--- title: "Alternative Metal" type: "MusicGenre" url: "https://themetalnet.com/genre/alternative-metal" parent: "Alternative Metal" bands: 784 era: "early 1990s" --- # Alternative Metal **Alternative Metal** is a metal sub-genre, formative in the early 1990s. TheMetalNet maps 784 bands and 2,192 albums under it. Alternative metal blends heavy metal with the experimentation and unconventional song-craft of alternative rock, favoring downtuned mid-paced riffs, a mix of melodic and harsh vocals, and sounds drawn from funk, noise, and grunge. It emerged in the late 1980s with Faith No More, Living Colour, Soundgarden, and Jane’s Addiction, and peaked in the 1990s through Tool, Deftones, Alice in Chains, and Helmet. Lyrics lean toward psychology, trauma, and personal struggle rather than fantasy. It is metal’s most eclectic, boundary-blurring umbrella. ## Facts | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Genre | Alternative Metal | | Level | Sub-genre | | Parent genre | Alternative Metal | | Formative era | early 1990s | | Bands | 784 | | Albums | 2,192 | | Formation span | 1961 to 2026 | ## Notable bands (top 60 by prominence) - [Muse](https://themetalnet.com/band/muse) (United Kingdom, 1994) - [Evanescence](https://themetalnet.com/band/evanescence) (United States, 1995) - [Marilyn Manson](https://themetalnet.com/band/marilyn-manson) (United States, 1989) - [Alice in Chains](https://themetalnet.com/band/alice-in-chains) (United States, 1987) - [Deftones](https://themetalnet.com/band/deftones) (United States, 1988) - [Sum 41](https://themetalnet.com/band/sum-41) (Canada, 1996) - [Soundgarden](https://themetalnet.com/band/soundgarden) (United States, 1984) - [3 Doors Down](https://themetalnet.com/band/3-doors-down) (United States, 1996) - [Hoobastank](https://themetalnet.com/band/hoobastank) (United States, 1994) - [System of a Down](https://themetalnet.com/band/system-of-a-down) (United States, 1995) - [Avenged Sevenfold](https://themetalnet.com/band/avenged-sevenfold) (United States, 1999) - [Disturbed](https://themetalnet.com/band/disturbed) (United States, 1996) - [Serj Tankian](https://themetalnet.com/band/serj-tankian) (1967) - [Three Days Grace](https://themetalnet.com/band/three-days-grace) (Canada, 1997) - [Rage Against the Machine](https://themetalnet.com/band/rage-against-the-machine) (United States, 1991) - [Seether](https://themetalnet.com/band/seether) (United States, 1999) - [Chevelle](https://themetalnet.com/band/chevelle) (United States, 1994) - [Godsmack](https://themetalnet.com/band/godsmack) (United States, 1995) - [Stone Temple Pilots](https://themetalnet.com/band/stone-temple-pilots) (United States, 1990) - [Trapt](https://themetalnet.com/band/trapt) (1995) - [Zebrahead](https://themetalnet.com/band/zebrahead) (1996) - [Faith No More](https://themetalnet.com/band/faith-no-more) (United States, 1983) - [Stone Sour](https://themetalnet.com/band/stone-sour) (United States, 1992) - [Bloodhound Gang](https://themetalnet.com/band/bloodhound-gang) (United States, 1988) - [Breaking Benjamin](https://themetalnet.com/band/breaking-benjamin) (United States, 1999) - [Finger Eleven](https://themetalnet.com/band/finger-eleven) (Canada, 1996) - [Shinedown](https://themetalnet.com/band/shinedown) (United States, 2001) - [Cold](https://themetalnet.com/band/cold) (United States, 1996) - [Lit](https://themetalnet.com/band/lit) (United States, 1989) - [SOiL](https://themetalnet.com/band/soil) (United States, 1997) - [Therapy?](https://themetalnet.com/band/therapy) (United Kingdom, 1989) - [Corrosion of Conformity](https://themetalnet.com/band/corrosion-of-conformity) (United States, 1982) - [DIR EN GREY](https://themetalnet.com/band/dir-en-grey) (Japan, 1997) - [Fuel](https://themetalnet.com/band/fuel-2a5a3b60) (United States, 1994) - [Helmet](https://themetalnet.com/band/helmet) (United States, 1989) - [Hinder](https://themetalnet.com/band/hinder) (United States, 2001) - [Lostprophets](https://themetalnet.com/band/lostprophets) (1997) - [Skindred](https://themetalnet.com/band/skindred) (United Kingdom, 1998) - [Anneke van Giersbergen](https://themetalnet.com/band/anneke-van-giersbergen) (Netherlands, 1973) - [Biohazard](https://themetalnet.com/band/biohazard) (United States, 1988) - [Jane’s Addiction](https://themetalnet.com/band/jane-s-addiction) (United States, 1986) - [Local H](https://themetalnet.com/band/local-h) (United States, 1987) - [Smile Empty Soul](https://themetalnet.com/band/smile-empty-soul) (United States, 1998) - [Taproot](https://themetalnet.com/band/taproot) (United States, 1997) - [Warrant](https://themetalnet.com/band/warrant) (United States, 1984) - [Blindside](https://themetalnet.com/band/blindside) (Sweden, 1994) - [CKY](https://themetalnet.com/band/cky) (1998) - [Sponge](https://themetalnet.com/band/sponge) (United States, 1991) - [Ugly Kid Joe](https://themetalnet.com/band/ugly-kid-joe) (United States, 1989) - [Alter Bridge](https://themetalnet.com/band/alter-bridge) (United States, 2004) - [Die Happy](https://themetalnet.com/band/die-happy) (Germany, 1993) - [Emil Bulls](https://themetalnet.com/band/emil-bulls) (1995) - [Lumen](https://themetalnet.com/band/lumen) (Russia, 1998) - [Dog Fashion Disco](https://themetalnet.com/band/dog-fashion-disco) (United States, 1995) - [Glassjaw](https://themetalnet.com/band/glassjaw) (United States, 1993) - [Raimundos](https://themetalnet.com/band/raimundos) (Brazil, 1987) - [Red](https://themetalnet.com/band/red) (United States, 2002) - [Silverchair](https://themetalnet.com/band/silverchair) (Australia, 1992) - [the GazettE](https://themetalnet.com/band/the-gazette) (Japan, 2002) - [Dry Kill Logic](https://themetalnet.com/band/dry-kill-logic) (United States, 1995) ## Where it is played - [United States](https://themetalnet.com/country/us): 227 bands - [United Kingdom](https://themetalnet.com/country/gb): 35 bands - [Japan](https://themetalnet.com/country/jp): 25 bands - [Argentina](https://themetalnet.com/country/ar): 15 bands - [Australia](https://themetalnet.com/country/au): 14 bands - [France](https://themetalnet.com/country/fr): 14 bands - [Russia](https://themetalnet.com/country/ru): 13 bands - [Germany](https://themetalnet.com/country/de): 12 bands ## Bands formed by decade | Decade | Bands formed | | --- | --- | | 1960s | 9 | | 1970s | 20 | | 1980s | 44 | | 1990s | 137 | | 2000s | 118 | | 2010s | 197 | | 2020s | 99 | --- Source: [TheMetalNet https://themetalnet.com/genre/alternative-metal](https://themetalnet.com/genre/alternative-metal). Catalog data from MusicBrainz and Metal Archives. Full site index: https://themetalnet.com/llms.txt