Portal:Alternative music

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The Alternative Music 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.

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U2 is a rock band from Dublin, Ireland. The band consists of Bono (vocals and guitar), The Edge (guitar, keyboards and vocals), Adam Clayton (bass guitar) and Larry Mullen Jr. (drums and percussion).

U2 formed in 1976 when the members were teenagers with limited musical proficiency. By the mid-1980s, however, the band had become a top international act, noted for their anthemic sound, Bono's impassioned vocals, and The Edge's textural guitar playing. Their success as a live act was greater than their success at selling records, until their 1987 album, The Joshua Tree, increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars," according to Rolling Stone. U2 significantly reinvented themselves with their 1991 album Achtung Baby and the accompanying Zoo TV Tour, responding to their own musical stagnation, the dance and alternative rock revolutions, and criticism of their image. Similar experimentation continued for the rest of the 1990s. Since 2000, U2 have pursued a more traditional sound, while maintaining influences from their previous musical explorations. U2 have sold more than 170 million albums worldwide and have won more Grammy Awards than any other band.

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Dookie is the third studio album and major label debut by American punk rock band Green Day. The album was the band's first collaboration with producer Rob Cavallo. Released on February 1, 1994 through Reprise Records, Dookie became a worldwide commercial success, reaching #2 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and charting in seven countries. The album helped to propel Green Day into mainstream popularity, amid claims from the punk rock community that the band had "sold out".

Dookie produced five hit singles for the band: "Longview", the re-recorded "Welcome To Paradise", "Basket Case", the radio-only single "She" and "When I Come Around". As of 2007, Dookie is the band's best-selling album, selling over 15 million copies worldwide. It is Green Day's only diamond album. Dookie won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1995.

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Credit: Anders Jensen-Urstad

Jason Reece of …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead live at Mondo, Stockholm, Sweden on 26 February 2005. ...Archive/Nominations

News

June 3, 2008: Radiohead's back catalogue has been made available on iTunes, making them one of the last high-profile bands to put their music on the download store.
May 27, 2008: The Smashing Pumpkins announce a series of shows in August and September to celebrate the group's twentieth anniversary, as well as the release of a tour DVD and early band demos. (Billboard)
May 21, 2008: Death Cab for Cutie's Narrow Stairs becomes the band's first album to top the Billboard album charts. (Billboard)
March 2, 2008: Nine Inch Nails releases its new album Ghosts I-IV on its official website. Consisting of 36 tracks, the first nine tracks are available for free download on the website. (Billboard)
February 21, 2008: Foo Fighters issue a lawsuit against Marvel Comics for unauthorized use of their music in a promotional film. (NME)
February 11, 2008: Police halt an impromptu outdoor show by Frank Black in Dublin after 1,000 fans show up. (NME)
February 6, 2008: The White Stripes announce they will release a Spanish-language version of their current single "Conquest" under the name Las Rayas Blancas on February 19. (NME)
January 25, 2008: Stone Temple Pilots will reunite for a summer tour, according to Velvet Revolver guitarist (and current bandmate of former STP singer Scott Weiland) Slash. (Billboard)
January 23, 2008: Former Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins announces that the former group members are planning to release a career-spanning box set. (Billboard)
January 21, 2008: The Verve, The Breeders, Death Cab for Cutie, Rilo Kiley, My Morning Jacket and a reunited Love and Rockets are among the acts announced to be playing at the 2008 Coachella Festival. (Billboard)
January 14, 2008: Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder wins the award for Best Original Song at the 65th Golden Globe Awards. (Billboard)
December 26, 2007: Radiohead announces plans to air a one-hour pre-taped performance of its 2007 album In Rainbows in its entirety simultaneously on television and the Internet on New Year's Eve. (Billboard)
December 21, 2007: Arcade Fire, PJ Harvey, Spoon, Wilco and Eddie Vedder are among the artists whose albums have been nominated for the 2007 Shortlist Music Prize. (Billboard)
December 13, 2007: Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder is nominated for Best Original Score and Best Original Song for the film Into the Wild (2007) at the 65th Golden Globe Awards. (Billboard)
December 4, 2007: Bauhaus announce that they will not continue after the release of their next album Going Away White, the group's first studio album since their first breakup in 1983. (Billboard)
December 4, 2007: The Breeders announce the release of a new album, Mountain Battles, in April 2008. The band will also tour and play a number of festivals. (Billboard)