Hole changes pace, grows

For Hole's 1998 release Celebrity Skin, the band stepped away from the long dead grunge sound they had helped build, and created a softer, seemingly more mellow style. Although many of the songs that established the band were far more punk in terms of their arrangement, the sacrifice of that sound was not in vain; this album gave birth to a new generation of songs. The album's title-track was the first single from the disc, and has radio written all throughout it. The most pleasing thing about this record are the numerous gems that can be found littered within the track landscape. 'Awful' is one of the most familiar sounding Hole songs on the disc, but is easily topped by the breezy 'Malibu', and the soft-spoken 'Dying' (both possible references to the late Kurt Cobain). The range of the bands sound is something that has improved greatly since Live Through This, and this was a memorable way for the band to bow out of the music scene.