100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13
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100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

Just something I did for fun. One per artist, to save me my sanity. I considered a ton of artists and songs for this list, so here are a few honorable mentions that made my first draft of the list:
- Midnight Oil, "Beds Are Burning"
- Sigur Ros, "Svefn-g-englar"
- Frank Zappa, "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow"
- No Doubt, "Don't Speak"
- Mission of Burma, "That's When I Reach for My Revolver"
- Peter Gabriel, "Solsbury Hill"
- Primal Scream, "Loaded"
- Alabama Shakes, "Hold On"
- Leonard Cohen, "Suzanne"
- Linkin Park, "In the End"
- Siouxsie and the Banshees, "Hong Kong Garden"
- The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl, "Fairytale of New York"
- Gorillaz, "Clint Eastwood"
- Duran Duran, "Hungry Like the Wolf"
- The Go-Go's, "Our Lips Are Sealed"
- Spiritualized, "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space"
- The Sugarcubes, "Birthday"
- blink-182, "Dammit"
- Third Eye Blind, "Semi-Charmed Life"
- Arctic Monkeys, "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor"
I also didn't include any rap, although I considered it, so the following are gone but not forgotten: A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots, OutKast, De La Soul, Run-DMC, and Public Enemy. I kept the Beasties since they sort of bridge the gap.
100. Bad Brains, "Pay to Cum"
99. The Kingsmen, "Louie Louie"
98. Pulp, "Common People"
97. X-Ray Spexx, "Oh Bondage! Up Yours!"
96. XTC, "Dear God"
95. Queens of the Stone Age, "No One Knows"
94. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, "Maps"
93. Alice in Chains, "Man in the Box"
92. Sparks, "This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us"
91. Gang of Four, "Damaged Goods"
90. Wilco, "Jesus, Etc."
89. They Might Be Giants, "Birdhouse in Your Soul"
88. The Verve, "Bitter Sweet Symphony"
87. MGMT, "Time to Pretend"
86. Mazzy Star, "Fade Into You"
85. Modest Mouse, "Float On"
84. Alanis Morissette, "You Oughta Know"
83. Dead Kennedys, "Holiday in Cambodia"
82. Neil Young, "The Needle and the Damage Done"
81. Neutral Milk Hotel, "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea"
80. The Stone Roses, "Fools Gold"
79. Fugazi, "Waiting Room"
78. Fiona Apple, "Criminal"
77. Pearl Jam, "Alive"
76. Animal Collective, "My Girls"
75. Sleater-Kinney, "One More Hour"
74. Black Flag, "Rise Above"
73. Gotye feat. Kimbra, "Somebody That I Used to Know"
72. Roxy Music, "Virginia Plain"
71. LCD Soundsystem, "All My Friends"
70. Bikini Kill, "Rebel Girl"
69. Echo and the Bunnymen, "The Killing Moon"
68. Depeche Mode, "Enjoy the Silence"
67. The Killers, "Mr. Brightside"
66. Foo Fighters, "Everlong"
65. The Slits, "Typical Girls"
64. Weezer, "Buddy Holly"
63. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, "Bad Reputation"
62. Arcade Fire, "Wake Up"
61. Blur, "Girls and Boys"
60. My Bloody Valentine, "Only Shallow"
59. The Jesus and Mary Chain, "Just Like Honey"
58. Soundgarden, "Black Hole Sun"
57. The Breeders, "Cannonball"
56. PJ Harvey, "Rid of Me"
55. Devo, "Jocko Homo"
54. Husker Du, "Don't Want to Know if You Are Lonely"
53. The Specials, "Ghost Town"
52. INXS, "New Sensation"
51. Lorde, "Royals"
50. Green Day, "Basket Case"
49. Mudhoney, "Touch Me, I'm Sick"
48. The Strokes, "Last Nite"
47. Franz Ferdinand, "Take Me Out"
46. The Modern Lovers, "Roadrunner"
45. The La's, "There She Goes"
44. Bjork, "Hyperballad"
43. The Flaming Lips, "Race for the Prize"
42. Oasis, "Wonderwall"
41. Smashing Pumpkins, "1979"
40. Eurythmics, "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"
39. Buzzcocks, "Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn't've)?"
38. Pavement, "Gold Soundz"
37. The Jam, "Going Underground"
36. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, "The Mercy Seat"
35. Nine Inch Nails, "Closer"
34. Beastie Boys, "Paul Revere"
33. Jane's Addiction, "Been Caught Stealing"
32. Red Hot Chili Peppers, "Under the Bridge"
31. The Undertones, "Teenage Kicks"
30. Sonic Youth, "Teen Age Riot"
29. Pretenders, "Brass in Pocket"
28. The Police, "Message in a Bottle"
27. The B-52's, "Rock Lobster"
26. The Cure, "Boys Don't Cry"
25. Rage Against the Machine, "Bulls on Parade"
24. Kate Bush, "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)"
23. Pixies, "Debaser"
22. The Replacements, "I Will Dare"
21. Sinead O'Connor, "Nothing Compares 2 U"
20. Beck, "Loser"
19. Elvis Costello and the Attractions, "Radio, Radio"
18. Blondie, "Atomic"
17. Lou Reed, "Walk on the Wild Side"
16. Television, "Marquee Moon"
15. Talking Heads, "Psycho Killer"
14. The MC5, "Kick Out the Jams"
13. U2, "With or Without You"
12. Sex Pistols, "Anarchy in the U.K."
11. R.E.M., "Radio Free Europe"
10. Radiohead, "Paranoid Android"
9. Patti Smith, "Gloria"
8. The Clash, "London Calling"
7. Joy Division, "Love Will Tear Us Apart"
6. New Order, "Blue Monday"
5. The Smiths, "How Soon is Now?"
4. David Bowie, "Space Oddity"
3. Ramones, "Blitzkrieg Bop"
2. The Velvet Underground, "I'm Waiting for the Man"
1. Nirvana, "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

