Top 100 Alternative Rock Songs Site

The hardest rock song of the 90s. The distorted vocals, the wah-wah pedal, the video. It’s pure, unfiltered adrenaline.

In 1991, Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" changed everything, bringing the Seattle sound to the top of the charts and ending the era of hair metal. This era was dominated by grunge and Britpop, featuring anthems like Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," Radiohead's "Creep," and Oasis' "Wonderwall". TOP 100 ALTERNATIVE ROCK SONGS

Before Siamese Dream , there was this Gish monster. The drum fill intro and Billy Corgan’s howl define early 90s psychedelic grunge. The hardest rock song of the 90s

Borrowing heavily from Wire (and winning a lawsuit about it), this track is two minutes of robotic, sexy, minimalist garage rock. In 1991, Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" changed

– R.E.M. (1991): A pivotal crossover hit that brought mandolin-driven indie rock to the mainstream masses.

– Radiohead (1992): Originally a minor hit, its 1993 reissue turned it into a definitive "slacker anthem" alongside the works of Nirvana and Beck.

– The Icelandic folk-rock horn anthem. 82. "Pumped Up Kicks" – Foster the People (2010) – The happiest melody about the darkest subject (school shooting). 83. "Midnight City" – M83 (2011) – Synth-wave alternative. The saxophone solo is euphoric. 84. "Holocene" – Bon Iver (2011) – Ambient alt-rock. Justin Vernon’s falsetto over a finger-picked guitar. 85. "Tongue Tied" – Grouplove (2011) – Pure, unadulterated happiness in D major. 86. "Riptide" – Vance Joy (2013) – The ukulele indie-folk hit that felt like a dream. 87. "Do I Wanna Know?" – Arctic Monkeys (2013) – That slinking, bluesy, sub-bass riff. Alex Turner’s swagger. 88. "Arabella" – Arctic Monkeys (2013) – "My days end best when the sunset gets itself behind / That little lady sitting on the passenger side." 89. "Elephant" – Tame Impala (2012) – Kevin Parker’s psychedelic fuzz-rock monster. 90. "Feel It Still" – Portugal. The Man (2017) – A bassline lifted from a 60s protest song, turned into a 2017 smash. 91. "Sit Next to Me" – Foster the People (2017) – Disco-alt perfection. 92. "Heat Waves" – Glass Animals (2020) – The last true alternative rock song to top the Billboard Hot 100 (in 2022). 93. "Kyoto" – Phoebe Bridgers (2020) – Sad-girl indie rock with a saxophone blast and screaming guitars. 94. "Motion Sickness" – Phoebe Bridgers (2017) – "I have emotional motion sickness." The lyric of the decade. 95. "Harmony Hall" – Vampire Weekend (2019) – Ezra Koenig’s complex lyrics over a beautiful, looping piano. 96. "Sedona" – Houndmouth (2015) – A perfect road trip song about a ghost town. 97. "Shut Up and Dance" – Walk the Moon (2014) – The last great "rock on the dancefloor" anthem. 98. "My Kind of Woman" – Mac DeMarco (2012) – Slacker-rock, jizz-jazz, whatever you call it, it’s alternative gospel. 99. "Are You Bored Yet?" – Wallows ft. Clairo (2019) – Gen Z’s answer to 90s slacker rock. 100. "Chaise Longue" – Wet Leg (2021) – The most recent perfect alt-rock send-up. "Is your muffin buttered?"**