Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson were the creative spark behind Heart, a hard rock group who initially found success in the mid-'70s, only to reach greater heights after engineering a major comeback a decade later. The daughters of a Marine Corps captain, Ann (born June 19, 1950) and Nancy (born March 16, 1954) grew up in both Southern California... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 80s, 90s
Babes in Toyland is about as harsh as rock music gets -- guitarist Kat Bjelland screams and thrashes her guitar to the gut-pounding, throttling beat of bassist Maureen Herman and drummer Lori Barbero. Over their two albums and two EPs, the all-female trio offers no escape from their strongly female-oriented, but not necessarily feminist, rock.... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 90s
The point band of the early-'90s riot grrrl movement, Olympia, WA's Bikini Kill exploded onto the male-dominated indie rock scene by fusing the visceral power of punk with the impassioned ideals of feminism. Calling for "Revolution Girl Style Now," the group's fiercely polemical and anthemic music helped give rise to a newly empowered generation... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Combining a love for British guitar pop songcraft with crunching power chords and a flair for the absurd, Cheap Trick provided the necessary links between '60s pop, heavy metal, and punk. Led by guitarist Rick Nielsen, the band's early albums were filled with highly melodic, well-written songs that drew equally from the crafted pop of the... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 80s, 90s, 00s
Although the Runaways preceded them by several years, Girlschool was one of the first all-female outfits to emerge in the male-dominated world of heavy metal/hard rock, helping to pave the way for similar groups of the future. Originally formed in South London during 1977 by bassist Enid Williams and vocalist/guitarist Kim McAuliffe (along with... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 90s, 00s
Throughout Hole's career, vocalist/guitarist Courtney Love's notorious public image has overshadowed her band's music. In their original incarnation, Hole was one of the noisiest, most abrasive alternative bands performing in the early '90s. By the time of their second album, 1994's Live Through This, the band had smoothed out many of their... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Rooted in the campy theatrics of Alice Cooper and the sleazy hard rock of glam rockers the New York Dolls, Kiss became a favorite of American teenagers in the '70s. Most kids were infatuated with the look of Kiss, not their music. Decked out in outrageously flamboyant costumes and makeup, the band fashioned a captivating stage show featuring dry... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 90s
Although often lumped in with the "Seattle Movement" of the early '90s (due to their sound, look, and attitude), the all-female punk band L7 hailed originally from Los Angeles. The seeds for L7 (whose name was taken from a slang term in the '50s that meant someone who was a "square") were planted in 1985, when a pair of guitarists/singers, Suzi... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
After spending several years as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the mid-'70s hard rock band Montrose, Sammy Hagar began a solo career that produced several hits and made him an album rock favorite. Hagar became a true star once he joined Van Halen in 1985, but he was a popular hard rocker ever since his first album with Montrose.
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 90s, 00s
On its surface, the idea or memory of the Gits carries with it an undertone of urban darkness and human waste, but the story would be unfairly abbreviated if the killing of vocalist Mia Zapata exclusively defined the group. That is in part because the Gits in life and action helped define something themselves, if not a movement, then a place and... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 80s
Formed as a garage punk band in Los Angeles during the early '80s, the Pandoras debuted with a 7" EP in 1984 on the Moxie label. That same year, the group recorded It's About Time with producer Greg Shaw, but splintered later in the year. Vocalist/guitarist Paula Pierce recruited three new players, while the old band toured for a short time,... [+] Read More
Genre: Rock/Pop
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s
Despite a huge hit single in the mid-'70s ("The Boys Are Back in Town") and becoming a popular act with hard rock/heavy metal fans, Thin Lizzy are still, in the pantheon of '70s rock bands, underappreciated. Formed in the late '60s by Irish singer/songwriter/bassist Phil Lynott, Lizzy, though not the first band to do so, combined romanticized... [+] Read More