For interest's sake, here's every single other group/song considered for this list, with songs I probably should've included in hindsight, dammit, with asterisks:
- Ian Dury and the Blackheads, "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll"
- The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"*
- Tubeway Army, "Are 'Friends' Electric?"
- Neu!, "Hallogallo"
- The Stranglers, "Golden Brown"
- The Beach Boys, "Good Vibrations"*
- Tom Waits, "Innocent When You Dream"
- The Trashmen, "Surfin' Bird"
- Richard Hell and the Voidoids, "Blank Generation"
- The 13th Floor Elevators, "You're Gonna Miss Me"
- ? and the Mysterians, "96 Tears"
- Os Mutantes, "Baby"
- The Kinks, "You Really Got Me"
- Cat Power, "What Would the Community Think?"
- Hole, "Doll Parts"*
- The English Beat, "Mirror in the Bathroom"
- Bush, "Glycerine"
- Modern English, "I Melt with You"
- Dirty Projectors, "Stillness is the Move"
- Fleet Foxes, "White Winter Hymnal"
- Lana Del Rey, "Video Games"
- Suicidal Tendencies, "Institutionalized"
- Suicide, "Ghost Rider"
- Wall of Voodoo, "Mexican Radio"
- Tori Amos, "Cruel"
- Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, "Matador"
- Portishead, "Sour Times"
- Stiff Little Fingers, "Alternative Ulster"
- 10,000 Maniacs, "Hey Jack Kerouac"
- Chic, "Le Freak"
- Funkadelic, "One Nation Under a Groove"
- The Cranberries, "Zombie"
- Suede, "Animal Nitrate"
- The War on Drugs, "Thinking of a Place"
- Manic Street Preachers, "A Design for Life"
- Magazine, "Shot by Both Sides"
- Dinosaur Jr., "Freak Scene"
- Filter, "Hey Man, Nice Shot"
- Crowded House, "Don't Dream It's Over"
- ABBA, "Waterloo"
- AC/DC, "Back in Black"
- Madonna, "Like a Virgin"
- Feist, "1234"
- Foster the People, "Pumped Up Kicks"
- New Radicals, "You Get What You Give"
- Stone Temple Pilots, "Interstate Love Song"
- Prince, "When Doves Cry"
- Bangles, "Walk Like an Egyptian"
- Madness, "One Step Beyond"
- Dexys Midnight Runners, "Come On Eileen"
- TV on the Radio, "Wolf Like Me"
- Kings of Leon, "Use Somebody"
- Soft Cell, "Tainted Love"
- Frankie Goes to Hollywood, "Relax"
- Pet Shop Boys, "West End Girls"
- Mumford and Sons, "Little Lion Man"
- Bauhaus, "Bela Lugosi's Dead"
- Pennywise, "Bro Hymn"
- Kraftwerk, "Das Modell"
- Public Image Ltd., "Public Image"
- Cocteau Twins, "Heaven or Las Vegas"
- Wire, "Outdoor Miner"
- Guided by Voices, "Game of Pricks"
- Bon Iver, "re:Stacks"
- The Libertines, "Can't Stand Me Now"
- Elastica, "Connection"
- Grace Jones, "Slave to the Rhythm"
- The Offspring, "Come Out and Play"
- The Prodigy, "Firestarter"
- X, "Johnny Hit and Run Pauline"
- Rilo Kiley, "Does He Love You?"
- Big Star, "September Gurls"*
- Tocotronic, "Let There Be Rock"
- Violent Femmes, "Blister in the Sun"*
- The Stooges, "I Wanna Be Your Dog"*
- Iggy Pop, "Lust for Life"*
- Can, "Mother Sky"
- Paramore, "Misery Business"
- Florence and the Machine, "Dog Days Are Over"
- Amy Winehouse, "Rehab"
- Suzanne Vega, "Luka"
- The Go-Betweens, "Cattle and Cane"
- Lucinda Williams, "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road"
- The Human League, "Don't You Want Me"
- Ben Folds Five, "Brick"
Last edited by StevieFan13 on Fri Sep 08, 2017 7:56 pm, edited 13 times in total.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

The more I think about it, the more silly I feel for leaving out the Stooges/Iggy Pop and Big Star on the main list (and to a lesser extent Violent Femmes). Are there any songs you guys feel should get the boot in favor of them? I suppose two of the more obvious possible drop-outs would be Bad Brains and X-Ray Spexx, but I'd also feel bummed since alt-rock in general is lacking in black voices.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Pierre »

I'm not sure I can help, but if you really want to make the list of songs that shaped alternative rock, then Mission of Burma's "That's When I Reach for My Revolver" should actually be in the list, if not top 5, if not number 1. I can't think of an act which predicted more accurately the direction alternative rock would take in the next two decades - from Sonic Youth to Dinosaur Jr to post-hardcore - except perhaps for Wire.

Also krautrock, Can and Neu! are mandatory. R.I.P. Holger Czukay, by the way.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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If you want my two cents, I second the Mission To Burma song. A favourite of mine too! Bands like them and Magazine 'Shot By Both Sides' are def important. The other most important bands were Sonic Youth, Dino Jr., Husker Du, The Pixies and The Replacements. All of these bands were major influences on Grunge and Alt Rock in general.

