# What is the most underrated band ever? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 5, 2003, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627 "2003-04-05T03:38:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kantalooppi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a5b964/32.png) [@Kantalooppi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kantalooppi)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/21 "2003-04-05T08:12:30Z")
> [@](#): > > aren’t there like at least 3 threads about this topic already? Actually, there have been at least 23 threads about underrated music. I’ve bookmarked them all. I love them - they all serve me well in my continual quest to find new music. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/22 "2003-04-05T08:29:10Z")
I don’t know about _most_ underrated, but I think Alice In Chains was pretty damn creative and interesting and smart and unique and they were never really huge or anything. I still dig AIC a lot. ---
**Author:** ![greenphan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c37758/32.png) [@greenphan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenphan)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/23 "2003-04-05T08:58:13Z")
I have to say **Bright Eyes** is most underrated and who, while not a band, has a continously rotating musical band around lead singer/songwriter Conor Oberest. He is seriously the best songwriter I’ve ever heard, even better than Mr. Zimmerman, who I adore. Another underrated, albeit disbanded, band is **Neutral Milk Hotel**. They are poppy in an alternative, romantic sort of way. The lead singer, if I’m not mistaken, then went on to join And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead… –greenphan ---
**Author:** ![Philosophocles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Philosophocles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philosophocles)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/24 "2003-04-05T09:09:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*I don’t know about _most_ underrated, but I think Alice In Chains was pretty damn creative and interesting and smart and unique and they were never really huge or anything. I still dig AIC a lot. \*\* Depends on how you define the threshold for “really huge”. AIC did get a lot of airplay on radio and MTV in the heyday of the “grunge movement”–songs including Angry Chair, Would, The Rooster. Granted, they always seemed to get somewhat less recognition than Nirvana and Pearl Jam. (Geez, how many Eddie Vedder clones have we heard in the past decade?) In response to the OP, XTC. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/25 "2003-04-05T09:13:38Z")
Extreme, whose concept album **III Sides to Every Story** was the most underrated rock album of the 1990s. Made this old Yes fan sigh with joy. ---
**Author:** ![Rigel\_Haloran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rigel\_Haloran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigel_Haloran)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/26 "2003-04-05T10:30:09Z")
Concrete Blonde I’m glad I was able to get past Joey to find out what a great singer Johnette really is. Rigel ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/27 "2003-04-05T10:38:44Z")
There are loads upon loads of bands who make fantastic music but will never get mainstream attention, because “making it big” these days is largely dependent upon looks and luck. The most underrated band ever is, almost by definition, someone none of us have ever heard of. My personal vote: Frank Black and the Catholics. ---
**Author:** ![Fox\_in\_the\_Snow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/82dd89/32.png) [@Fox\_in\_the\_Snow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fox_in_the_Snow)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/28 "2003-04-05T11:47:26Z")
I always felt the Replacements should have been much more popular than they were. The Afghan Whigs also should have got more acclaim. ---
**Author:** ![mouthbreather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a698b9/32.png) [@mouthbreather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mouthbreather)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/29 "2003-04-05T17:11:00Z")
Agree on the Afghan Whigs and XTC. Disagree on Wilco. Everyone critic and their grandma named Yankee Hotel Foxtrot as the best album of last year. I can’t pick up any music magazine at all without hearing about how great they are. That’s not to say that I dislike them (I actually have no opinion of them at all), it’s just saying that I think they are overrated, if anything. In response to the OP. my vote would have to go to The Minutemen. They blew the doors off of what was happening in punk rock at the time by working in a jazzy feel and (arguably) having more talent than any of their peers. Their music just gets better as it ages. ---
**Author:** ![markdiscordia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c6cbf5/32.png) [@markdiscordia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdiscordia)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/30 "2003-04-05T17:15:29Z")
I agree that Frank Black in all his incarnations (except the Pixies, who did rock but got plenty of attention) is highly underrated. 99% of people don’t know that the Violent Femmes have a lot of material besides Blister in the Sun, and it’s all great. Nerf Herder, Atom and His Package, Wall of Voodoo, Carbon Leaf, Fountains of Wayne, the Rugburns, Marcy Playground, and especially Ozma are other bands either wrongfully written off as half-hit wonders or not known at all. ---
