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

The 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 to b ..more

Vixen　

Described by some as a female Bon Jovi, Vixen is an all-female band that has specialized in very slick, commercial, and glossy hard rock and pop-metal. Vixen was never a favorite amon ..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

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 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 to f ..more

Vampire Weekend　

Mixing preppy, well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms, Vampire Weekend grew from one of the first bands to be championed by music bloggers into a Grammy Award-winn ..more

Vandenberg　

Led by guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, this Dutch hard-rock band also included singer Bert Heerink, bassist Dick Kemper, and drummer Joe Zoomer. After failing to break through, the band broke ..more

The Vaccines　

Wham　

Wham! sparked something of a pop revival in the mid-’80s and could arguably be held responsible for sparking off the boy band trend of the ’90s. They were unashamedly pop, to the point of ..more

Waxahatchee　

Named after the lake not far from her parents’ house in Alabama, Waxahatchee is the name of D.I.Y. songwriter Katie Crutchfield’s band, which began in 2011 as a solo project, appearing first in ..more

Y & T　

Loren Allred　

The 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

Lords Of Black　

Rory Gallagher　

For a career that was cut short by illness and a premature death, guitarist, singer, and songwriter Rory Gallagher sure accomplished a lot in the blues music world. Although Gallagher didn’t ..more

Robby Valentine　

Robin Trower　

Throughout his long and winding solo career, guitarist Robin Trower has had to endure countless comparisons to Jimi Hendrix due to his uncanny ability to channel Hendrix’s bluesy/psychedelic, ..more

Robert Fripp / Brian Eno　

Robert Palmer　

The career of blue-eyed soul singer Robert Palmer was a study in style versus substance. While the performer’s earliest work won praise for its skillful assimilation of rock, R＆B, and {\re ..more