Modern Rock

Modern rock is an umbrella term describing rock made from the 1980s to present day. Some radio stations use the term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which tend more towards 1960s-1980s rock music.

Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre. Generally beginning with late 1970s punk but referring especially to alternative rock music since the 1980s, the phrase "modern rock" is used in the USA to differentiate the music from classic rock, which focuses on music recorded in the 1960s through to the early 1980s.

A few modern rock radio stations existed during the 1980s, such as KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, 91X (XETRA-FM) in San Diego, WHTG FM 106.3 (now, WKMK) on the Jersey Shore, WLIR on Long Island and WFNX in Boston. Modern rock was solidified as a radio format in 1988 with Billboard's creation of the Modern Rock Tracks chart. The chart was based on weighted reports from college radio stations and commercial stations such as those listed above. The 1988 episode of the VH1 show I Love the '80s discussed INXS, The Cure, Morrissey, Depeche Mode, and Erasure as modern rock artists representative of that year. But it was the breakthrough success of the grunge bands Nirvana and Pearl Jam in 1991 that resulted in a large number of American radio stations switching to the format. Modern rock is considered by some to be a specific genre of alternative rock.

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