Top 20 Alternative Bands of All Time
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- Опубликовано: 20 фев 2024
- These alt-rock groups have been dominating the airwaves for decades! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most influential alternative groups that have helped shape the genre into what it is today. Our countdown of the top alternative bands of all time includes Weezer, Talking Heads, Sonic Youth, Foo Fighters, Radiohead, and more! Which alternative band do you think has left the biggest legacy? Let us know in the comments below.
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Which alternative band do you think has left the biggest legacy? Let us know in the comments below.
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Love your content guys
Foster the People, shame they didn’t even make it to the honorable mentions, which are no longer in WatchMojo’s videos
Love It WatchMojo.
The Cure.
Alice In Chains are better than half the bands on this list
No Alice In Chains is criminal
Metal
@@damiankarras alternative Metal. I guess Jar of Flies should be classified as Metal?
hell no@@damiankarras
I came here to say the same.
@@Frankithian no
It's Alice in Chains for me. Lyrics, vocals, harmonies with sounds of grunge, metal and rock. The EP's are incredible and their MTV unplugged show is the gold standard. Not to mention their live at the moore performance... Legendary stuff right there.
Metal band
@@damiankarras Them bones i would consider a metal type song.
I know. AIC should have been mentioned, and then how far down the rabbit hole you go, Janes Addiction, maybe Rage Against the Machine? Sunny Day Real-estate? Shoot, Bad Brains? Ha, whoa Misfits too?
@@bsquinney i think the term alternative is too general tbh. Personally i don't think looper has a effing clue when it comes to music.
@@damiankarras So is Nutshell metal song ? 😂
R.I.P to all the legends that we've lost through the years. 🙏
Pretty amazing how Dave Grohl has been in two legendary bands 🙌🏼
Three, if you count Queens of the Stoneage.
It is amazing that he was such a great drummer and went the total opposite direction and became lead guitarist and vocals. Being in rare company of being in the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame for two of the greatest bands of all time.
@bradmenpes809 I was about to say the same, even if he isn't a full time member.
Pat smear as been in 3. and in each band there's been a deceased member.
Pretty amazing 10 million copies per album still counting alternative. Good job Big Bang theory kids
Wait--- you've got Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Nirvana --- but NOT Alice in Chains? and what about Green Day?
are those really alternative bands
Linkin Park, also. Chris Cornell is Chester’s best friend.
@@jimbo9208 AIC actually are alt rock band, alt metal, grunge. So them not being on the list and/ or not being mentioned is a crime.
@@nintendopro0391was*
@@nintendopro0391wtf does that mean. Who cares
Alice in chains is #1 , not to even mention them on the list is beyond unbelievable
My thoughts exactly
I wouldn’t call them alternative. They are a metal band
wasn't Alice In Chains always a bit more on the metal-side?
I was thinking they are more metal as well.
@@damiankarras AIC is part of the big four of grunge. its nirvana, soundgarden, alice in chains and pearl jam. i would not consider them a metal band
Soundgarden is way to low on this list. And where the fuck is Alice in Chains?!?
Sameeeeee
When I was 16 the Smashing Pumpkins changed my life and awakened me to how majestic music could be and what it can awaken in the soul. When I was about 23 and had been playing guitar and bass for a couple of years RHCP showed me what could be achieved by not limiting my taste and influences to one or two genres. To this day I dream of a collaboration between Billy Corgan and John Frusciante.
It is so good to see The Smiths, Sonic Youth, R.E.M. and Radiohead on the same video!
Jane’s Addiction is criminally underrated
Thank you. Someone with good musical taste
so we just gonna act like STONE TEMPLE PILOT AND ALICE AND CHAIN DIDN'T EXIST?
are they really alternative bands
@@jimbo9208 stp, alice n chain had a massive range of genre especially alternative
@@jimbo9208durrrrrr they're on every alt station, playlist, music list
Let's not forget, Weezer gave us one of the greatest guitar licks of all time in Buddy Holly
Weezer should not be as low as 19
@@Kirbybros1real! same as the cranberries!!
The pixies were only 16. This list is a joke
Weezer is awesome.