I noticed that Pavement were on there and it made me think of The Clean and the Dunedin sound in NZ that were a major influence on them. Check out 'Tally Ho', 'Beatnik' or my favourite 'Anything Can Happen'.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

Thanks, guys! MoB are headed back in then. And I totally forgot about Magazine and Dino Jr! Even for a silly exercise, lists are hard. And yes, RIP Holger Czukay.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13 wrote:Thanks, guys! MoB are headed back in then. And I totally forgot about Magazine and Dino Jr! Even for a silly exercise, lists are hard. And yes, RIP Holger Czukay.
I thought you did really well! It is so hard to get every key track and the tracks that did make the list are all very good :)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:Thanks, guys! MoB are headed back in then. And I totally forgot about Magazine and Dino Jr! Even for a silly exercise, lists are hard. And yes, RIP Holger Czukay.
I thought you did really well! It is so hard to get every key track and the tracks that did make the list are all very good :)
Thanks, man. So,if I add back in the songs that probably should be in, what should get the boot? Or should I just expand the list?
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

I also just realized I forgot the White Stripes. Auuugghhh.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Bruno »

Nice, Stevie.
Expand to 150 or 200.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Listyguy »

I think "Good Vibrations" should be high up on this list. It basically invented indie pop.

I would suggest adding Tom Waits as well, but I don't think he really has a single song that was very significant towards the genre (he's much more of an albums artist).
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

Listyguy wrote:I think "Good Vibrations" should be high up on this list. It basically invented indie pop.

I would suggest adding Tom Waits as well, but I don't think he really has a single song that was very significant towards the genre (he's much more of an albums artist).
Oooh, good ones. For album artists, like Can or Husker Du, I just picked a favorite or a song people particularly like by them. I'd probably do something like God's Away on Business or Innocent When You Dream.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Madzong »

StevieFan13 wrote:
madzong wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:Thanks, guys! MoB are headed back in then. And I totally forgot about Magazine and Dino Jr! Even for a silly exercise, lists are hard. And yes, RIP Holger Czukay.
I thought you did really well! It is so hard to get every key track and the tracks that did make the list are all very good :)
Thanks, man. So,if I add back in the songs that probably should be in, what should get the boot? Or should I just expand the list?
Hmm. Too hard to know which songs to boot out. I think maybe expand the list instead?
"On a mountain range, I'm Dr. Strange"
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

madzong wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:
madzong wrote:
I thought you did really well! It is so hard to get every key track and the tracks that did make the list are all very good :)
Thanks, man. So,if I add back in the songs that probably should be in, what should get the boot? Or should I just expand the list?
Hmm. Too hard to know which songs to boot out. I think maybe expand the list instead?
Better.
Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand - Sir Duke (1976)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Rob »

About songs to boot, there are a couple I wouldn't call rock, alternative or otherwise, so I wouldn't include them: Somebody That I Used to Know, Royals and Fade Into You. But I guess opinions can vary on that.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by StevieFan13 »

Rob wrote:About songs to boot, there are a couple I wouldn't call rock, alternative or otherwise, so I wouldn't include them: Somebody That I Used to Know, Royals and Fade Into You. But I guess opinions can vary on that.
The reason I wanted the first two is 1) to have some representation for the 2010s, which has not had a shortage of amazing alt-rock but not much that I'd call game-changing, and 2) because they topped the Billboard Alternative charts, so by their definition they're alt-rock. (By that token, it'd be hard to count Blue Monday too). Fade Into You is a slightly odder case, as it seems to be considered alt-rock by a lot of people and was in the Spin Alternative Record Guide, but that book also had a lot of the more questionably alternative artists I considered for the list (Madonna, ABBA, AC/DC), so I don't know whether or not to take them with a grain of salt. That one is more likely to be taken out of the running than the other two, but I see your point.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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OK, second try, expanded to 300. Thanks for all of your helpful suggestions! If there's even more I've forgotten, let me know.

