Seether

The post-grunge field was stacked with so many A-listers in the 2000s that a band had to be either exceptionally unique or super catchy just to keep up with the competition. Seether were both. Founded in South Africa in 1999, the group elbowed their way into the genre’s top tier with a sound that, rather than latching onto grunge’s lumbering metal traits, was influenced by the start-stop buzz of Nirvana and Veruca Salt (whose 1994 alt-rock classic “Seether” inspired their name). With Shaun Morgan’s gravelly sneer and emotionally fraught songwriting leading the charge, Seether turned out a long string of hits—“Fake It,” “Remedy,” the surprisingly twangy “Country Song,” to name just a few—that were temperamental, even downright mean at times, yet always catchy and melodic. Even when they shifted into ballad mode, they were hell-bent on separating themselves from the pack. One of their most enduring hits, 2004’s “Broken,” is a daringly intimate duet between Morgan and then-girlfriend Amy Lee of Evanescence that eschews arena rock grandeur for melancholic orchestration and desolate atmospherics. But Morgan’s knack for a killer hook wasn’t just about short-term gains; it was also built for the long haul. Seether have outlasted most of the acts with whom they came up precisely because they remain committed to songcraft. This is especially true of 2017’s Poison the Parish and the 2020 follow-up Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum, a pair of albums that find the durable veterans turning out some of the thickest, most aggressive music of their career.