Alternative Rock
From Your Subculture Soundtrack, the music encyclopedia
Originating Location: USA and UK
Originating Era: early 1980s
Contents |
[edit] Key Artists
- Nirvana
- Pixies
- R.E.M.
- The Velvet Underground
- Radiohead
- Sonic Youth
- David Bowie
- The Smiths
- Talking Heads
- Joy Division
[edit] Key Albums
[edit] Genre Description
At its base, alternative is just rock music that's outside of the mainstream, although it tends to be used in conjunction with a specific genre of non-mainstream rock, typically defined by rather loud guitars with distortion, and typically little in the way of keyboards. Often lyrics will be screamed or mumbled, but sometimes sung as well. The grunge movement in Seattle was rolled into Alternative rock as its influence spread and ended up fizzling out.
Of course, as the mainstream evolves, so does the definition of Alternative, but that tends to be the main version of "alternative" -- sort of a blanket term for stuff that might otherwise be called Indie-Rock, though perhaps on a major label or in some other way not "indie" sounding, without sounding quite mainstream, either.
[edit] Artists in this genre
- Frank Black Francis
- Nirvana
- Sonic Youth
- R.E.M.
- Pixies
- The Jesus and Mary Chain
- David Bowie
- Radiohead
[edit] Labels in this genre
