Formed in Rochester, New York in September 1983, the darkly melodic jangle pop quartet Absolute Grey first made a name for themselves performing at local clubs such as Schatzee's, Scorgies, and the Snake Sister's Cafe. The group's commitment to an updated psychedelic sound caught the attention of listeners who compared the band to R.E.M., Dream... [+] Read More

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Chuck Prophet is the least heralded guitar player of the '80s and '90s, with songwriting skills to match his prodigious instrumental talent. Born in the mid-'60s in Southern California, Prophet first made his mark as the young guitarist in L.A.'s Green on Red, a forerunner of the Paisley Underground movement; however, Green on Red's attack was... [+] Read More

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Though criminally overlooked in their own lifetime, Galaxie 500 later emerged as one of the pivotal underground groups of the post-punk era; dreamy and enigmatic, their minimalist dirges presaged the rise of both the shoegazer and slowcore movements of the 1990s. The group formed in Boston, MA, in 1986 and comprised vocalist/guitarist Dean... [+] Read More

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While frequently lumped in with such Southern alternative pop bands as R.E.M. and Let's Active, Guadalcanal Diary was distinctly different from its peers, with a sound that was at once melodic and rhythmically aggressive, and a decidedly literary and spiritual bent to the group's lyrics. And at a time when Athens, GA, was being hailed as the new... [+] Read More

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Along with luminaries like R.E.M., the B-52's, and Pylon, Love Tractor helped establish the college town of Athens, GA, as a mecca of alternative music in the early '80s. Comprised of guitarist Michael Richmond, multi-instrumentalist Armistead Wellford, drummer Kit Schwartz, and guitarist Mark Cline, the band's earliest material was... [+] Read More

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If psychedelic music had a voice in '90s post-punk, Mazzy Star may have been its strongest reincarnation. That doesn't necessarily mean that fans of the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead will find the band to their liking, however. Mazzy Star much prefered the dark side of psychedelia, as exemplified by the most distended tracks of the... [+] Read More

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Miracle Legion were a Connecticut-based band that immediately sprung to life on the heels of post-R.E.M. guitar-rock boom, chiefly because lead singer Mark Mulcahy's voice bore an uncanny resemblance to Michael Stipe's, and the arpeggio guitar structures were akin to Peter Buck's. But the band, Ray Neal; guitar, Jeff Wiederschall; drums and... [+] Read More

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R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock. When their first single, "Radio Free Europe," was released in 1981, it sparked a back-to-the-garage movement in the American underground. While there were a number of hardcore and punk bands in the U.S. during the early '80s, R.E.M. brought guitar pop back into the underground... [+] Read More

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R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock. When their first single, "Radio Free Europe," was released in 1981, it sparked a back-to-the-garage movement in the American underground. While there were a number of hardcore and punk bands in the U.S. during the early '80s, R.E.M. brought guitar pop back into the underground... [+] Read More

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Among the L.A. groups dubbed Paisley Underground (Dream Syndicate, the Bangles, Three O'Clock), Rain Parade were the closest to being the real deal for their use of psychedelic flourishes thoroughout their first album. Formed in Los Angeles in the early '80s, the group consisted of David Roback (vocals, guitar), Steven Roback (vocals, bass),... [+] Read More

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On paper, The Sunbirds were a band more interesting for what the members did before and after the group's brief lifetime that what they accomplished while they were together; only after their recordings received a belated release did it become obvious that this was group whose gifts far outstripped their public recognition. In 1986, after 28th... [+] Read More

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