For the radio format associated with this genre, see Modern rock

Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply 🎅 alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts 🎅 achieved mainstream success in the 1990s with the likes of the grunge, shoegaze, and Britpop subgenres in the United States 🎅 and United Kingdom, respectively. During this period, many record labels were looking for "alternatives", as many corporate rock, hard rock, 🎅 and glam metal acts from the 1980s were beginning to grow stale throughout the music industry. The emergence of Generation 🎅 X as a cultural force in the 1990s also contributed greatly to the rise of alternative rock.

"Alternative" refers to the 🎅 genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial rock or pop. The term's original meaning was broader, referring to musicians influenced by 🎅 the musical style or independent, DIY ethos of late-1970s punk rock.[4] Traditionally, alternative rock varied in terms of its sound, 🎅 social context, and regional roots. Throughout the 1980s, magazines and zines, college radio airplay, and word of mouth had increased 🎅 the prominence and highlighted the diversity of alternative rock's distinct styles (and music scenes), such as noise pop, indie rock, 🎅 grunge, and shoegaze. In September 1988, Billboard introduced "alternative" into their charting system to reflect the rise of the format 🎅 across radio stations in the United States by stations like KROQ-FM in Los Angeles and WDRE-FM in New York, which 🎅 were playing music from more underground, independent, and non-commercial rock artists.[5][6]

Initially, several alternative styles achieved minor mainstream notice and a 🎅 few bands, such as R.E.M. and Jane's Addiction, were signed to major labels. Most alternative bands at the time, like 🎅 The Smiths, one of the key British alternative rock bands during the 1980s, however, remained signed to independent labels and 🎅 received relatively little attention from mainstream radio, television, or newspapers. With the breakthrough of Nirvana and the popularity of the 🎅 grunge and Britpop movements in the 1990s, alternative rock entered the musical mainstream, and many alternative bands became successful.

Emo found 🎅 mainstream success in the 2000s with multi-platinum acts such as Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Paramore and Panic! at 🎅 the Disco. Bands such as the White Stripes and the Strokes found commercial success in the early 2000s, influencing an 🎅 influx of new alternative rock bands that drew inspiration from garage rock, post-punk and new wave, establishing a revival of 🎅 the genres.