Welcome to Radio Underground! Here we explore the history of both Album Rock and Alternative Rock and the role radio stations played in exposing both genres to the American public. This site gives a short radio history of both styles, then splits the two into their own sections. Included are the lists and charts of both albums and tracks from each organized by decade, then year. The chart information comes from back issues of Billboard Magazine.
My Apologies!
For anyone who attempted to view the playlists of band interviews I had on both my 1990's Album Rock and my 1990's Alternative Rock pages, I apologize for the playlists not being available during the past few weeks. YouTube shut my channel down, so my playlists were all deleted! I've removed the links on both pages. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience!
What's in Store for Radio Underground
What are some future plans for this website? Visit my About page for details.
New and updated pages for Radio Underground
Now posted are 2 exclusive year·end countdowns for the Album Rock Top Songs page in 1981! Visit my 1980's Album Rock page for more details.
Coming soon are the same countdowns for the Album Rock Top Songs for the years 1982 to 1984.
I'm working on a contact form so you, the site visitor, can give feedback on what you see here.
First off, we need to define some terms to make this website more understandable. Here is a list:
- AOR - Album Oriented Rock -- A radio format. An AOR station plays tracks from an album at full length, instead of the single version heard mostly on Top 40 stations.
- Progressive Rock -- Often confused with Alternative Rock, Progressive Rock is a fusion of rock and other music styles, sometimes orchestra, sometimes electronic. This style is mainly associated with the 1970's and 1980's. Examples of progressive rock bands include Yes, Emerson Lake and Palmer, King Crimson, and the Alan Parsons Project. The earliest example might be the Moody Blues.
- Alternative Rock -- The more eclectic side of rock. Alternative Rock mixes sounds that range from slightly unusual to outright wierd! Genres associated with alternative rock include Punk, New Wave (see below), and any others that can't easily fit into a category of their own. Examples of alternative rock range have a wide range. The earliest example might be David Bowie.
- Modern Rock -- A radio format. Modern Rock format is generally associated with Alternative Rock, but may also include Heavy Metal (see below) and fusions of metal and alternative. The format is normally associated with student-run college radio stations, but came to include commercial stations, mostly beginning in the 1980's.
- Punk Rock -- A sub-genre associated with harsh, almost (deliberately) obnoxious beats and rhythms. Examples range from early Elvis Costello, Devo, and (some) Joe Jackson, to bands such as the Offspring. Lyrics sometimes include social commentary.
- New Wave -- A sub-genre mostly from the late 1970's to mid 1980's fusing electronic sounds mixed with earlier sounds from the 1960's and 1970's. New wave would include some of the bands above, plus bands and artists such as Depeche Mode, Blondie, and Gary Numan.
- Heavy Metal (or Metal) -- A sub-genre consisting of bands that play loud, heavy, fast-paced rock. Most Metal bands have heavy, fast-paced drum beats also. Examples range from Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, to later bands like Metallica, Megadeth, and Korn. Metal bands are often known for social commentary in their lyrics.
- Grunge -- A sub-genre known for a raspy, distorted sound. This includes bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam and mostly appeared in the early to mid 1990's. A more diluted version, post-grunge, evolved in the mid to late 1990's with bands ranging from the Stone Temple Pilots and Soundgarden, to bands like Creed, Days of the New, and the Foo Fighters.
To get started, follow the links for both the AOR and Alternative Rock sections below.
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Album Rock Radio's origins go back much further than most of us realize, more than a half·century as of this writing. In the Album Rock section, we look at a short history of the AOR radio format, then we look at a year·by·year account of artists, songs, and trends in Rock music. Included are all of the tracks listed in Billboard Magazine's Album Rock Tracks chart for each year, starting in 1981. |
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See how Alternative Rock sprung up from Album Rock and college campuses in the Alternative section. Just like in the AOR section, we explore the history of Alternative as its own genre, radio's role in it, and a yearly account of the artists and their music, also including Billboard's charted tracks for each year, starting in 1988. |
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