Rock

Alternative, pop rock, classic, hard rock, country rock, grunge, blues rock, prog, psych, garage, shoegaze, industrial, etc. Cross-lists Metal & Punk.

38 families521 sub-genres

Click a family to fan out its sub-genres · dashed = cross-listed

1Alternative / Indie Rock

The strongest modern "default" rock bucket. If a listener says "rock" today but not classic, metal, punk, or country rock, they often mean some form of alternative or indie rock.

Alternative Hard Rock ↗

Alternative / Indie Rock

The strongest modern "default" rock bucket. If a listener says "rock" today but not classic, metal, punk, or country rock, they often mean some form of alternative or indie rock.

Alternative Rock Indie Rock Alt-Rock Indie Pop Rock Alternative Hard Rock College Rock Post-Punk Revival Neo-Psychedelia Lo-Fi Indie Rock Slacker Rock Noise Pop Art Indie Rock Indie Folk Rock Alternative Metal Angular Indie Rock

Pop Rock / Soft Rock

The broadest radio-friendly rock bucket. Many casual listeners recognize rock through polished choruses, softer guitars, and pop structure.

Pop Rock Soft Rock Modern Pop Rock 2000s Pop Rock Adult Contemporary Rock Yacht Rock Piano Pop Rock Acoustic Pop Rock Power Pop Female Pop Rock Teen Pop Rock Country Pop Rock Dance Pop Rock Synth Pop Rock Dream Pop Rock Power Ballad Rock

Classic Rock / Album Rock

The biggest catalog-recognition bucket. Not always current, but one of the most important browsing categories because rock has unusually strong catalog listening.

Classic Rock Album Rock Guitar Rock 70s Rock 80s Rock 60s Rock FM Rock Heritage Rock Classic Hard Rock Stadium Rock Blues-Based Classic Rock Folk-Based Classic Rock Classic Psychedelic Rock Classic Progressive Rock Dad Rock

Hard Rock / Heavy Rock

The main home for loud, riff-forward rock that is not necessarily metal. One of the clearest sound-homes for listeners.

Hard Rock Heavy Rock Classic Hard Rock Modern Hard Rock Alternative Hard Rock 80s Hard Rock 70s Hard Rock Arena Hard Rock Post-Grunge Hard Rock Grunge Hard Rock Southern Hard Rock Heavy Blues Rock Sleaze Rock Stoner Rock

Country Rock / Americana / Roots Rock

Very important for modern discovery because country-rock and Americana-adjacent rock are heavily cross-listed with Country, Folk, and Singer-Songwriter music.

Country Rock Americana Rock Roots Rock Alt-Country Rock Heartland Rock Southern Country Rock Folk Country Rock Country Pop Rock Outlaw Country Rock Red Dirt Rock Cosmic American Rock Country Jam Rock Cowpunk Country Punk

Folk Rock / Acoustic Rock

A major modern and catalog bridge between rock, folk, Americana, singer-songwriter, and adult alternative.

Folk Rock Acoustic Rock Indie Folk Rock Singer-Songwriter Rock Americana Folk Rock Electric Folk Country Folk Rock Protest Rock Jangle Folk Rock British Folk Rock Celtic Rock Psychedelic Folk Rock Chamber Folk Rock Folk Story Rock

Punk Rock

A huge recognition bucket. Punk may eventually be its own Level 1, but inside Rock it absolutely needs a major branch.

Punk Rock Pop Punk Garage Punk Proto-Punk Skate Punk Hardcore Punk Street Punk Oi!Anarcho-Punk Art Punk Glam Punk Cowpunk Horror Punk Christian Punk

Emo / Scene / Pop-Punk-Adjacent Rock

A strong listener-recognition category, especially for 2000s nostalgia, younger discovery, and pop-punk overlap.

Emo Pop Punk Emo Pop Emo Rock 2000s Emo Scene Rock Mall Emo Emo Revival Midwest Emo Screamo Emo Hardcore Easycore Acoustic Emo Emo Rap Rock

Metal-Adjacent Rock / Heavy Metal Crossover

Metal can be its own Level 1, but many listeners browse heavy metal through rock. This branch is for rock-site discoverability and cross-linking.

Heavy Metal Traditional Heavy Metal Alternative Metal Nu Metal Rap Metal Glam Metal Hair Metal Thrash Metal Speed Metal NWOBHM Doom Metal Stoner Metal Sludge Metal Industrial Metal Christian Metal

Grunge / Post-Grunge

A very recognizable 90s-forward rock bucket. Grunge connects strongly to Alternative, Hard Rock, Punk, and Metal.

Grunge Post-Grunge Seattle Grunge Radio Post-Grunge Hard Rock Post-Grunge Alternative Post-Grunge Grunge Pop Grunge Punk Grunge Metal Acoustic Grunge Sludge-Grunge 90s Alt-Grunge

Arena / Anthem Rock

A useful listener-facing category because people know this sound even when they do not know the subgenre: big drums, big chorus, big feelings.

