Alternative rock Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Alternative rock
Kurt Cobain (foreground) and Krist Novoselic with Nirvana live at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.
Stylistic origins	Punk rock, post-punk, new wave, hardcore punk
Cultural origins	Late 1970s to early 1980s, United Kingdom and United States
Typical instruments	Electric guitar – Bass – drums
Subgenres
Britpop – College rock – Dream pop - Geek rock – Gothic rock – Grunge – Indie pop – Indie rock – Math rock - Noise pop - Noise rock – Paisley Underground – Post-rock – Shoegazing
Fusion genres
Alternative dance – Alternative metal – Psychobilly – Industrial rock – Madchester – Post-punk revival – Riot Grrrl
Regional scenes
Massachusetts – Seattle, Washington – Illinois – Manchester England
Other topics
Bands – College radio – History – Independent music – Lollapalooza

Alternative rock is a type of rock music that became popular in the 1980s and 1990's. It became widely popular in the 1990s. Alternative rock is made up of various subgenres that have come out of the indie music scene since the 1980s, such as grunge, indie rock, Britpop, gothic rock, and indie pop.

These genres are sorted by their collective types of punk, which laid the groundwork for alternative music in the 1970s.

Examples of alternative rock bands include R.E.M., U2, Radiohead and Oasis.

Images for kids

One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. relied on college-radio airplay, constant touring, and a grassroots fanbase to break into the musical mainstream.
Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth
Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam
The indie rock band Pavement in 1993
Post-grunge band Creed in 2002
Reel Big Fish performing in 2008
Emo band Jimmy Eat World performing in 2007
Muse performing in Melbourne, January 2010
Weezer plays Musikfest in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, August 2019
Twenty One Pilots performing at Brixton Academy in London, February 2016