 | | Combining an inclination for melodic '60s pop with an art rock aesthetic borrowed from Krautrock bands like Faust and Neu!, Stereolab were one of the most influential alternative bands of the '90s. |
 | | More apt to cite stately rock paragons Burt Bacharach and Brian Wilson as their inspirations than Derrick May or Aphex Twin, the French duo Air gained inclusion into the late-'90s electronica surge due chiefly to the labels their recordings appeared on, not the actual music they produced. |
 | | Björk first came to prominence as one of the lead vocalists of the avant pop Icelandic sextet the Sugarcubes, but when she launched a solo career after the group's 1992 demise, she quickly eclipsed her old band's popularity. |
 | | The pioneering force behind the rise of trip-hop, Massive Attack were among the most innovative and influential groups of their generation; their hypnotic sound -- a darkly sensual and cinematic fusion of hip-hop rhythms, soulful melodies, dub grooves, and choice samples -- set the pace for much of the dance music to emerge throughout the 1990s, paving the way for such acclaimed artists as Portishead, Sneaker Pimps, Beth Orton, and Tricky, himself a Massive Attack alumnus. |
 | | Boards of Canada are the duo of Michael Sandison (born June 1, 1970) and Marcus Eoin (born July 21, 1971). |
 | | Like their namesake -- the dog rocketed into orbit by the Soviets renowned as the first living creature to exit the earth's atmosphere -- Laika traveled the spaceways, forging a distinct and wildly experimental fusion of hip-hop, jazz, electronica, dub, and Krautrock without earthly precedent. |
 | | Portishead may not have invented trip-hop, but they were among the first to popularize it, particularly in America. |
 | | Mixing synth pop, shoegaze, and indie pop into a sound all their own, Ladytron formed in mid-1999. Keyboardists/programmers Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu settled in Liverpool after a spate of traveling and DJ work in Japan. |
 | | The electronic outfit Télépopmusik followed in the footsteps of Air, Les Rythmes Digitales, and Dimitri From Paris and established their own musical stylings in the arena of French dance music. |
 | | Tortoise revolutionized American indie rock in the mid-'90s by playing down tried-and-true punk and rock & roll influences, emphasizing instead the incorporation of a variety of left-field music genres from the past 20 years, including Krautrock, dub, avant-garde jazz, classical minimalism, ambient and space music, film music, and British electronica. |
 | | Like most bands formed by former music journalists, Saint Etienne were a highly conceptual group. The trio's concept was to fuse the British pop sounds of '60s London with the club/dance rhythms and productions that defined the post-acid house England of the early '90s. |
 | | Spawned from the urge to do something apart from his post-rock band Fridge, Kieran Hebden's Four Tet project balances organic and programmed sounds. |
 | | The cosmic post-rock band Mogwai were formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1996 by guitarist/vocalist Stuart Braithwaite, guitarist Dominic Aitchison, and drummer Martin Bulloch, longtime friends with the goal of creating "serious guitar music. |
 | | The men behind the European downtempo outfit Zero 7 -- producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker -- launched their careers in the music industry as tea boys at a London recording studio. |
 | | Formed from the ashes of the trance-rockers Spacemen 3, singer/guitarist Jason Pierce's group Spiritualized did not break away from his prior band's trademark hypnotic minimalism; instead, they perfected it. |
 | | An easy-listening trip-hopster similar in style and intent to his countrymen Air and Dimitri from Paris, Kid Loco has an even stronger kinship with the long tradition of French pop characterized by Serge Gainsbourg. |
 | | The most groove-oriented act in the mid-'90s female-fronted electronica crowd, Morcheeba rely on the sweet, fluid vocals of Skye Edwards and a laid-back mix of fusion, funk, and blues produced by brothers Paul and Ross Godfrey, on beats/scratches and guitar/keyboards, respectively. |
 | | Bath, England's singer/composer/keyboardist Allison Goldfrapp began exploring music as part of her studies as a fine art painting major at Middlesex University, mixing sound, visuals, and performances in her installation pieces. |
 | | Thievery Corporation make abstract, instrumental, mid-tempo dance music whose classification falls somewhere between trip-hop and acid jazz. |
 | | Radiohead were one of the few alternative bands of the early '90s to draw heavily from the grandiose arena rock that characterized U2's early albums. |
 | | Dan Snaith's early recordings as Manitoba underlined his status among the chattering electronic classes as one of the brightest talents to emerge during the early 2000s. |
 | | Norwegian duo Röyksopp compensated for the cold climes of their native Tromsø by making some of the warmest, most inviting downbeat electronica of the new millennium, exemplified by early tracks like "Eple" and "Poor Leno. |