The Cure, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Church, Shelleyan Orphan, American Music Club, Bat for Lashes, Galaxie 500, The Smiths, Pearl Jam, Dead Can Dance, Cocteau Twins, the Mountain Goats, Robyn Hitchcock, Depeche Mode... My favourites, not necessarily the most influential.
Cocteau Twins have literally inspired everyone from Prince to The Weeknd
Man, I remember when The Strokes dropped " Is This It?" and it felt like a revolution.
I thought they were gonna be the Greatest new rock band ever and they fizzled out after 2 albums. Their later stuff just wasn't as good.
@@JoshR813but Arctic Monkeys did
@@JoshR813 i hardly disagree with you. Their last album is fenomenal, one of the best pieces of art ever made. And for me, their fourth album is the best so, they should be at least at top 5
I love The Cranberries, especially their underrated songs like Loud and Clear, God Be With You and Schizophrenic Playboy. I will never get over the passing of Dolores O'Riordan. The band will not be the same without her.
that song about John Lennon is so fucked up though. But yes, they were quite underrated
They done Faith No More dirty
Mr Bungle sucked
Alice In Chains? Black Keys? Green Day? Rage Against the Machine? Stone Temple Pilots?
None are alternative
Linkin Park?
STP/AiC is good call Alt wise...perhaps Green day as well but that's more punk than Alt. Rage is out n out hard rock/metal bra...
@@markmaioli4 were you alive in the 90s? These bands are the DEFINING alternative bands of that era, child
@@420WayneKerr are you kidding me, besides the Black Keys who were a blues band, they're all hard rock/grunge bands - nothing alternative there
Gorillaz ranked higher than Pixies? This explains how Jethro Tull beat Metallica for a heavy metal award.
I hate how everyone just assumes that jethro Tull robbed Metallica. There were three other nominees for that award, including Ac.dc. Nobody deserves awards.
Couldn't say it better than you. Mojo is always only 50 percent off
Made me laugh
Gorillas or blur just a fan of pexies
yeah fuck this list. foo fighters shouldn't even be on here, maybe on a 40,
It's sad that quite a few of these amazing bands have lost so many of their member to drugs or suicide.
Acho que as letras de algumas músicas destas bandas soam um pouco negativas e é tipo assim guando você toca repetidamente uma música com conteúdo negativo isto entra na mente.
...and a combination thereof.
Alice in Chains Rocks!
This list cant be taken too seriously because of the exclusion of Joy Division/New Order. Influenced soo many bands on this very list.
and what about The Replacements?
The only thing that really excludes Joy Division/New Order is that they were never alternative.
New Order is very much New Wave, whereas Joy Division closer to Gothic Rock and Dark Electronic.
alternative, new wave or indie are not genres. They are music categories. post-punk is a genre within the music category called Alternative. And goth is a sub-genre of post-punk. This list is clearly using a grading scale that includes popularity, subversiveness along with influence. R.E.M., Radiohead and The Cure had the right combination of all three. Nirvana just got lucky at the right time. Nothing that special about them. I'm 54 years old. Listened to many bands better than them before Nevermind. People list them number one because they have to.
Glad to see The Cranberries on this list but was hoping Garbage would be in here too.
Despite influencing so many of the bands on this list, the replacements being excluded is insane
“Californication” is one of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ best songs and my favorite from the titular album.
Where the hell are The Velvet Underground, Teenage Fanclub, The Jesus & Mary Chain, The Cramps, My Bloody Valentine, The Violent Femmes, The Replacements, Jane's Addiction, & Joy Division/New Order? Also, no female-led bands? Portishead, PJ Harvey, Bjork, Sinead O'Connor, The Pretenders, Siouxsie & The Banshees,The Cocteau Twins, Kate Bush?
They simply recycle the same bands in every video 🙄
Yes! The Velvet Underground were literally the FIRST alternative band…but no mention of them whatsoever on this vid. 🤦♂️
Hundred percent. Half the bands on here are grunge or garage rock but let’s not include any women who are ACTUALLY alt rock. Letters to Cleo, Elastica, Garbage, Poe…
Oh my god I forgot the Breeders! Let’s include the Pixies but not acknowledge Kim’s massive success without Black Francis.
@@accidentallydot Juliana Hatfield....though this wasn't a solo artists list.
