Alternative Rock Music
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There are many theories or ideas about how "alternative" became a term used so commonly today. Some say it stemmed from the DJs and promoters of the 1980s who were playing music beyond the top 40 rock radio formats. With freedom of song selection, new bands began making a presence and becoming more requested. From here, college radio grabbed on to the sound, dubbing the music with terms such as new post-punk, indie, or underground music.
The use of the term "alternative" gained further exposure due to the success of Lollapalooza, where festival founder and Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell coined the term "Alternative Nation."
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Alternative bands developed underground followings and toured constantly. This was followed in the early 1990s by an industry that recognized the commercial possibilities in these bands. Major labels actively began seeking out these "alternative" bands and signing them. Nirvana found great success in this time and with the release of the band's single "Smells Like Teen Spirit" along with the constant airplay of the song's music video on MTV.
Commercial radio stations saw this success and began allowing heavier alternative bands play time. The New York Times declared in 1993, "Alternative rock doesn't seem so alternative anymore. Every major label has a handful of guitar-driven bands in shapeless shirts and threadbare jeans, bands with bad posture and good riffs who cultivate the oblique and the evasive, who conceal catchy tunes with noise and hide craftsmanship behind nonchalance."
New Alternative Rock Music
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