Book Description

At once a groundbreaking cultural history of rock music and an impassioned defense of the unique value of art, The Day Alternative Music Died is a timely and essential addition to the cultural discourse. Featuring a meticulously researched and eminently readable narrative that will appeal to both casual and diehard music fans, The Day Alternative Music Died tells the fascinating story of the tensions between artistic and commercial aspirations throughout the history of rock music. Author Adam Caress grafts the vital and untold story of the rise and fall of the alternative music scene in the 1980s and 90s into a larger rock music narrative that spans half a century, shedding light on a number of crucial developments in rock and popular music which remain widely misunderstood, even as they continue to have far-reaching implications for the future of music creation, consumption, and criticism. With a scope that encompasses everything from Bob Dylan's arrival on the rock scene in the mid-1960s through Spotify's recent attempts to establish a new model for music distribution, The Day Alternative Music Died provides engaging and valuable insight into what it means to be a music fan, artist, and critic here in the 21st Century.