I would consider The Smiths and The Cure to be New Wave of the 80’s much more than Alternative.
New Wave is a subgenre of Alternative. And they were Post-Punk.
Morrissey, Marr, Rourke and Joyce were great together. Love The Smiths.
I thought the same
@@dsanchez9703 Alternative is a main genre that includes many subgenres from Protopunk, Punk, Post-Punk, New Wave, etc. Too many to mention.
Look up Alan Cross Ongoing History of New Music.
The Smiths would be great if not for Morrisey.
@@EngineeredChannel it’s take a band.
We need more rock music in this era
3 words nine inch nails
Watch Mojo needs to revisit the 90's and remember the existence of bands like Stone Temple Pilots and Live. Hell, Throwing Copper is in contention for best album of the 90's and Live has been left off of a number of lists Watch Mojo could have, and should have, put them on.
Overall, it’s not a bad list, but no Linkin Park and no Green Day is pretty weird. I also probably would’ve thrown a ska band in there, like No Doubt or Sublime. Twenty-One Pilots also deserves mention imho because they’re pushing the boundaries of alternative music more than anyone that’s been on the radio in the last decade and they have an incredible worldwide fan base too.
None of those bands are alternative. Pop punk, nu metal, ska and punk
@@Spooky_515linkin park was alternative dick weed
@@Spooky_515twenty one pilots is definitely alternative.
I wouldve found a place for Queens of the Stone Age. Not only some of the best and iconic guitar rifts and best written songs I can personally fathom, but they have been instrumental in popularizing stoner rock. Their peak albums are some of the best rock albums to be made.
Talking Heads only 15 and PIXIES 13 blasphemy! Some of the bands wouldn't exist without them.
I would really like to hear Watch Mojo's definition of alternative music.
I'm glad R.E.M were mentioned as they were pioneers of alternative music ❤
good to see The Cure rank so high. But overall, I love many of the bands in this list, and that is why Alternative Music is my fave genre
Nick Cave or more particularly The Bad Seeds should have made the list. They are the very definition of Alternative, and were/are extremely influential on the entire alternative sound.
I agree with you, but that would mean WatchMojo actually had a clue! This list is just another example of how ridiculously lame and fraudulent they are!
Amazing list of bands around for quite some Time like R.E.M, Talking Heads, Nirvana. The Cure. The white Stripes were awesome 😊
Talking Heads! Yes!
@@nintendopro0391 thanks. As a ‘younger’ boomer’ my favorite musicians of all time are David Bowie and talking heads. Back when they first ‘broke’ there were many many rock venues for live music in NYC. I was lucky enough to have seen them perform live many times. From CBGB to Madison square garden. Never a disappointment ☮️👍🖖
@@batgurrl we wouldn't have any of the bands on this list without either of those acts.
@@RadioLaPrincess agreed and thanks so much for saying so☮️😎
@@batgurrl No problem and yeah they are often overlooked. In fact many of the 70s and 80s acts are overlooked.
My I offer an 'alternative' list? Eh, eh, eh?
See what I did there?
The Chili Peppers should definitely be #1 on this list. They have effortlessly blended countless genres and have made it their goal to not always repeat themselves with their sound. Anthony is definitely not the best singer in the world, but his voice makes the Chili Peppers one of the most unique bands in history.
They're basically, as it's mentionned in the video, the foundation of what would become Nu Metal. When you birth a new sub genre of music, that means your music is epic. And the fact that they've been making music for over 40 years demonstrates how their legacy with be long lasting.
It 's All Rock 'N Roll To Me
Alternative is really too vast a genre to squeeze a top 20. The Ramones, Depesh mode. The Clash, Counten dem Crows, Blues Traveler. They were all different from POP Does this make them Alternative?
I wouldve had Soundgarden much higher. Top three for sure. BMF and SU are phenomenal albums.
The Score should’ve been on this list
Their music is something else man
U2, Beastie Boys, Oasis, The Cult, The Stone Roses, Flaming Lips, INXS, XTC, etc. should be on this list.
beastie boys are hip hop
Alice in chains should of been #1
Flaming Lips… y’all think they loved Hot Cheetos? Anyways, these bands and their names 🤦🏽😂
@@jimbo9208 more than that. Alternative Hip Hop, Alternative Rock, etc.
