The difference, by ear
Post-grunge is what the alternative branch became on commercial radio after 1994, and the format outlived the music it was named for.
Both are sung cleanly and move at much the same pace, around 100 to 150 bpm. To hear the difference, play Foo Fighters next to R.E.M. Post-grunge grew out of alternative rock, nine years later. United States appears in the origins of both.
In figures
Post-grunge
Where it sits
Rock › Alternative rock › Grunge › Post-grunge
In short
The grunge formula cleaned up for radio: same dynamics, less dirt, vastly more airplay.
How it sounds
- The same dynamics, but with radio production: heavy compression, symmetrical guitars.
- Melodic choruses with doubled and harmonised vocals.
- Simplified riffing, mid tempos, fixed structures.
Key acts
- Foo Fighters
- Bush
- Creed
- Nickelback
Start here
The pickFoo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape. Dave Grohl played nearly all of it himself.
Full page →Alternative rock
Where it sits
In short
An umbrella for everything that grew outside commercial radio and then conquered it. Defined originally by the college-radio network, not by any one sound.
How it sounds
- No single sound - originally defined by the distribution channel rather than by style.
- What the bands share: less glossy production and less predictable structures than radio rock.
- Quiet-loud dynamics, popularised by the Pixies and copied by everyone after 1991.
Key acts
- R.E.M.
- Pixies
- Nirvana
- Radiohead
Start here
The pickPixies - Doolittle. Cobain admitted he was simply trying to write a Pixies song.
Full page →