SCENE VOCALISTS

These 18 singers from the 2000s will forever define the scene

Leave it to us to create a video for a list that was bound to fuel some fire. This APTV installment salutes singers from the 2000s whose voices shaped the scene. It was a pivotal time in youth culture. The combined tidal waves of annoying pop stars and nu-metal dudes in funny pants were giving entire continents massive ear fatigue. Fortunately, hope was found in VFW halls, local scenes and Warped Tour. We know what happened next.

Every music subculture has its standout talents and colorful characters. The singers from the 2000s that made our list all have certain criteria. There were people who could really belt them out perfectly every time. More than a few have voices that are idiosyncratic enough that there’s no denying who they are. And after a few summers of screamo, we couldn’t deny that a ton of work goes into that. This was the decade where “unclean vocals” was a credible term.

Read more: These 10 instrumental bands don’t need singers to get their fury across

We don’t know if we should consider this a spoiler alert or a discharge of duty. But here it goes: Some of your favorite singers from the 2000s probably aren’t mentioned here. (We’re sure you’ll tell us all about it in the comments.) Back then, there were so many bands singing songs from the heart instead of their wallets. You probably have dinged and scuffed iPods filled with them. Our list has less than 20. But we don’t think you’ll violently disagree with our choices once you hear the rationale behind them.

Here’s another thing that we didn’t even begin to consider. Do we love these singers for the way their voices sound? Or do we love them for the words that they wrote? Maybe a 50/50 compromise is the one thing we can truly agree on.