@@ericsilberstein667 no their hip hop all the way not alternative
“Your music is like the soundtrack to a vasectomy!” Freddie Mercury
Best concert I ever went to was Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, and a new band I hadn’t heard of before. That band…..Pearl Jam.
U2 was brilliantly alternative in the 90s. and very experimental throughout the decade
Where is Stp, Alice in Chains, Bush, Counting Crows even. Top 10 could be scrambled around. Nirvana made the impact...I get it but not #1.
Counting Crows?! I love 'em, but not sure I'd call them "alternative." Or not in the top 20 most alternativest alternative, anyway.
Nirvana not number one? Not even mojo screwed that up lol
I'm glad I'm was at a great age to appreciate this
Alice In Chains, with the late Layne Staley.......MAN, what a kick azz Band. Their Catalog of Songs is hard to beat!
Need to make this list a bit longer. I would have included Depeche Mode and B52s.
Same here.
Exactly and inxs
What’s wrong with this list?
You have Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden listed but not Alice In Chains.
You consider Talking Heads an alternative band but not the Ramones.
Then you state that several people/bands having surpassed Kurt Cobain/Nirvana only to have Nirvana be #1.
The Ramones definitely.
The Smiths and The Pixies below The Arctic Monkeys? Uh…no.
Love Nirvana plan on making a video on them soon
My top 10 (no considering grunge Bands)
The cure
The Pixies
The Smiths
Dinosaur Jr
R.E.M
sonic youth
Weezer
Radiohead
White stripes
The strokes
as a 90s kid, I 100% agree to every entry on this list! 🙂
I love 90s rock bands
Hole, L7, Babes in Toyland, The Distillers ? Would be nice to mention them every now and then and accept the fact they opened doors to so many other artists.
Ok the list is not that bad but Depeche mode New Order Pet shop boys just to name a few should be considered in this list
Not alternative
@@markmaioli4 Actually they all are alternative. New Wave IS Alternative.
Foo Fighters, Perl Jam, Nirvana its classic of all music
I bet Robert Smith could beat the absolute shit out of Morrissey. :D
😄- the ones in the know, know.
I wish he would. Love the Smiths and Morrissey but he is a jerk.
No he couldn’t, and the same goes the other way round. Couldn’t imagine two people less inclined towards physical confrontation than those two.
Damon Albarn could’ve collected royalties from Blur, but nope. He said “let’s make an animated band that will win a Grammy, have one of the greatest De La Soul features ever, and even do a duet with Sir Elton John.”
1, 2, and 3 are The Cure, R.E.M. and The Smiths. You can futz with the order depending upon ones preference and geographic location. The alternative scene doesn't lift off without them all pushing through "alternative" and into the mainstream.
U2's a curious omission because they were alternative until Joshua Tree, much like R.E.M. was before Out of Time.
and 4 should be The Replacements
Where the hell is Tool? Are y'all really gonna ignore the groundbreaking music that they've made over the years and the impact they had on the alternative rock scene? Or are they not really considered alternative rock?
They’re considered more of a metal band
Was thinking the same thing, but Tool is hard to label, and given these other examples I can see why they’re not listed.
Alt/punk/progressive-rock/metal? 🤷🏻♂️
No matter what, my favorite band.
They went with subgenres so both tool and AIC are eligible to make the list, and alt rock is pretty wide, so many genres came out of alt rock, so my guess is, top 20 is not enough for this, need top 50.
@@wolf9354tool is industrial metal. Nothing alternative about them
They Might Be Giants,
The Dead Milkmen, Ween, The Jesus Lizard, Butthole Surfers, Silverchair, Faith No More,
Mr. Bungle, Fishbone, Ministry, Devo, Meat Puppets,.......
Solid list
These are like most of my favorite bands.
Alice in Chains didnt revolutionize the entire music industry the way that Nirvana did but they were a way better band than Nirvana. Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell were better song writers than Kurt Cobain and Dave Grohl. All due respect it takes nothing away. Alice In Chains to me was the manifestation of the expression of the core of the soul if I ever heard it. There are bands that you just want to rock out for and then there are bands that make you feel the power and emotion in everything they say and how they say it. Few made me feel spectrums of emotions that Alice In Chains did.