300 | Joe Jackson | Is She Really Going Out with Him?
299 | Phoenix | 1901
298 | Cat Power | Colors and the Kids
297 | Morrissey | Everyday is Like Sunday
296 | Boston | More Than a Feeling
295 | The Tragically Hip | Bobcaygeon
294 | The Go-Go's | Our Lips Are Sealed
293 | The Hold Steady | Stuck Between Stations
292 | Gin Blossoms | Hey Jealousy
291 | The Afghan Whigs | My Curse
290 | Liquid Liquid | Cavern
289 | Kas Product | So Young But So Cold
288 | The National | Bloodbuzz Ohio
287 | Fall Out Boy | Sugar, We're Going Down
286 | The Feelies | Fa Ce-La
285 | Squeeze | Tempted
284 | Judee Sill | Crayon Angels
283 | Brigitte Fontaine | Lettre à Monsieur le chef de gare de la Tour de Carol
282 | Minutemen | This Ain't No Picnic
281 | Daniel Johnston | True Love Will Find You in the End
280 | System of a Down | Chop Suey!
279 | Kate Nash | Foundations
278 | Eugenio Finardi | Musica ribelle
277 | Mano Negra | Mala vida
276 | Massive Attack | Unfinished Sympathy
275 | The Knife | Heartbeat
274 | The Dirty Projectors | Stillness is the Move
273 | New Radicals | You Get What You Give
272 | You Am I | Berlin Chair
271 | Prince | Sign O' the Times
270 | Minor Threat | Out of Step
269 | Bright Eyes | Lua
268 | Death Cab for Cutie | Bend to Squares
267 | The Shins | New Slang
266 | Grace Jones | Slave to the Rhythm
265 | The Postal Service | Such Great Heights
264 | Die Ärtze | Schrei nach Liebe
263 | Camper van Beethoven | Pictures of Matchstick Men
262 | Hoodoo Gurus | Like Wow...Wipeout
261 | Orchestral Maneouvres in the Dark | Enola Gay
260 | Paul Simon | Graceland
259 | Noir Desir | Tostaky (Le Continent)
258 | Soda Stereo | De musica ligera
257 | Glenn Branca | Lesson No. 1 for Electric Guitar
256 | Heroes del Silencio | Entre dos tierras
255 | Phil Collins | In the Air Tonight
254 | Tim Buckley | Song to the Siren
253 | Pere Ubu | Non-Alignment Pact
252 | Soft Cell | Tainted Love
251 | Serge Gainsbourg | Ballade de Melody Nelson
250 | The Buggles | Video Killed the Radio Star
249 | Elliott Smith | Waltz #2
248 | The War on Drugs | Thinking of a Place
247 | Gotye feat. Kimbra | Somebody That I Used to Know
246 | Ween | Piss Up a Rope
245 | Cake | The Distance
244 | Broken Social Scene | Anthems for a Seventeen Year Old Girl
243 | Paramore | Misery Business
242 | The Melvins | Honey Bucket
241 | Refused | New Noise
240 | Mogwai | Mogwai Fear Satan
239 | Leonard Cohen | Suzanne
238 | Coldplay | Yellow
237 | The Hives | Hate to Say I Told You So
236 | Tracy Chapman | Fast Car
235 | Lucinda Williams | Car Wheels on a Gravel Road
234 | Feist | 1234
233 | Tears for Fears | Shout
232 | Florence and the Machine | Dog Days Are Over
231 | Lana del Rey | Video Games
230 | Teenage Fanclub | The Concept
229 | Slint | Good Morning Captain
228 | The Mighty Mighty Bosstones | The Impression That I Get
227 | Sublime | What I Got
226 | Kraftwerk | Das Modell
225 | Gorillaz feat. Del tha Funkee Homosapien | Clint Eastwood
224 | Richard and Linda Thompson | Withered and Died
223 | The Magnetic Fields | The Book of Love
222 | My Chemical Romance | Welcome to the Black Parade
221 | Lena Lovich | Lucky Number
220 | A Flock of Seagulls | I Ran (So Far Away)
219 | The Decemberists | The Mariner's Revenge Song
218 | Fleet Foxes | White Winter Hymnal
217 | Counting Crows | Mr. Jones
216 | Super Furry Animals | Ice Hockey Hair
215 | Belle and Sebastian | Step Into My Office, Baby
214 | Supergrass | Alright
213 | The Only Ones | Another Girl, Another Planet
212 | Jeff Buckley | Lover, You Should've Come Over
211 | Divinyls | Boys in Town
210 | The Flamin' Groovies | Shake Some Action
209 | Suzanne Vega | Tom's Diner
208 | Cowboy Junkies | Sweet Jane
207 | Happy Mondays | Step On
206 | Saint Etienne | Only Love Can Break Your Heart
205 | Alabama Shakes | Hold On
204 | Metric | Gold Guns Girls
203 | Rancid | Ruby Soho
202 | Jimmy Eat World | The Middle
201 | Richard Hell and the Voidoids | Blank Generation
200 | Mazzy Star | Fade Into You
199 | Tocotronic | Die Idee ist gut, doch die Welt noch nicht bereit
198 | Arctic Monkeys | I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
197 | Kings of Leon | Use Somebody
196 | Ben Folds Five | Brick
195 | Stone Temple Pilots | Interstate Love Song
194 | Elastica | Connection
193 | 10,000 Maniacs | Hey Jack Kerouac
192 | Duran Duran | Rio
191 | Sufjan Stevens | Chicago
190 | The Cranberries | Zombie
189 | Pennywise | Bro Hymn
188 | Los Fabulosos Cadillacs | Matador
187 | Los Prisioneiros | Quien Mato a Marilyn
186 | The Offspring | Come Out and Play
185 | Tori Amos | Silent All These Years
184 | Ride | Leave Them All Behind
183 | No Doubt | Don't Speak
182 | The Prodigy | Firestarter
181 | The Clean | Tally Ho
180 | The Dead Milkmen | Punk Rock Girl
179 | Stiff Little Fingers | Alternative Ulster
178 | The Fall | Hit the North
177 | The Libertines | Can't Stand Me Now
176 | X | Johnny Hit and Run Pauline
175 | Martha and the Muffins | Echo Beach
174 | The English Beat | Mirror in the Bathroom
173 | Rilo Kiley | A Better Son/Daughter
172 | Vampire Weekend | A-Punk
171 | Billy Bragg | A New England
170 | Os Mutantes | Baby
169 | Frankie Goes to Hollywood | Relax
168 | Bonnie "Prince" Billy | I See a Darkness
167 | Manic Street Preachers | A Design for Life
166 | Foster the People | Pumped Up Kicks
165 | Portishead | Sour Times
164 | Suede | Animal Nitrate
163 | TV on the Radio | Wolf Like Me
162 | Split Enz | I Got You
161 | Garbage | Queer
160 | The Trashmen | Surfin' Bird
159 | The Stranglers | Golden Brown
158 | Sigur Ros | Svefn-g-englar
157 | Peter Gabriel | Shock the Monkey
156 | Third Eye Blind | Semi-Charmed Life
155 | The Damned | New Rose
154 | Frank Zappa | Don't Eat the Yellow Snow
153 | Bon Iver | re: Stacks
152 | Sunny Day Real Estate | Seven
151 | Rodriguez | Crucify Your Mind
150 | Tubeway Army | Are "Friends" Electric?
149 | Crowded House | Don't Dream It's Over
148 | blink-182 | Dammit
147 | Talk Talk | It's My Life
146 | Mumford and Sons | Little Lion Man
145 | Ian Dury and the Blackheads | Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll
144 | Spiritualized | Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space
143 | Mother Love Bone | Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns
142 | Tom Robinson Band | Glad to Be Gay
141 | The Shaggs | Philosophy of the World
140 | Can | Halleluhwah
139 | The Beatles | Tomorrow Never Knows
138 | Primal Scream | Loaded
137 | Laurie Anderson | O Superman
136 | Modern English | I Melt with You
135 | The Flying Burrito Brothers | Hot Burrito #1
134 | Run-DMC feat. Aerosmith | Walk This Way
133 | The Killers | Mr. Brightside
132 | Linkin Park | In the End
131 | Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band | Big-Eyed Beans from Venus
130 | King Crimson | 21st Century Schizoid Man
129 | Midnight Oil | Beds Are Burning
128 | Guided by Voices | Game of Pricks
127 | The Go-Betweens | Cattle and Cane
126 | Dexys Midnight Runners | Come On Eileen
125 | Queens of the Stone Age | No One Knows
124 | X-Ray Spex | Oh Bondage! Up Yours!
123 | The Descendants | Suburban Order
122 | The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl | Fairytale of New York
121 | MGMT | Time to Pretend
120 | Siouxsie and the Banshees | Hong Kong Garden
119 | Cocteau Twins | Heaven or Las Vegas
118 | The Flaming Lips | Race for the Prize
117 | Iggy Pop | The Passenger
116 | XTC | Dear God
115 | Neil Young | The Needle and the Damage Done
114 | Hole | Doll Parts
113 | Public Image Ltd. | Public Image
112 | Suicide | Ghost Rider
111 | The 13th Floor Elevators | You're Gonna Miss Me
110 | ? and the Mysterians | 96 Tears
109 | Bjork | Hyperballad
108 | The Church | Under the Milky Way
107 | Madness | One Step Beyond
106 | Suicidal Tendencies | Institutionalized
105 | Tom Waits | Innocent When You Dream
104 | Magazine | Shot by Both Sides
103 | Nick Drake | Pink Moon
102 | New York Dolls | Personality Crisis
101 | Bad Brains | Pay to Cum
100 | Big Star | September Gurls
99 | The Kingsmen | Louie Louie
98 | The Kinks | You Really Got Me
97 | Pulp | Common People
96 | Yeah Yeah Yeahs | Maps
95 | INXS | New Sensation
94 | Wire | Outdoor Miner
93 | Alice in Chains | Man in the Box
92 | Sparks | This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us
91 | Gang of Four | Damaged Goods
90 | Neu! | Hallogallo
89 | Wilco | Jesus, Etc.
88 | The Verve | Bitter Sweet Symphony
87 | They Might Be Giants | Birdhouse in Your Soul
86 | Franz Ferdinand | Take Me Out
85 | The Sugarcubes | Birthday
84 | Alanis Morissette | You Oughta Know
83 | Modest Mouse | Float On
82 | Dead Kennedys | Holiday in Cambodia
81 | Eurythmics | Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
80 | Neutral Milk Hotel | In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
79 | Fugazi | Waiting Room
78 | Fiona Apple | Criminal
77 | Pearl Jam | Alive
76 | Animal Collective | My Girls
75 | Lorde | Royals
74 | Black Flag | Rise Above
73 | Roxy Music | Virginia Plain
72 | Violent Femmes | Blister in the Sun
71 | LCD Soundsystem | All My Friends
70 | Rage Against the Machine | Killing in the Name
69 | Bikini Kill | Rebel Girl
68 | Echo and the Bunnymen | The Killing Moon
67 | Depeche Mode | Enjoy the Silence
66 | Foo Fighters | Everlong
65 | The Slits | Typical Girls
64 | Weezer | Buddy Holly
63 | Joan Jett and the Blackhearts | Bad Reputation
62 | Arcade Fire | Wake Up
61 | Blur | Girls and Boys
60 | The Jesus and Mary Chain | Just Like Honey
59 | My Bloody Valentine | You Made Me Realize
58 | Soundgarden | Black Hole Sun
57 | The Breeders | Cannonball
56 | PJ Harvey | Rid of Me
55 | Devo | Jocko Homo
54 | The Stone Roses | Fools Gold
53 | Sleater-Kinney | One More Hour
52 | Green Day | Basket Case
51 | The MC5 | Kick Out the Jams
50 | Dinosaur Jr. | Freak Scene
49 | The White Stripes | Seven Nation Army
48 | The Strokes | Last Nite
47 | Mudhoney | Touch Me, I'm Sick
46 | The Modern Lovers | Roadrunner
45 | Smashing Pumpkins | 1979
44 | The Specials | Ghost Town
43 | The La's | There She Goes
42 | Oasis | Wonderwall
41 | Husker Du | Don't Want to Know if You Are Lonely
40 | New Order | Blue Monday
39 | Buzzcocks | Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Should'n't've)?
38 | Pavement | Gold Soundz
37 | Red Hot Chili Peppers | Under the Bridge
36 | The Jam | Going Underground
35 | Nine Inch Nails | Closer
34 | Jane's Addiction | Been Caught Stealing
33 | Beastie Boys | Paul Revere
32 | The Undertones | Teenage Kicks
31 | Pretenders | Brass in Pocket
30 | Sonic Youth | Teen Age Riot
29 | Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds | The Mercy Seat
28 | The Police | Message in a Bottle
27 | The B-52's | Rock Lobster
26 | The Cure | Boys Don't Cry
25 | Kate Bush | Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)
24 | Pixies | Debaser
23 | Sinead O'Connor | Nothing Compares 2 U
22 | The Replacements | I Will Dare
21 | U2 | New Year's Day
20 | Beck | Loser
19 | Blondie | Heart of Glass
18 | Lou Reed | Walk on the Wild Side
17 | Elvis Costello and the Attractions | Radio, Radio
16 | Television | Marquee Moon
15 | Talking Heads | Psycho Killer
14 | The Stooges | I Wanna Be Your Dog
13 | Sex Pistols | Anarchy in the U.K.
12 | Radiohead | Paranoid Android
11 | R.E.M. | Radio Free Europe
10 | Patti Smith | Gloria
9 | Joy Division | Love Will Tear Us Apart
8 | The Smiths | How Soon is Now?
7 | The Clash | London Calling
6 | The Beach Boys | Good Vibrations
5 | Mission of Burma | That's When I Reach for My Revolver
4 | David Bowie | Space Oddity
3 | Ramones | Blitzkrieg Bop
2 | The Velvet Underground | I'm Waiting for the Man
1 | Nirvana | Smells Like Teen Spirit