Arena Rock Stadium Rock Anthem Rock AOR — Album-Oriented Rock Corporate Rock Power Ballad Rock Melodic Rock 80s Arena Rock Classic Arena Rock Hard Arena Rock Heartland Arena Rock Glam Arena Rock Christian Arena Rock

Blues Rock

A foundational and still very recognizable bucket. A core ancestor of Classic Rock, Hard Rock, Southern Rock, and Jam Rock.

Blues Rock Electric Blues Rock British Blues Rock Texas Blues Rock Southern Blues Rock Heavy Blues Rock Slide Guitar Rock Boogie Rock Chicago Blues Rock Swamp Blues Rock Jam Blues Rock Psychedelic Blues Rock Garage Blues Rock Power Trio Blues Rock

Southern Rock / Swamp Rock

Popular as both a rock category and a Country/Americana crossover.

Southern Rock Swamp Rock Southern Boogie Southern Country Rock Southern Blues Rock Southern Hard Rock Southern Soul Rock Southern Roots Rock Jam Southern Rock Southern Arena Rock Southern Gothic Rock Redneck Rock

Singer-Songwriter / Story Rock

A strong cross-genre discovery bucket. Connects Rock to Folk, Country, Americana, Pop, and Christian music.

Singer-Songwriter Rock Story Rock Narrative Rock Confessional Rock Acoustic Story Rock Piano Story Rock Americana Story Rock Folk Story Rock Heartland Story Rock Poetic Rock Political Story Rock Christian Story Rock Dark Story Rock

Heartland / Working-Class Rock

A good browsing category for Springsteen-lane, Midwest-lane, road-lane, small-town, blue-collar rock.

Heartland Rock Working-Class Rock Bar Band Rock Road Rock Highway Rock Blue-Collar Rock Midwest Rock Country Heartland Americana Heartland Roots Heartland Stadium Heartland Folk Heartland Narrative Heartland

Post-Punk / New Wave / Synth Rock

Popular enough to be high because it feeds Alternative, Indie, Gothic, Dance Rock, Synth Pop, and 80s revival sounds.

New Wave Post-Punk Synth Rock Post-Punk Revival Dance-Punk Gothic Post-Punk Darkwave Rock Art Punk Coldwave Minimal Wave New Romantic Rock No Wave Angular Indie Rock

Britpop / UK Indie / Madchester

Somewhat regional, but recognizable enough to keep above more niche experimental branches.

Britpop UK Indie Rock British Alternative Rock Madchester Baggy British Invasion Rock Post-Punk UK Jangle UK Shoegaze UK Mod Revival Pub Rock UK Art Rock

Progressive / Art Rock

High cultural importance, moderate mainstream browsing. Good for users who care about albums, musicianship, and concept records.

Progressive Rock Prog Rock Art Rock Symphonic Rock Concept Rock Progressive Metal Progressive Pop Rock Jazz Rock Space Rock Math Rock Krautrock Progressive Folk Rock Canterbury Scene Avant-Prog

Psychedelic / Acid / Space Rock

A major historical and modern indie/stoner/shoegaze crossover branch.

Psychedelic Rock Acid Rock Neo-Psychedelia Space Rock Psychedelic Pop Rock Psychedelic Folk Rock Heavy Psych Garage Psych Paisley Underground Desert Psych Dream Psych Psych Jam Rock Krautrock

Garage Rock / Revival Rock

High usefulness for raw, fuzzy, indie-adjacent rock.

Garage Rock Garage Revival 2000s Garage Revival Garage Punk 60s Garage Rock Proto-Punk Indie Garage Lo-Fi Garage Garage Blues Rock Garage Psych Garage Power Pop Post-Punk Garage Surf Garage

Shoegaze / Dream Rock

A strong modern discovery bucket because shoegaze, dream pop, and noise pop have active listener communities.

Shoegaze Dream Rock Dream Pop Rock Noise Pop Nugaze Slowcore Ambient Rock Post-Rock Shoegaze Spacegaze Dream Psych Ethereal Rock Blackgaze

Hardcore / Post-Hardcore

Less mainstream than Punk or Emo, but extremely important for classification. Cross-links heavily with Metal.

Hardcore Punk Post-Hardcore Melodic Hardcore Metalcore Screamo Emo Hardcore Easycore Skate Punk Straight Edge Hardcore Youth Crew Mathcore Crust Punk D-Beat Noise Rock Hardcore Christian Hardcore

Industrial / Electronic / Dance Rock

Important because many users will hear "rock plus machines" and need somewhere to put it.

Electronic Rock Industrial Rock Dance Rock Synth Rock Electro-Rock Alternative Dance Dance-Punk Synth-Pop Rock Industrial Metal Big Beat Rock EDM Rock Digital Rock Cyber Rock Electroclash Rock

Christian / Worship Rock

Deserves a real branch because it can be a theme, a market, a production style, and a listener-intent category.

Christian Rock Worship Rock Contemporary Christian Rock Christian Pop Rock Christian Alternative Rock Christian Hard Rock Christian Metal Christian Punk Christian Emo Gospel Rock Praise Rock Church Arena Rock Christian Folk Rock

Funk Rock / Soul Rock / Dance-Funk Rock

Important as a bridge to R&B, Soul, Funk, Hip-Hop, and Dance.

