The instrumental has often been used in the genre of alternative music. Whether it springs from the absence of concrete, useable lyrics or the desire of the composer to leave a song without vocals and lyrics, the instrumental has long been a staple of the genre and has many different interpretations. Dating back to the 1970s, artists such as Brian Eno, Roxy Music, and David Bowie have all crafted some form of instrumental music.
Electronica, classified by extensive use of electronic instrumentation using synthesizers and drum machines, is a mostly instrumental form of expression. Electronic-driven music offers a plethora of instrumental tracks that rely on mood and atmosphere rather than lyrics and vocals to express the artists' intentions.
British pop music, especially throughout the 1980s, brought many different approaches to the instrumental. Bands such as The Smiths, The Cure and Depeche Mode were known for writing and recording compelling instrumentals that were often considered some of their best work. The 1990s saw British bands such as The Stone Roses and Suede release some seminal instrumentals, sometimes as B-sides and sometimes as album cuts.
The 90s gave way to a specific subgenre of alternative rock that was purely instrumental. Bands such as 16 Horsepower, Stinking Lizaveta and Don Caballero are examples of bands that played heavier, riff-induced rock that was mostly instrumental. While the styles bled into other genres such as psychdelic and ambient, an entire scene of nonvocalizing bands let their riffs and runs speak for them