Jangle pop

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Jangle pop was an American musical genre that arose in the middle of the 1960s, combining angular, chiming guitars and power pop structures. Jangle pop wasn't mainstream music - the bands' lyrics were often deliberately cryptic and their sound was raw and amateurish, bearing all the signs of do-it-yourself productions. The first and most famous jangle pop band was The Byrds, who eventually became one of the biggest bands in the world. Their twelve-string guitar style was the basis for jangle pop's diversification later in the 20th century. Jangle pop was closely related to the power pop genre, including bands like The Raspberries and Big Star, who blur the line between the two styles.

Jangle pop became an important force in the development of alternative rock in the early 1980s, as exemplified by the early albums of R.E.M., The Smiths, The Connells and The Beat Farmers. It was primarily a southern and midwestern US phenomenon, though a group of bands called the Paisley Underground led a more psychedelic movement on the West Coast. There were also vibrant scenes in the UK (Brilliant Corners, Jazz Butcher, Monochrome Set, Popguns, Loft, The Family Cat, Felt, James), Australia (The Go-Betweens, Hummingbirds, The Church) and New Zealand (The "Dunedin Sound" of bands such as The Clean, Mad Scene, Jean-Paul Sartre Experience, The Bats, The Chills).