College rock was a term used in the United States to describe 1980s alternative rock before the term "alternative" came into common usage. So named because it was primarily played on campus radio stations, these bands combined the experimentation of post punk and new wave with a more melodic pop style and an underground sensibility. It is not necessarily a genre term, but there do exist some common aesthetics among college rock bands. Artists such as R.E.M., 10,000 Maniacs, U2, and the Replacements became some of the better-known examples in the mid 1980s. By the 1990s, however, the genre had been supplanted by grunge and indie rock.[1][2]