Honorable mention to anyone I've somehow forgotten at this point. I'm pretty chill with the line-up I have now. Only big exceptions that come to mind (for now) are:
The Bangles | Manic Monday
Ash | Girl from Mars
Gorkys Zygotic Mynci | Patio Song
McAlmont and Butler | Yes
Buffalo Tom | Sodajerk
The Streets | Dry Your Eyes
Imagine Dragons | Radioactive
Amy Winehouse | Rehab [wasn't sure enough about if she counted]
Toadies | Possum Kingdom
Last edited by StevieFan13 on Sun Sep 10, 2017 8:37 pm, edited 26 times in total.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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I think this is a pretty solid list! Good idea to expand it as I think you've nailed it. I agree with the inclusion of Lorde & Mazzy Star - both great tracks. Lorde allowed me to be more appreciative of the more poppy aspects of indie/alt rock and Mazzy Star as a band allowed me to appreciate its more quiet moments and become more open to alt/singer songwriter types. Just one minor typo - X-Ray Spex has only one 'x' :)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:I think this is a pretty solid list! Good idea to expand it as I think you've nailed it. I agree with the inclusion of Lorde & Mazzy Star - both great tracks. Lorde allowed me to be more appreciative of the more poppy aspects of indie/alt rock and Mazzy Star as a band allowed me to appreciate its more quiet moments and become more open to alt/singer songwriter types. Just one minor typo - X-Ray Spex has only one 'x' :)
Oh good! And thank you - will fix.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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And I STILL forgot Big Star!
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Great list, StevieFan!

