Portal:Alternative rock

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edit   The Alternative Rock Portal Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s (see Timeline of alternative rock). The name "alternative" was coined in the 1980s to describe punk rock-inspired bands on independent record labels that didn't fit into the mainstream genres of the time. As a specific genre of music, alternative rock consists of various subgenres that have emerged from the indie music scene since the 1980s, such as grunge, indie rock, Britpop, gothic rock, and indie pop. These genres are unified by their collective debt to the style and/or ethos of punk, which laid the groundwork for alternative music in the 1970s. Though the genre is considered to be rock, some of its subgenres are influenced by folk music, reggae, electronic music and jazz among other genres. At times alternative rock has been used as a catch-all phrase for rock music from underground artists in the 1980s, all music descended from punk rock (including punk itself, New Wave, and post-punk), and, ironically, for rock music in general in the 1990s and 2000s. More about alternative music... edit   Selected article Steven Paul Smith, better known as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and musician. His primary instrument was the guitar, but he was also proficient at piano, clarinet, bass, harmonica and drums. Smith had a distinctive vocal style characterized by his "whispery, spiderweb-thin delivery", and use of multi-tracking to create vocal harmonies. Although born in the Midwest and raised primarily in Texas, Smith spent the majority of his life in Portland, Oregon. After playing in the rock band Heatmiser for several years, Smith began his solo career in 1994 with releases on the independent record labels Cavity Search and Kill Rock Stars. He eventually signed a major label contract with DreamWorks Records in 1997, for which he recorded two albums. Smith rose to mainstream prominence when his song "Miss Misery", written for the film Good Will Hunting, was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Original Song category in 1998. edit   Selected album Sky Blue Sky is the sixth studio album by Chicago rock band Wilco, released on May 15, 2007 by Nonesuch Records. Originally announced on January 17, 2007 at a show in Nashville, Tennessee, it was the band's first studio album with guitarist Nels Cline and multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone. Before its release, the band streamed the entire album on its official website and offered a free download of "What Light". Sky Blue Sky was Wilco's highest debuting album on the Billboard 200 at number four. The self-produced album received mostly favorable reviews by critics. Publications such as PopMatters and Rolling Stone praised its maturity, while PlayLouder and Pitchfork Media criticized its "dad-rock" sound. While some critics praised the direct lyrical approach, others criticised it when compared to previous Wilco albums. The band licensed six songs from the Sky Blue Sky sessions to a Volkswagen advertisement campaign, a move that generated criticism from fans and the media. edit   Selected picture Thom Yorke performs with Radiohead on August 14, 2006. edit   Did you know... ...that the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Blood Sugar Sex Magik and Nirvana's Nevermind were both released on September 24, 1991? that the Red Hot Chili Peppers' breakthrough song "Under the Bridge" was nearly left off of the 1991 album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, because vocalist Anthony Kiedis felt the lyrics were too soft and emotional? ...that bassist Kim Deal was credited as "Mrs. John Murphy" on the Pixies' Come on Pilgrim and Surfer Rosa? ...that Dinosaur Jr's second album You're Living All Over Me was named after a phrase frontman J Mascis uttered while on tour with the band? ...that the cover of The Stone Roses' 1989 album The Stone Roses was inspired by the Paris student riots of 1968? edit   Major topics Alternative rock artists: R.E.M., Nirvana, Pearl Jam, The Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Replacements, Green Day, Wilco, Pixies, The Smiths, Radiohead List of indie rock musicians: Elliott Smith, Death Cab for Cutie, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Arcade Fire, Sufjan Stevens, Arctic Monkeys, Electric Six Alternative music genres: Alternative rock, Britpop, College rock, Dream pop, Gothic rock, Grunge, Indie pop, Indie rock, Madchester, Noise pop, Paisley Underground, Post-rock, Shoegazing, Twee pop Instruments: Bass guitar, Drums, Guitar edit   Categories ▼ Alternative rock ► Alternative rock albums ► Alternative country ► Britpop ► Alternative rock discographies ► Dream pop ► Dunedin Sound ► Goth subculture ► Alternative rock groups ► Grunge ► Indie music ► Indie pop ► Indie rock ► Industrial music ► Madchester ► Math rock ► Alternative rock musicians ► Alternative rock navigational boxes ► Post-rock ► Alternative rock record labels ► Riot grrrl ► Shoegazing ► Alternative rock songs edit   Things you can do Make sure that all alternative subgenres are listed on the Alternative rock page Create: The Winter Hours • Abecedarians (band) Expand: College rock • Dream pop • Noise pop • Flesh for Lulu • Gogogo Airheart • Happy Mondays • Dogmazic (from French) List of Stubs that need vast expansion. List of start class articles. Sign up for Alternative music monthly newsletter. Alternative music to do list... edit   WikiProjects WikiProject Project page talk Collaborations Assessment To-do list Newsletter Media The Alternative music WikiProject is a project that helps to assemble writers and editors interested in Alternative music related articles. The aim of this project is to standardize and improve articles related to Alternative music, as well as to create missing articles. To become a member of this WikiProject (anyone may join), simply click here - and add {{user|username}}.  FA   A   GA   B   C   Start   Stub   FL   List   Book   Category   Disambig   File   Project   Template   NA   ???  Total 75 2 186 204 303 1,075 956 64 0 29 112 1 132 2 144 55 664 4,004 More info on project.... edit   Related portals Björk Emo Classical music Country Music Electronic music Guitar Heavy metal Hip hop Jazz Pipe organ Punk rock Rock and Roll More music portals... edit   Associated Wikimedia

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