Seven ages of rock - a history of rock music over the past 50 years

Sup Pop's first single: Mudhoney's "Touch Me I'm Sick"

August 1988

The release of this single marks the beginning of both the label and a band that would take the central role in the Seattle underground music scene. Sub Pop's first release was an explosive and raw record that harked back to the punk/hardcore of Black Flag but looked forward to the gritty sound that would characterise the 'grunge' phenomenon. It's often said that Mudhoney were the true founding fathers of Grunge, and shouldn't have been left behind in the wake of Nirvana's eventual success. In fact Sub Pop put much more backing behind earlier Mudhoney's releases and were slow to market Nirvana. Mudhoney would become something of an inspiration to the young Kurt Cobain, who hoped one day to produce records that packed the same kind of emotional punch.