Alternative country is a term applied to various subgenres of country music.
The term can refer to several ideas. Most generally, any musician who plays a type of country music different from the prevailing trend can be said to play «alternative country». By this standard, for example, the Bakersfield sound was alternative in the 1950s, and the Lubbock, Texas musicians were alternative in the 1960s.
In the 1990s however, «alternative country» came to refer to a disparate group of musicians and singers operating outside the traditions and industry of mainstream country music. In general these musicians eschewed the high production values and pop outlook of the Nashville-dominated industry, to produce music with a lo-fi sound, frequently informed with a strong punk and rock & roll aesthetic, bending the traditional rules of country music. Lyrics are often bleak, gothic or socially aware. Otherwise, the musical styles of artists that fall within this genre often have little in common, ranging from traditional American folk tunes and bluegrass, through rockabilly and honky-tonk, to music that is indistinguishable from mainstream rock or country. Indeed many alternative country artists come from punk and rock backgrounds. This already broad labelling has been further confused by alternative country artists disavowing the movement, mainstream artists declaring they are part of it, and the retroactive claiming of past or veteran musicians as alternative country. No Depression, the most well known magazine of the genre, declares that it covers «alternative-country music (whatever that is)».
Despite this confusion, it is generally agreed that alternative country resulted from two opposing influences. The first is traditional American country music, the music of working people, preserved and celebrated by practitioners such as Woody Guthrie, Hank Williams and The Carter Family. The second is country rock, the result of fusing country music with an aggressive rock & roll sound. The artist most commonly identified as the originator of country rock is Gram Parsons (who referred to his sound as «Cosmic American Music»), although Jason and the Scorchers, and Steve Earle are frequently identified as important innovators. These two styles merged in Uncle Tupelo’s 1990 LP No Depression, the first identifiably modern alternative country record. The band Whiskeytown continued in this tradition and lead singer Ryan Adams continues to shape the genre to this day in his solo career.
Alternative country is popularly referred to, especially in print, as «alt-country» or sometimes «alt.country». The genre is also referred to under a large number of other names, including «americana», «trashcan americana», «insurgent country», «neotraditional», «no depression», «cowpunk», «progressive country», «regressive country», «lo-fi country», «roots rock», «twang core», «rural contemporary», «country-punk», «y’allternative», «hick rock», «alternative country-rock» and many others.
- Rootin’ Around – A cornpone compendium of the best roots (country, blues, jazz, and hokum) music releases, books and backroads travel destinations still to be found in these here United States of America
- Alt Country Tab .com – The guitar tablature center for alternative country/roots rock artists and bands
- AlternativeCountry.com – Features industry news, record reviews, and a handy radio station guide
- Americana Music Association – A young industry association designed to develop and share Americana market research and brand, market, and promote Americana music.
- Americana UK – A UK e-zine for Americana and alt-country.
- Austin Americana – Weekly listings and news for traditional country, honky-tonk, rockabilly, early-folk, roots-blues, cowboy music, hillbilly, bluegrass and western shows in Austin, Texas.
- Freight Train Boogie – An Americana / alternative country Web site with CD reviews, releases and artist guides.
- Friends of American Roots Music – An unstructured, nonhierarchical, grassroots, anti-organization. Includes links to American roots music sites.
- Guitartown – A site dedicated to North Carolina alt.country/no depression/Americana music.
- The Gumbo Pages – A guide to New Orleans and Acadiana, including resources and information on non-commercial radio and roots music.
- Insurgent Country Home Page – A German site including real audio clips, news, and links to a comprehensive list of artists.
- Joe Sixpack’s Guide To Alt.Country – Alt.country and Americana music reviews, with links to artist profile pages. Part of a larger «hick music» website written by San Francisco Bay Area radio DJ, Joe Sixpack.
- No Depression – The Alternative Country (Whatever that is) bi-monthly magazine page.
- Progressive Torch and Twang – Alternative country (or roots rock) radio show based in East Lansing, Michigan. RealAudio feed available.
- Rootsrock – Includes links and news.
- TwangCast – Internet radio station broadcasting Real Country Music
- Twangin’! Country Music – Features interviews, reviews, and a newsletter focusing on alt.country and Americana.