However, I have to ask: In your first list New Order's "Blue Monday" was #6 and now I don't see it (or New Order) at all. Was there a reason it was removed? (New Order was definitely one of the artists that shaped Alternative Rock, so I was curious...)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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jamieW wrote:Great list, StevieFan!

However, I have to ask: In your first list New Order's "Blue Monday" was #6 and now I don't see it (or New Order) at all. Was there a reason it was removed? (New Order was definitely one of the artists that shaped Alternative Rock, so I was curious...)
Thank you!
...hooooolllyyy shit. I was shuffling around the order so much I completely deleted by accident. Still top 20-worthy for sure. Between that, Big Star, and Billy Bragg, I guess I have to do some more shuffling.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13 wrote:
jamieW wrote:Great list, StevieFan!

However, I have to ask: In your first list New Order's "Blue Monday" was #6 and now I don't see it (or New Order) at all. Was there a reason it was removed? (New Order was definitely one of the artists that shaped Alternative Rock, so I was curious...)
Thank you!
...hooooolllyyy shit. I was shuffling around the order so much I completely deleted by accident. Still top 20-worthy for sure. Between that, Big Star, and Billy Bragg, I guess I have to do some more shuffling.
I thought it might've been something like that. I really appreciate the variety of your list. You've included a lot of songs that I've never seen on an "alternative" list before, and that's a good thing! :happy-partydance:
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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jamieW wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:
jamieW wrote:Great list, StevieFan!