Dave Grohl never wrote any songs for Nirvana (well, one obscure b-side). Kurt wrote ALL of the lyrics and Krist helped out with the music. Grohl was simply the drummer in Nirvana. He had nothing to do with songwriting back then.
Oingo Boingo, and Souixsie and the Banshees are two that I think are influential bands. :D
I agree. Siouxsie alone is influential for women. I remember seeing Duran Duran inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and stating Siouxsie and the Banshees were influential (and they are).
Very good
Love every single Band on this list
What about about Pavement, Built to Spill and My Bloody Valentine?
A perfect top 3! Lets not forget that both Nirvana and Radiohead owe their success to R.E.M. ❤
Where is Depeche Mode??
So many legends earned their wings already, too soon. 😢
While these are great acts, you should have named it "mostly 90s acts with a couple token acts". Really, no Duran Duran or Depeche Mode or U2 or the Clash, or Sex Pistols, or Joy Division/New Order? Yeah I know some will say some of these acts became popular but all were alternative acts, it's just that some crossed over. All highly influential and their influence is felt today.
Nirvana. My most favorite of all time. Hehehe.🤘🤘🤘
I only watched this vid to see if cranberries were up there to say it was a trashass list if they weren't..Cranberries my fav. Rip Dolores best rock voice ive ever heard.
Dolores is the greatest
Whew this list is garbage. Putting Cranberries over Soundgarden alone was enough to dismiss this atrocity.
I love many of these bands Red Hot Chili Peppers and REM are two of my favorite groups
You seemed to leave out The Offspring. They have so many amazing songs. I also believe Alice in Chains, Devo, and Oingo Boingo should be on that list
Weezer made two of the best music videos of all time. Buddy Holly and Africa with Weird Al
They should be higher on this list
Kurt Cobain saved Rock. But he couldn't save himself
The fact that Placebo is nowhere to be seen in any of these videos is such a letdown and shameful, I don’t know why I even bother. They were acknowledged by the legendary David Bowie, still releasing music today. What is it gonna take?!
This video REALLY strikes a fantastic balance of realistic criticism of the leakers whilst acknowledging the value and importance of them. Really good stuff.
Just makes me think of Charmed episodes lol. Every one of these songs takes me back to that show 😂
What the hell are you talking about saying Pearl Jam didn't establish themselves until the tail-end of grunge? Ten came out prior to Nevermind, Badmotorfinger, and a whole list of other notable grunge staples. They played a major role in bringing the genre to the mainstream.
You have to remember that WatchMojo isn't exactly what I would call Intelligent! This is a list made for the uninformed by the Idiotic!
Pretty good list I guess. I think you got number one right for sure. But I would say Weezer and Soundgarden are way too far down the list
So that's the song from the first Borderlands. Some I only heard about because of my older brother when I'm getting ready for school while others were more recent likes Dreams
I’d have swapped out Cage the Elephant for Modest Mouse but otherwise a pretty solid list.
Husker Du
The Replacements
Dinosaur Jr.
Pavement
Fishmans
Butthole Surfers
Fishmans
Swans
Mudhoney
Nine Inch Nails
Rage Against The Machine
Car Seat Headdress
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Jane's Addiction
Alice in Chains
Cocteau Twins
My Bloody Valentine
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Throwing Muses
Sweet Trip
Have A Nice Life
Representative choise, but some of the bands or artists are missing: Alice in Chains, Ministry, Skinny Puppy, My Bloody Valentine. Beck, PJ Harvey.
How the hell are you gonna include Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden but leave out Alice in Chains? Pretty sure they are more influential than Cage the Elephant.
I love almost every band on this list and the few that I don't I have massive respect for. Very surprised there's no Alice in chains? I thought maybe they're considering them hard rock but if Soundgarden made the list then Alice in Chains should
Skinny puppy for me its my best in the underground music t
Soundgarden was too low
Smashing pumpkins at 6 is crazy
Soundgarden should’ve been way higher on the chart
A top 20 Alternative bands list and no mention of Alice in Chains? Boo.