WTF Is College Rock? – 10 Best Songs That Defined the Era

Here are 10 songs that defined the “college rock” era.Before alternative rock was everywhere in the ’90s, you had to hunt to find the up-and-coming bands and more often than not, the journey led you to college radio stations! So for the longest time, before “alternative” became a thing, college rock led you to the left of the dial in pursuit of cool rock music that most mainstream stations were overlooking.What Is College Rock?Typically, college rock radio consisted of an eclectic blend of retro country, avant-garde electronic music, aggressive power pop, raucous punk and jangly new wave music often pulled from the U.K. Though that casts a wide net, one common trait was that the music was often more experimental in nature.Oddly enough, it was through college rock radio that many of the ’90s alternative superstars honed their chops before the masses discovered them and took those bands to another level. The biggest examples were R.E.M. and The Cure, a pair of bands whose early works were critically hailed. Both acts had several albums under their belt before the major labels came calling. Yes, most of each band’s catalogs have been combed over and are well known at this point, but in the ’80s, it took a while before the mainstream caught on to their brilliance.Though college rock carried over into the ’90s, most consider Nirvana’s explosion with Nevermind and the mainstream attention then given to not only grunge but all forms of alternative music the beginning of the end for the college rock era. For this exercise, we’ll actually end it in 1991 as most of the college rock bands advanced their careers significantly in the years that followed.READ MORE: The Most Played Songs by 35 Big Alternative Rock BandsSo what songs best defined the college rock era of music?Below we begin our selections with 10 staples that were aided by airplay from college radio stations and defined an era in which “alternative” was actually an alternative.WTF Is College Rock?: 10 Songs That Defined the Pre-Grunge Alternative EraBefore alternative went mainstream, college radio stations was where you typically found the interesting new bands. Here are the songs that defined the era.Gallery Credit: Chad Childers, LoudwireTop 80 Hard Rock + Metal Albums of the 1980s