However, I have to ask: In your first list New Order's "Blue Monday" was #6 and now I don't see it (or New Order) at all. Was there a reason it was removed? (New Order was definitely one of the artists that shaped Alternative Rock, so I was curious...)
Thank you!
...hooooolllyyy shit. I was shuffling around the order so much I completely deleted by accident. Still top 20-worthy for sure. Between that, Big Star, and Billy Bragg, I guess I have to do some more shuffling.
I thought it might've been something like that. I really appreciate the variety of your list. You've included a lot of songs that I've never seen on an "alternative" list before, and that's a good thing! :happy-partydance:
OK, so problem solved: i decided to break one of my big rules and made a tie between Love Will Tear Us Apart and Blue Monday, since they're made up of a lot of the same personnel, and I gave Big Star a spot in the top 100, causing a consecutive shift downwards for a lot of songs. And Billy Bragg takes Lena Lovich's place (sorry Lena).
Yeah, part of my goal was to include some more interesting stuff, particularly international stuff and songs considered predecessors to modern alt-rock (Beatles, Beach Boys, Neil Young). Some stuff I got from the Spin Alternative Record Guide, so by that margin I could've also included songs like Waterloo and Back in Black, but I didn't get too carried away. Zappa wasn't in that book, but most people would consider him a forerunner to alt-rock.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Just had a thought...Teenage Kicks by the Undertones and Another Girl, Another Planet by the Only Ones could also be contenders...
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Also really happy that Split Enz and Crowded House made it on there! Neil Finn was a big influence/favourite of Eddie Vedder
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:Just had a thought...Teenage Kicks by the Undertones and Another Girl, Another Planet by the Only Ones could also be contenders...
Teenage Kicks is #32. And as for the other, dammit! And I forgot Richard Hell too.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:Also really happy that Split Enz and Crowded House made it on there! Neil Finn was a big influence/favourite of Eddie Vedder
Of course! And I quite enjoyed Tally Ho, so that was an easy addition. Kiwis have four songs on the list! (Almost five, if I didn't give Kimbra the boot).
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Question: were I to add one or two other songs, should I tie the two Neil Finn songs for the same reason as the JD/NO tie?
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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No Teenage Fanclub either. This may become a top 225 or so.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13 wrote:No Teenage Fanclub either. This may become a top 225 or so.
Haha :) Maybe expand the list to top 250? Sorry I need to stop offering suggestions!

Teenage Fanclub have some really good songs. Feel Flows comes to mind. Did you include the Stone Roses as well?

I'll stop now.

PS - Glad you enjoyed the Clean - a very under rated band in the NZ music industry. The powers that be keep wanting to give them retrospective awards but they are not interested as they point out no-one cared/supported them at the time TV/radio wise.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:No Teenage Fanclub either. This may become a top 225 or so.
Haha :) Maybe expand the list to top 250? Sorry I need to stop offering suggestions!

Teenage Fanclub have some really good songs. Feel Flows comes to mind. Did you include the Stone Roses as well?

I'll stop now.

PS - Glad you enjoyed the Clean - a very under rated band in the NZ music industry. The powers that be keep wanting to give them retrospective awards but they are not interested as they point out no-one cared/supported them at the time TV/radio wise.
That might be smartest, actually. I was thinking The Concept would be their representative song. And yeah, Fools Gold is just outside the top 50.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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OK, 50 more songs and I think I've hit most of the major artists I missed.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Great list. I'll have to check some of these out soon.

Is there any particular reason you replaced "I Will Dare" with "Left of the Dial"?
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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If I may (not trying to be annoying, since you've rounded out your list):

- Glenn Branca, "Lesson No. 1 for Electric Guitar" - the matrix (with The Ascension album) of the entire Sub Pop sound.
- Replace My Bloody Valentine's "Only Shallow" by "You Made Me Realize" (it was more influential, I think, although I love everything MBV ever recorded).

Also, some international stuff: "Lettre à Monsieur le chef de gare de la Tour de Carol" by Brigitte Fontaine from the Comme à la Radio album (the album has been cited by Sonic Youth as an influence); "De música ligera" by Soda Stereo (the latin U2), "Mala vida" by Mano Negra and "Tostaky (Le Continent)" by Noir Désir (the bands who are the poster boys of French alternative rock).

But I won't mind if you just put them in the honorable mentions section ;)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13 wrote:OK, 50 more songs and I think I've hit most of the major artists I missed.
Awesome news! Then you can un-tie New Order -Joy Division. Getting back to your other question, I reckon leave Split Enz and Crowded House seperate too. Keep up the good work! I will listen to any songs that I have not heard of before too
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Sweepstakes Ron wrote:Great list. I'll have to check some of these out soon.

Is there any particular reason you replaced "I Will Dare" with "Left of the Dial"?
Thanks! Of the two, I thought Left of the Dial sounded closer to grunge, the style the Replacements were so influential on. But it could've gone either way, honestly.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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madzong wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:OK, 50 more songs and I think I've hit most of the major artists I missed.
Awesome news! Then you can un-tie New Order -Joy Division. Getting back to your other question, I reckon leave Split Enz and Crowded House seperate too. Keep up the good work! I will listen to any songs that I have not heard of before too
Alright, so one of my new additions will have to go...or this'll turn into a top 300 (and if it does, I'll stop there).
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Pierre wrote:If I may (not trying to be annoying, since you've rounded out your list):

- Glenn Branca, "Lesson No. 1 for Electric Guitar" - the matrix (with The Ascension album) of the entire Sub Pop sound.
- Replace My Bloody Valentine's "Only Shallow" by "You Made Me Realize" (it was more influential, I think, although I love everything MBV ever recorded).

Also, some international stuff: "Lettre à Monsieur le chef de gare de la Tour de Carol" by Brigitte Fontaine from the Comme à la Radio album (the album has been cited by Sonic Youth as an influence); "De música ligera" by Soda Stereo (the latin U2), "Mala vida" by Mano Negra and "Tostaky (Le Continent)" by Noir Désir (the bands who are the poster boys of French alternative rock).

