Recommended hard rock and heavy metal

Recommended Western alternative rock bands that connect to the modern rock scene

Recommended Western alternative rock bands that connect to the modern rock scene

Last updated:2025/8/7

Live Spot LugHirata Hiroyasu
I’m Hiroyasu Hirata from Live Spot RAG. When I was 15, I was blown away by how cool music—especially rock—was, and I started playing guitar and formed a band. I’m from Kochi Prefecture, where there weren’t many live houses or concert venues, so there were few opportunities to experience live music. Back then, our sources of information were magazines, CDs, and even VHS tapes (!?). Still, I was captivated by the sparkle of music, and I spent my days enjoying guitar and music, mostly neglecting my studies. I moved to Kyoto for university and “graduated” from the light music club, so to speak (laugh). Until then, I mainly listened to Japanese rock and Western hard rock, but thanks to seniors and peers I learned there was so much more music in the world. Now I listen to anything that strikes me as good, regardless of genre. After graduating, I joined RAG. After about six years in the office and about ten years in the music studio, I now work at the long-established Live Spot RAG, which has been around for 39 years, mainly handling promotions. Being exposed to the “real music” performed by Japan’s top musicians and delivering it to our audience lets me feel the brilliance of music anew every day. I still play guitar and keep a band going casually, and in recent years I’ve even started singing—better late than never. I’ve fully become an old guy by now, but I hope we can continue to chase “what lies beyond the dreams I painted with music back then” together.

In the 1980s, rock music gained a vast audience, and at the same time a mainstream industry took shape.

Meanwhile, as various genres emerged and branched out, the media introduced a category defined as “rock that didn’t fit the existing mold”: alternative rock.

This time, while tracing the roots of alternative rock, we’re also focusing on the musicians who went on to lead the scene.

Be sure to check it out.

Top 10 recommended alternative rock bands from overseas that connect to the modern rock scene

Best Of YouFoo Fighters

Foo Fighters – Best Of You (Official HD Video)

Best Of YouFoo Fighters

This is a track from the 5th album released in 2005 by the band fronted by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, In Your Honor.

Maybe it’s because the music video left such a strong impression, but the song has an intensely masculine vibe—almost stiflingly so.

It’s a straightforward, powerful rock number, yet the guitar somehow comes across as cool and composed.

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Buddy HollyWeezer

Weezer – Buddy Holly (Official Music Video)

Buddy HollyWeezer

Weezer is an American band led by Rivers Cuomo.

This is a track from their 1994 album.

The thick, distorted guitar sound—evoking the strength of a vulnerable person—is addictive.

Maybe it feels quintessentially alternative because of the era, but I think the lo-fi sound is also one of the major influences.

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There’s No Other WayBlur

Blur – There’s No Other Way (Official Music Video)

There's No Other WayBlur

A track from Leisure, the debut album by Blur, one of the quintessential British bands of the ’90s.

With wah-infused guitar, it has a Madchester-influenced vibe.

Although Blur wouldn’t gain broader support until a few years after this album, this song still seems to get the crowd going when played live today.

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CreepRadiohead

Radiohead – Creep

CreepRadiohead

Released in 1992, Radiohead’s song “Creep” is a quintessential piece of alternative rock—practically worthy of an Alt-Rock Hall of Fame.

The tone is introspective and dark, with a heavy, overcast mood.

There’s a sparsely sung vocal over wavering guitar effects, and above all, the explosive distorted guitars and screamed vocals in the chorus define the song’s identity.

Despite its distinctive sound, it somehow connects with the emotions buried deep inside, which I think is the true allure of alternative rock.

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Murakami Shinpei

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Get FreeThe Vines

The Vines – Get Free

Get FreeThe Vines

A song by The Vines, an Australian band once described as “Nirvana meets The Beatles.” This one falls on the Nirvana side: distorted guitars, quiet moments that suddenly erupt into shouts—an intense track.

Since it’s from their debut album, you might sense a kind of primal, early impulse—almost a violent energy.

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Radio Free EuropeR.E.M.

R.E.M. – Radio Free Europe

Radio Free EuropeR.E.M.

R.E.M., a band said to have been the starting point of alternative rock.

This is the first track from their debut album, Murmur.

It begins with an ominous noise as if something is about to begin, followed by edgy playing and enigmatic lyrics.

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Serve The ServantsNirvana

Nirvana – Serve The Servants (Live On “Tunnel”, Rome, Italy/1994) (Official Music Video)

Serve The ServantsNirvana

This is the opening track of In Utero, the final album by Nirvana, the band that disbanded following Kurt Cobain’s suicide.

The album seems to reject the worldwide success of its predecessor, Nevermind, and yearn for a return to the underground; fittingly, this song begins abruptly with dissonance.

Produced by Steve Albini, In Utero features a hard, raw sound.

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