alternative
Alternative music from the underground, straight to your listening device.
10 Weirdcore Tracks That Sound Like a Fever Dream. Top Story - August 2026.
With the popularity of liminal photography and films like 2026's Backrooms , weirdcore is having a moment. It's not quite horrorcore, but it's not clean and cheerful enough to fit into the pop categories, either. Some artists ditch the pop influences and veer off in another direction, creating music that sounds like the soundtrack to a child's nightmare. Whatever the case, this playlist contains weirdcore tracks from all ends of the spectrum--and if you're ready to get weird, sit back and let these songs plunge you into a feverish haze.
By Kaitlin Shanksabout a month ago in Beat
A review of "Diana/No Encores in a Swan Song" by Blind Channel
Blind Channel is one of my favourite bands. I discovered them during Eurovision 2021, and the rest was history. At the time, I was falling a bit out of love with the whole rock/metal scene, so discovering them was a breath of fresh air for me and reignited my interest in these genres.
By Simona Rossoabout a month ago in Beat
Six of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Most Indefensible '80s Blind Spots
Because apparently "shaped an entire generation of music" isn't a strong enough résumé... Credit where it's due — the Hall has actually been doing a little cleanup work lately. The 2026 class alone is inducting Iron Maiden, Billy Idol, Oasis, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Luther Vandross, Wu-Tang Clan, and Phil Collins as a solo artist on top of his existing Genesis induction. That's a genuinely stacked class. Somebody in Cleveland is clearly trying.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Six '90s Bands the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Keeps 'Forgetting' Exist
Because "rock's highest honor" apparently runs on a decades-long delay and a guilty conscience... Let's get the good news out of the way first: the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame occasionally remembers to do its job. Radiohead got in back in 2019. Nine Inch Nails followed in 2020. And after three separate nomination attempts and eight years of grieving Chris Cornell, Soundgarden finally walked the red carpet in 2025, with Jim Carrey — yes, that Jim Carrey — delivering the induction speech in a Fender-signed haze of nostalgia. So credit where it's due: the Hall can, on occasion, be shamed into fixing its mistakes.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Aaron Lee Tasjan:
By Brian D'Ambrosio The title of Aaron Lee Tasjan’s new album, Get Over It, Underdog (due out July 17th), lands with a wink. It sounds like something muttered after a hard knock, equal parts encouragement and resignation. That mix of humor, resilience, and self-awareness runs throughout one of the most rewarding records of Tasjan’s career, a collection that explores the many meanings of being an underdog while celebrating the oddballs, originals, and unlikely heroes who keep finding reasons to carry on.
By Brian D'Ambrosio 2 months ago in Beat
10 Eccentric Tracks from Obscure Shoegaze Bands. Top Story - August 2026.
In a lot of ways, making money as a musician is more challenging than ever. And yet, these obscure shoegaze bands are still at it. They might not have top-ten hits or millions of Spotify listeners, but they're still making music because they love writing songs and sharing their efforts with the world. Here's your chance to give back by streaming their tracks, following them on social media and, if you live in the area, checking out one of their live shows.
By Kaitlin Shanks2 months ago in Beat
Massive Attack: Totally Wack
“[T]here are many here among us for whom the life force is best represented by the livid twitching of one tortured nerve, or even a full-scale anxiety attack. I do not subscribe to this point of view 100%, but I understand it, have lived it. Thus the shriek, the caterwaul, the chainsaw gnarlgnashing, the yowl and the whizz that decapitates may be reheard by the adventurous or emotionally damaged as mellifluous bursts of unarguable affirmation. And one could, if so inclined, take it even further than that…”
By Kendall Defoe 2 months ago in Beat
10 Underrated Modern Slowcore Tracks
The Internet is brimming with slowcore artists who haven't quite found mainstream success. Some of them stay afloat with a small fanbase, while others have less than a dozen monthly Spotify listeners. These artists deserve more attention, and if your playlists have felt dull and repetitive lately, try refreshing your routine with these soothing bedroom-pop tracks. Who knows--you might discover the next Internet sensation right before they blow up.
By Kaitlin Shanks3 months ago in Beat
The 10 Most Popular Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs of All Time, Ranked
Forty years in, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are still one of the most-streamed rock bands on the planet. Formed in Los Angeles in 1983, they arrived as a funk-punk curiosity playing house parties and small club stages.
By AMRYTT MEDIA3 months ago in Beat
Exploring the Music of GreenHouse 2
The Exploration For about 25 years my musical partner, Jose, and I had taken different paths. He joined a new band called Hundred Acre Wood, and I formed a hard rock band called the Thunder Lizards and then sang with a Gospel choir.
By Rick Henry Christopher 3 months ago in Beat
