A cult band is a term often used to describe a rock and roll band with a dedicated base of fans whose appreciation of the band goes beyond merely enjoying their music. Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ... Music is a form of art and entertainment or other human activity that involves organized and audible sounds and silence. ...

Some of these bands may also be, or may have been at one time, mainstream commercial successes (examples: Nirvana, the Grateful Dead, and The Doors). Nirvana was a popular rock band from Aberdeen, Washington, United States. ... The Grateful Dead were an American psychedelia-influenced rock band formed in 1965 in San Francisco. ... The Doors were an American rock band that formed in 1965 in Los Angeles. ...

Many other cult bands have not been commercially successful in the mainstream sense, but have acquired a strong, albeit small, fan base (examples: Captain Beefheart, X, Hawkwind, Kyuss, Atticus, and John's Children.) Don Van Vliet in a 1982 promotional photo. ... X on the cover of their 1997 collection Beyond and Back: The X Anthology. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article is about the band Kyuss. ... Atticus (formed in 1995 in Knoxville, Tennessee) is a rock band noted for progressive compositions, complex harmonies, innovative cover art, and a small but loyally devoted fan base. ... Johns Children were a Leatherhead, England-based 1960s proto-punk band featuring future T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan, whose 1967 single Desdemona was banned by the BBC for the controversial lyric, Lift up your skirt and fly. Their manager was Simon Napier-Bell, who devised white stage outfits and...

Some cult bands may be known as one-hit wonders within the broader popular music scene, but have a following which appreciates all their music, not just their hit (examples: Bloodrock, Slade, and The Pursuit of Happiness.) UK 45 rpm single for Mickey (1982) by one-hit wonder Toni Basil CD single of the Baha Mens Who Let the Dogs Out? In the music industry, a one-hit wonder is an artist generally known for only one hit single. ... Popular music is music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public and are disseminated by one or more of the mass media. ... Bloodrocks debut album Bloodrock was a Fort Worth, Texas-based rock & roll band in the 1970s. ... Slade were an English glam rock and hard rock band. ... The Pursuit of Happiness are a Canadian rock group, who were one of Canadas most successful independent bands in the 1980s. ...

Cult bands often have a unique conception or musical style which has led to their cult status. It is this uniqueness which sets the band apart from others and which fans find attractive. This also has prevented some cult bands from achieving wider success, as some cult bands are known for experimentation or musical styles outside of mainstream tastes. Often, cult bands are no longer performing and recording, but continue to have a following. Indeed, the following today can be larger than when the band was still together.

Specific musical styles may also have a cult following of the entire subgenre, including ambient music, garage bands, grunge, heavy metal, new wave, progressive rock, psychedelic music, punk rock, ska, southern rock, techno, and surf music. A genre is any of the traditional divisions of art forms from a single field of activity into various kinds according to criteria particular to that form. ... Ambient music is a loosely defined musical genre that incorporates elements of a number of different styles - including jazz, electronic music, new age, rock and roll, modern classical music, reggae, traditional, world and even noise. ... The term garage band has several meanings, all related in someway to music. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is an independent-rooted music genre that became a commercially successful offshoot of hardcore punk, thrash metal, and alternative rock in the late 1980s and early 1990s. ... Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that emerged as a defined musical style in the 1970s, having its roots in hard rock bands which, between 1969 and 1974,[1] mixed blues and rock to create a hybrid with a thick, heavy, guitar-and-drums-centered sound, characterised by... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Progressive rock (sometimes shortened to prog, prog rock, or progrock) is a subgenre of rock music which arose in the late 1960s, reached the peak of its popularity in the 1970s, but continues as a musical form long afterward. ... Psychedelic music may refer to: Psychedelic rock, a subgenre of rock Psychedelic trance, a subgenre of trance Psychedelic folk, a subgenre of folk Psychedelic pop, a subgenre of pop Psychedelic soul, a subgenre of soul See also Acid breaks Acid house Acid jazz Acid punk Acid rap Acid rock Acid... Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ... Ska is a form of Jamaican music combining elements of traditional mento and calypso with an American jazz and rhythm and blues sound. ... Southern rock is a style of rock music that was very popular in the 1970s, and retains a fan base to the present. ... Techno is a form of electronic dance music that became prominent in Detroit, Michigan during the mid-1980s with influences from electro, New Wave, Funk and futuristic fiction themes that were prevalent and relative to modern culture during the end of the Cold War in industrial America at that time. ... Surf music is a genre of popular music associated with surf culture. ...

See also: cult film, subculture Cult film is a colloquial term for a film that has accrued a devoted group of fans. ... As understood in sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a set of people with a distinct set of behavior and beliefs that differentiate them from a larger culture of which they are a part. ...