Artist Index How to use Artist INDEX

Voodoo Circle　

Voivod　

Voivod (singer Denis Snake Belanger, guitarist Denis Piggy d’Amour, drummer Michel Away Langevin, and bassist Jean-Yves Blacky Theriault) were one of the first thrash bands f ..more

Velvet Underground　

Few rock groups can claim to have broken so much new territory, and maintain such consistent brilliance on record, as the Velvet Underground during their brief lifespan. It was the group’s lot t ..more

Venom　

A seminal influence on the evolution of thrash and black metal, Venom formed during the late ’70s in Newcastle, England. Originally a five-piece group called Oberon, they eventually trimmed t ..more

Vicious Rumors　

Vicious Rumors were formed in 1980 in Santa Rosa, CA, by guitarist Geoff Thorpe. Filling out the original lineup were vocalist Mark Tate, guitarist Jim Cassero, bassist Jeff Barnacle, a ..more

Virgins　

Van Halen　

With their 1978 eponymous debut, Van Halen simultaneously rewrote the rules of rock guitar and hard rock in general. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen redefined what the electric guitar could do, ..more

Van Morrison　

Equal parts blue-eyed soul shouter and wild-eyed poet-sorcerer, Van Morrison is among popular music’s true innovators, a restless seeker whose incantatory vocals and alchemical fusion of R＆B, jazz, ..more

Vampire Weekend　

Describing their sound as Upper West Side Soweto, New York City’s Vampire Weekend mix preppy, well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms. Ezra Koenig, Chris Bai ..more

Van Der Graaf Generator　

An eye-opening trip to San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury during the summer of 1967 inspired British-born drummer Chris Judge Smith to compose a list of possible names for the rock group he wished t ..more

The Vaccines　

One Direction　

Following the success of JLS and the Wanted, X-Factor contestants One Direction were the next group of heartthrobs to help revive the previously dying concept of the boy band. Niall ..more

OneRepublic　

Featuring the anthemic songwriting of Ryan Tedder, OneRepublic rose to prominence in 2007, when Apologize began its reign as the most popular digital download in American history. Although ..more

W.A.S.P.　

One of the heavier bands to come out of the early-’80s L.A. metal scene, W.A.S.P. quickly rose to national infamy thanks to their shock rock image, lyrics, and live concerts. Unfortunately, o ..more

THE WiLDHEARTS　

The Wildhearts were the kind of band that the British rock press has wet dreams about： creatively brilliant, completely out-of-control, and utterly doomed from day one. Led by charismatic lunati ..more

Wild Nothing　

Jack Tatum, formerly of Jack and the Whale and Facepaint, began making his shimmery, synth-washed indie pop recordings under the name Wild Nothing in the summer of 2009. Emerging at a time ..more

Winery Dogs　

Wire　

Wire emerged out of the British punk explosion but, from the outset, maintained a distance from that scene and resisted easy categorization. While punk rapidly became a caricature of itself, ..more

Rolling Stones　

By the time the Rolling Stones began calling themselves the World’s Greatest Rock ＆ Roll Band in the late ’60s, they had already staked out an impressive claim on the title. As the self-consciously ..more

Laura Nyro　

Laura Nyro was one of pop music’s true originals： A brilliant and innovative composer, her songs found greater commercial success in the hands of other performers, but her own records -- intrica ..more