Funk Rock Soul Rock Funk Metal Rap Funk Rock Blue-Eyed Soul Rock Dance-Funk Rock Southern Soul Rock Jam Funk Rock Psychedelic Soul Rock Afro-Funk Rock Funk Punk Disco Rock

Early Rock & Roll / Roots Rock

Historically huge, but for a modern website usually a deeper browse category unless the catalog focus is strong.

Rock and Roll Rock 'n' Roll 50s Rock Roots Rock Rockabilly Rhythm & Blues Rock Doo-Wop Rock Piano Rock and Roll Boogie Rock Jump Blues Rock Hillbilly Rock Surf Rock Garage Proto-Rock Proto-Rock

Glam / Sleaze / Theatrical Rock

Strong catalog and image recognition, especially for 70s glam and 80s hair metal overlap.

Glam Rock Hair Metal Glam Metal Sleaze Rock Theatrical Rock Shock Rock Glitter Rock Glam Punk Art Glam New Romantic Rock Stadium Glam Camp Rock

Power Pop / Jangle / College Rock

Important but usually better as a secondary discovery path under Indie, Pop Rock, or Alternative.

Power Pop Jangle Rock Jangle Pop College Rock Indie Jangle Britpop Jangle New Wave Power Pop Garage Power Pop Twee Rock Paisley Underground Folk Jangle Surf Jangle

Doom / Stoner / Sludge Rock

A niche but important heavy branch. Cross-lists with Metal and Psychedelic Rock.

Stoner Rock Doom Rock Desert Rock Sludge Rock Fuzz Rock Heavy Psych Stoner Metal Doom Metal Acid Rock Doom Occult Rock Southern Sludge Drone Rock Space Doom

Surf / Instrumental Rock

Recognizable, useful, and historically important, but usually a narrower browsing lane.

Surf Rock Instrumental Rock Surf Guitar Hot Rod Rock Spy Rock Surf Punk Garage Surf Surf Psych Surf Pop Rock Western Surf Horror Surf Exotica Rock Space Age Rock

Jazz Rock / Fusion Rock

Important musicianly branch, but more niche for general listener browsing.

Jazz Rock Jazz Fusion Rock Fusion Rock Progressive Jazz Rock Funk Jazz Rock Jam Jazz Rock Brass Rock Horn Rock Canterbury Jazz Rock Latin Jazz Rock Avant-Jazz Rock Smooth Jazz Rock Instrumental Jazz Rock

Jam Rock / Improvisational Rock

Very important in live/festival contexts. Less important for casual genre browsing, but crucial for tagging.

Jam Rock Jam Band Rock Psychedelic Jam Rock Blues Jam Rock Country Jam Rock Funk Jam Rock Jazz Jam Rock Southern Jam Rock Progressive Jam Rock Folk Jam Rock Space Jam Rock Festival Jam Rock

Experimental / Noise / Post-Rock

Vital for accuracy, lower for mainstream popularity. Available but not high in the UI unless your audience is very music-nerdy.

Post-Rock Experimental Rock Noise Rock Math Rock Ambient Rock Instrumental Post-Rock Cinematic Post-Rock Avant-Rock No Wave Drone Rock Art Noise Rock Industrial Noise Rock Minimalist Rock Deconstructed Rock

Gothic / Dark / Deathrock

A distinct aesthetic and scene branch. Often cross-lists with Post-Punk, Punk, Metal, and Darkwave/Electronic.

Gothic Rock Goth Rock Darkwave Rock Gothic Post-Punk Deathrock Horror Punk Gothic Metal Ethereal Rock Occult Rock Coldwave Rock Southern Gothic Rock Dark Cabaret Rock Noir Rock

Global / Regional Rock

Broad and important, but many of these should eventually live under dedicated regional/global Level 1 trees too.

Latin Rock Rock en Español British Rock Japanese Rock / J-Rock Korean Rock / K-Rock Australian Rock Canadian Rock Chicano Rock Reggae Rock Ska Rock Afro-Rock Desert Blues Rock Celtic Rock Krautrock Tropicália Rock Anatolian Rock Nordic Rock Balkan Rock

Political / Conscious / Protest Rock

More of a theme layer than a sound-home, but useful for classification and search.

Protest Rock Political Rock Conscious Rock Folk Protest Rock Punk Protest Rock Anarcho-Punk Riot Grrrl Queercore Anti-War Rock Civil Rights Rock Labor Rock Environmental Rock Feminist Rock Hardcore Political Rock Satirical Rock

Novelty / Comedy / Character Rock

Sits low because it is usually a theme/persona tag rather than the main sound of the song.

Comedy Rock Novelty Rock Parody Rock Satirical Rock Nerd Rock Geek Rock Character Rock Theatrical Comedy Rock Horror Comedy Rock Punk Comedy Rock Pop Comedy Rock Surf Novelty Rock

Era / Scene Labels

Best treated as tags, not primary sound-homes. Last in the tree, but highly usable as filters.