But I won't mind if you just put them in the honorable mentions section ;)
Easiest change is the MBV song (I picked Only Shallow since it's one of the most famous songs from Loveless, but You Made Me Realize is probably more influential). The rest is stuff I wish I had heard about earlier. I'm tempted to expand the list again, given the other songs I had already realized would make good additions, but I'm not sure.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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In fact, if I'm getting started:

- Tim Buckley "Song to the Siren": would the 4AD label even exist without it?
- Pere Ubu "Final Solution" or "Non-Alignment Pact": invented post-punk before punk even existed.
- Serge Gainsbourg "Ballade de Melody Nelson": just look at the "Legacy" section on Wikipedia for the album Histoire de Melody Nelson, this speaks for itself.
- Kas Product's "So Young But So Cold" and TC Matic's "Putain putain": representative of the coldwave style of post-punk (and the closest the style ever came to commercial success), which was always obscure but influential on the underground rock and electronic scene to this day (mostly in France, but there has been interest elsewhere as well).
- Héroes del Silencio "Entre dos tierras": enormously successful goth rock anthem from the latin world, which is credited with breaking alternative rock into the mainstream in this part of the world.

...I guess I could go on and on as I scratch my head. So I'll just stop there before I become annoying :?
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Pierre wrote:In fact, if I'm getting started:

- Tim Buckley "Song to the Siren": would the 4AD label even exist without it?
- Pere Ubu "Final Solution" or "Non-Alignment Pact": invented post-punk before punk even existed.
- Serge Gainsbourg "Ballade de Melody Nelson": just look at the "Legacy" section on Wikipedia for the album Histoire de Melody Nelson, this speaks for itself.
- Kas Product's "So Young But So Cold" and TC Matic's "Putain putain": representative of the coldwave style of post-punk (and the closest the style ever came to commercial success), which was always obscure but influential on the underground rock and electronic scene to this day (mostly in France, but there has been interest elsewhere as well).
- Héroes del Silencio "Entre dos tierras": enormously successful goth rock anthem from the latin world, which is credited with breaking alternative rock into the mainstream in this part of the world.

...I guess I could go on and on as I scratch my head. So I'll just stop there before I become annoying :?
Ok, top 300 it is. Will update by the end of the day. Anything to make my list more comprehensive!
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Sorry :? If you expand, maybe you should also add a track by the Feelies, who were a major influence on R.E.M. (something from the first album. "Fa Cé-La" seems the easiest go).

Well, OK, I'm done, or else I'll start to throw in the personal favourites. For instance, the Chameleons' "Swamp Thing" or David Sylvian's "Orpheus" are awesome, but I'm not sure they were influential. So I'll stop here and again I'm sorry, it must be frustrating :(
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Pierre wrote:Sorry :? If you expand, maybe you should also add a track by the Feelies, who were a major influence on R.E.M. (something from the first album. "Fa Cé-La" seems the easiest go).

Well, OK, I'm done, or else I'll start to throw in the personal favourites. For instance, the Chameleons' "Swamp Thing" or David Sylvian's "Orpheus" are awesome, but I'm not sure they were influential. So I'll stop here and again I'm sorry, it must be frustrating :(
It's ok! Feelies and Squeeze and then I'm stopping. (And if I were counting favorites, I'd have put Screenwriters Blues by Soul Coughing, but it feels like nobody knows that song.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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StevieFan13 wrote:(And if I were counting favorites, I'd have put Screenwriters Blues by Soul Coughing, but it feels like nobody knows that song.
I admit I didn't. It sounds interesting; the Wikipedia page for the album applies "beat poetry" as a genre to the album, and that's exactly what it made me think about. And I find it pretty cool.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Pierre wrote:
StevieFan13 wrote:(And if I were counting favorites, I'd have put Screenwriters Blues by Soul Coughing, but it feels like nobody knows that song.
I admit I didn't. It sounds interesting; the Wikipedia page for the album applies "beat poetry" as a genre to the album, and that's exactly what it made me think about. And I find it pretty cool.
It absolutely blew my mind the first time I heard it. It's an all-time top 5 for me. The poetry is just well-written an delivered in an interesting way. The best is great too.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Last-minute tweaking: in case the top 300 is already full, drop TC Matic's "Putain putain" (Kas Product's "So Young But So Cold" is enough to represent coldwave) and put Liquid Liquid's "Cavern" or "Optimo" in instead. These songs literally invented dance-punk twenty years before LCD Soundsystem or !!! came around.

I have to stop doing that. Sorry!
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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Pierre wrote:Last-minute tweaking: in case the top 300 is already full, drop TC Matic's "Putain putain" (Kas Product's "So Young But So Cold" is enough to represent coldwave) and put Liquid Liquid's "Cavern" or "Optimo" in instead. These songs literally invented dance-punk twenty years before LCD Soundsystem or !!! came around.

I have to stop doing that. Sorry!
I have not edited the list since we last chatted, so thanks for that! And yes, I'm afraid that's about it. Now I'm trying to figure out how to separate JD and NO without causing another consecutive shift downwards.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

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New edit, now 300 songs. Really hope nobody forgot anything.
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Sweepstakes Ron »

Unless Phoenix did a Smashing Pumpkins cover I'm unaware of, you gotta change their song title. ;)
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Re: 100 Songs That Shaped Alternative Rock

Post by Pierre »

The Brigitte Fontaine song actually ends with "Carol", not "Caro" :)

Otherwise, it's a seriously more than competent top 300 you have here. We can always argue over the rankings and the stuff that missed the cut (there will always be) but that's the same with all lists. Congrats for a great job!
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