**Author:** ![ptr2void](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ptr2void/32/3406_2.png) [@ptr2void](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ptr2void)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/31 "2003-04-05T18:42:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Walloon \* > \*\*Extreme, whose concept album **III Sides to Every Story** was the most underrated rock album of the 1990s. Made this old Yes fan sigh with joy. \*\* Hey Walloon…have you checked out [The Flower Kings](http://www.theflowerkings.com/) and/or [Spock’s Beard](http://www.spocksbeard.com)? Some Yes grooves in there, along with Genesis, King Crimson, Gentle Giant… ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/32 "2003-04-05T19:37:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RawkStah \* > \*\*Crap. I knew this was going to happen. I hit submit, and then remember The Kinks. \*\* I always felt sorry for The Kinks. They were at least as good as The Who (and I _love_ The Who) and were probably more widely ripped off, but never matched The Who’s success or that of many other less deserving British Invasion-era groups. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/33 "2003-04-05T19:46:00Z")
By definition, isn’t the most underrated band going to one that nobody has ever heard of? ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/34 "2003-04-05T21:35:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BrotherCadfael \* > \*\*By definition, isn’t the most underrated band going to one that nobody has ever heard of? \*\* Only if that band _deserves_ to be heard of. Generally, if no one has heard of a band there’s a good reason for it. ---
**Author:** ![Payton\_s\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3da27b/32.png) [@Payton\_s\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Payton_s_Servant)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/35 "2003-04-05T22:13:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*I don’t know about _most_ underrated, but I think Alice In Chains was pretty damn creative and interesting and smart and unique and they were never really huge or anything. I still dig AIC a lot. \*\* They had two #1 albums, both of which debuted on the chart at #1, which is still a significant accomplishment in this day and age. ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/36 "2003-04-05T22:21:19Z")
Game Theory / Loud Family. Some of the most perfect intelligent pop ever played. ---
**Author:** ![HalberMensch242](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecb155/32.png) [@HalberMensch242](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HalberMensch242)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/37 "2003-04-05T22:33:13Z")
I think it all depends on the context… A band like **Bright Eyes** , maybe underated in the context of mainstream music, but is mostly definetly NOT overated in the indie/emo community, everybody knows who they are, and they other hate em or love em… Now a band that is underated no matter what context is used, would probably be… **Gridlock**. These guys have had 2 brilliant idm albums and their drum and bass project **Dryft** , is light years ahead of the curve…yet they get little recoginition in the genre, where bands like Autechre and Boards of Canada dominate… ---
**Author:** ![MusicJunkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df788c/32.png) [@MusicJunkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MusicJunkie)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/38 "2003-04-05T22:48:50Z")
Can. There are very few people who hav heard of it. The ones that have adore it. Genesis. Everybody remenbers the awfull 80’s period when they should remenber the great early 70’s one. ---
**Author:** ![Payton\_s\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3da27b/32.png) [@Payton\_s\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Payton_s_Servant)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2003, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/39 "2003-04-06T00:20:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MusicJunkie \* > \*\* Genesis. Everybody remenbers the awfull 80’s period when they should remenber the great early 70’s one. \*\* What was awful about it? The fact that they didn’t have Peter Gabriel prancing around stage in yet another outrageously silly looking costume? The fact that they **God Forbid** , actually had a number of songs which were Top Ten hits? The fact that they had their first and only #1 album in the 1980’s? Or do you think they “sold out”? ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2003, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627/40 "2003-04-06T00:26:21Z")
I don’t think Genesis sold out, I just think that the stuff they did early on was much more interesting than the stuff they did later. While I don’t think they were awful post-Gabriel, I do think they were pretty boring. But that’s just my opinion. I’m sure a lot of folks would find some of the stuff I do like boring as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-underrated-band-ever/166627.md?page=3)