Alternative Rock Music

Alternative Rock originated in the 1980s, with bands such as R.E.M. at the forefront of the genre.

These bands relied on college radio to broadcast their songs, however throughout the 1980s, alternative music was mainly underground.

But in 1989, alternative music was mainstream enough for New Order, Public Image Ltd and The Sugarcubes to go on a US-wide arena tour. In Britain, alternative rock music tended to be more pop-orientated, and was played on national radio by dj’s such as John Peel.

Later, bands would branch out into grunge, and noise rock (i.e. Nirvana and Sonic Youth)

By the 1990s, alt-rock bands were now more popular than ever, with Nirvana becoming chartbreakers with “Nevermind” and bands like Oasis, Pulp and Suede breaking the UK charts.

History of Alternative Rock.

These “Britpop” bands wanted to take the UK charts back from US alt-rock bands like Nirvana.

Oasis’s debut album, “What’s the Story, Morning Glory?” became the third best-selling album in UK history as a result of the “Battle of Britpop” between Blur and Oasis.

Towards the end of the 1990s, Alternative rock became less popular, something that may be accounted to the loss of some of the leading artists of the genre; Kurt Cobain from Nirvana died in 1994, and Pearl Jam were banned from playing many major venues as a result of a feud with Ticketmaster.

The original alternative rock artists faded away, while Radiohead achieved critical acclaim with their debut album, and bands like Travis and Coldplay became popular in the charts.

Now, alternative rock is limited to describing a handful of bands, such as The White Stripes, while most bands are now referred to as “indie rock” which has overtaken alternative rock in popularity.

Other genres associated with Alternative Rock Indie Rock

Post-Rock

Ska (e.g. No Doubt were influenced by reggae, ska and rock)

Progressive Rock

Post-Grunge

Significant Events1979 – Joy Division form. They are considered

one of the original alternative rock bands, with elements of gothic rock.

1980 – R.E.M. form

1981 – Sonic Youth form.

1982 – Alternative rock club “The Hacienda” opens in Manchester, England.

1983 – R.E.M.’s album “Murmur” is named Rolling Stone’s best album of 1983.

1985 – Radiohead form (as On A Friday)

1985 – The Stone Roses form

1986 – MTV begins airing “120 minutes”, a two hour show dedicated to playing alternative rock music videos.

1986 – NME magazine release C86, a seminal Briths Indie Rock compilation.

1987 – R.E.M.’s “The One I Love” becomes and Top Ten hit on the US Billboard Chart, making alternative rock more mainstream.

1988 – R.E.M. are named Rolling Stone’s “Best Rock and Roll band in America”

1989 – Blur form

1991 – Nirvana release Nevermind, making grunge and alternative rock more popular.

1991 – The first ever Grammy award for “Best Alternative Music Album” is awarded.

1992 - Alternative Rock becomes fully mainstream, due to albums by Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Red Hot Chilli Peppers reaching the top 40 billboard chart. 

1993 - Eddie Vedder (lead singer of Pearl Jam) is featured on the cover of Time magazine as part of a feature on the rise of alternative rock music. 

1995- The Smashing Pumpkins album "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" debuts at number one on the Billboard chart. 

1995 - The "Battle of Britpop" between Oasis and Blur starts when they release "Roll with it" and "Country House" respectively on the same day. 

1996 – Echo & The Bunnymen reform

1996 – R.E.M. sign a record deal with Warner Bros. worth $80 million. At the time it was considered the largest record contract in history.

1997 – Oasis’s “Be Here Now” becomes the fastest selling album in the UK.

1997 – Radiohead “Ok Computer” is released, which hits in over 1000 charts.

2001 – Manic Street Preachers become the first major rock band to play a concert in Cuba

2005 – U2 are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

2007 – R.E.M. are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

2007 – Radiohead release “In Rainbows” over the internet and allows fans to set their own purchase price.

2009 – The Dead Weather and Them Crooked Vultures form, Oasis disband, and Blur reunite.

2011 – Arcade Fire win the Grammy for Album of the Year

Influencial Albums.

Style Alternatice Rock is a parent genre for several sub-genres of

underground music that differ greatly in sound.

One common style throughout all of these genres is that they reject the idea of commerical success and mainstream popularity.

In the past, alternative artists tended to play small clubs, now however, they may play large venues also.

Because of the wide difference between the sub-genres, there is not a set style of music that could be categorised as “alternative rock.

But a general theme throughout is guitar-based music.

Topics that the lyrics tend to address could include; social issues such as drug use, psychological issues, enviromentalism.

Target Audience The target audience for alternative rock music tends to be

young, perhaps around 16-25.

The demographic Is also made up of a mix of both males and females, as the artists within the genre are also from both genders.

Listeners of alternative rock could stereotypically be referred to in popular culture as “hipsters”, a term used to describe people who tend to reject commercially successful bands and listen to the more underground artists. They would also have more artistic hobbies, such as photography, art, or acting.

These people would come from a wide range of economic backgrounds, with those from less-affluent backgrounds being able to relate to the lyrics of the songs, however, realistically, anyone could be a fan of alternative rock.