I feel the Hammond organ has been underused in all the subgenres of rock. Jon Lord made it sound as dirty as the guitar in Deep Purple.
Most grunge songs have way more than just three chords. Listen to the album "Dirt" by Alice in Chains.
Keyboards are their OWN thing... besides.. why sit down and plink at a keyboard which is one of the hallmarks of dinosaur rock or self serious singer songwriter-ism when you can plug that Les Paul into a 150 amp head and then plug THAT into a 6 foot tall Leslie speaker and shake the Cascade Mountains with your gee-tar ... slouched like Slash.. women grooving appreciatively... and that C chord just dissipating like a truck full of hydrogen into ANY room you play!! And you want me to bring the specter of Billy Joel, Rick Wakeman or David F***** Foster into this BEAUTIFUL scene?
I’m pretty sure there was no organized prohibition against piano/keyboards. Piano had pretty much fallen away since the mid 70s, it takes skill, practice, and access to learn and practice piano. Keyboards and synths allow for some noise making ala Allen Ravenstine (Pere Ubu), but through the 80s they were mostly pop and pomp, and grunge was backlash against that excess. Guitars are cheaper and portable, and forgive not playing well in a way piano and keyboards do not. The screamers, Suicide, tuxedomoon, etc., had already set a punk keyboard template, which I am sure if there had been a grunge keyboard based act they would have been accepted.
You mean you missed Nirvana jamming with Jools Holland? I never knew Come As You Are was missing boogie-woogie piano until then...