10 artists who patently refuse to be confined to a single genre

Genres? Who needs them? There used to be a time when music listeners were so defined by what they listened to, they might as well have been street gangs. Punk rockers. Metal heads. New wavers. Goths. Industrial rivetheads. Fun fact: AltPress founder Mike Shea started the magazine 35 years ago for the express notion of giving all genres (underground mostly) a place to reside.

What happened was that each succeeding generation of musicians got smarter. Punk and metal used to be mortal enemies for a good decade before Metallica issued Garage Days Re-Revisited (or was it DRI’s Crossover?). Kevin Lyman built an entire tour based on the collective genre of Dudes Playing Guitars Quickly And Loudly. The invention of MP3 players made sure the concept of the “guilty pleasure” (the songs and genres you’re embarrassed to tell your friends you liked) obsolete. Again, why do we need genres?

Read more: 10 instrumental bands who are killing it without vocalists

These days, enthusiastic music listeners want to know about, well, everything. But more importantly, so do a new generation of songwriters and musicians. They are the ones blazing trails and doing it without the strict boundaries that were characterized by recognized genres. And those are the kinds of artists we’re featuring in this video segment. They aren’t exclusively metal, hip-hop or EDM. Pop is not a dirty word to them. However you choose to get your message out is the only thing that matters. As it should be.

We hope you’re down with our list of  10 artists who patently refuse to be confined to a single genre. As the number of ways to discover music grow, so will the imaginations of those seeking their own voices. Whether you’re still looking for members to join your grind-polka band or your electric kazoo trio, your goal should be toward crafting a singular voice. Like these artists do.