 | | Yo La Tengo are in many respects the quintessential critics' band: in addition to their adventurous eclecticism, defiant independence, and restless creative ambition -- three qualities that virtually guarantee music press acclaim -- the group's frontman, Ira Kaplan, even tenured as a rock scribe prior to finding success as a performer. |
 | | Their sound veering from post-grunge balladry to funk and ambient breakbeat to Madchester acid house, the Beta Band emerged on the British scene as (nominally) a pop group with few similarities to any other act going. |
 | | Formed near Munich as a post-hardcore band, the Notwist gradually began to embrace a fusion of classic '80s indie pop songwriting and scruffy electronic backings indebted to Oval and Autechre. |
 | | Influenced by cool jazz,'60s pop and classic film-soundtracks, the trip-hop duo Mono formed around vocalist Siobhan De Maré and producer Martin Virgo, a one-time member of Nellee Hooper's production team which worked on Massive Attack's seminal "Unfinished Sympathy" as well as Björk's Debut. |
 | | The Books' story began in 2000, when Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jong met through a friend in New York City. |
 | | The Magnetic Fields may be a bona fide band, but in most essential respects they are the project of studio wunderkind Stephin Merritt, who writes, produces, and (generally) sings all of the material. |
 | | The Belgian ambient pop band Hooverphonic featured vocalist Liesje Sadonius, guitarist/programmer Alex Callier, keyboardist Frank Duchêne, and guitarist Raymond Geerts. |
 | | The Sea and Cake are a post-rock supergroup of sorts, comprised of luminaries from the Chicago independent scene. |
 | | The combined project of George Evelyn and Robin Taylor-Firth, Nightmares on Wax became one of the brightest spots on the post-rave British techno map of the early '90s. |
 | | DJ Shadow's Josh Davis is widely credited as a key figure in developing the experimental instrumental hip-hop style associated with the London-based Mo' Wax label. |
 | | Few rock singers of the '90s were as original and instantly unforgettable as Thom Yorke, as his band, Radiohead, became one of the biggest bands of the 21st century after making a career out of specializing in challenging and unpredictable rock. |
 | | Originally, Tricky was a member of the Wild Bunch, a Bristol-based rap troupe that eventually metamorphosed into Massive Attack during the early '90s. |
 | | Iceland pop experimentalists Múm were formed by Gunnar Örn Tynes, Örvar Þóreyjarson Smárason, and classically trained twin sisters Gyða and Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir. |
 | | The trip-hop trio Sneaker Pimps formed in 1995 in Reading, England, following the success of Portishead's Dummy and Tricky's Maxinquaye. |
 | | Named in part after a sister of one of the bandmembers, Reykjavik, Iceland's Sigur Rós (Victory Rose) was formed by guitarist and vocalist Jon Thor Birgisson (who later went by the name Jónsi), bassist Georg Holm, and drummer Agust. |
 | | German post-techno duo Mouse on Mars is among a growing number of electronic music groups dabbling in complex, heavily hybridized forms that include everything from ambient, techno, and dub to rock, jazz, and jungle. |
 | | A brother-and-sister duo hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, the Knife take inspiration from vintage synth pop and forward-thinking electronic music, crafting a sound that is equally unsettling, playful, and beautiful. |
 | | Mancunian downtempo/drum'n'bass duo Lamb were one of the first groups to add a lyrics-based vocalist to steadfastly jungle-based productions. |
 | | Exploring the experimental possibilities inherent in acid and ambience, the two major influences on home-listening techno during the late '80s, Richard D. |
 | | Hull-based duo Fila Brazillia is the most popular and acclaimed of the noted Pork Recordings stable. |
 | | Better known as one half of the French electronic pop duo Air, Jean-Benoît Dunckel embarked on his solo project, Darkel, while he and fellow Air member Nicolas Godin worked with Charlotte Gainsbourg on her album 5:55. |
 | | London dance duo Groove Armada consist of Tom Findlay and Andy Cato. The group formed in the mid-'90s after Findlay and Cato were introduced by the latter's girlfriend and soon started their own club, also named Groove Armada (after a '70s discotheque), which featured their spinning. |
 | | Experimental hip-hop outfit UNKLE were one of the original artists releasing material through noted U. |
 | | Japanese turntablist and producer DJ Krush is one of the few island-nation throw-ups to be embraced by the global hip-hop world. |
 | | After the 1998 breakup of her previous band, the Munich-based L.B. Page, Korea-born vocalist Valerie Trebeljahr formed the experimental electro-pop group Lali Puna. |
 | | The Norwegian folktronica foursome Flunk was formed out of the studio jam sessions of a trio of Oslo musicians: producer Ulf Nygaard (also of Folk and Rovere), guitarist Jo Bakke (formerly with the Happy Campers), and drummer Erik Ruud (a member of the Guidance-label act Antenna). |
 | | The duo of Corin Dingley and Andy Jenks formed Alpha after working on such projects as Statik Sound System and the Sugarboat. |
 | | Compared to his cohorts in the new wave of French dance music, Dimitri from Paris looks much farther afield for his influences. |
