Pertaining or referring to that which is not conventional, mainstream, or traditional.

a coin album, which has sheets made of plastic so that you can see both sides of the coin without removing the coin

Defanged art-world and lifestyle adjective still useful for politically correct final reports and press releases. In rock: "originally synonymous with good, true, and beautiful - more individualistic, less compromising and somethimes more obscure than mainstream rock - filled with integrity and street-level authority. But now that Nirvana has topped the sales charts and sold four million copies of an album, alternative often means casually dressed yet eager to cash in." (JP)

alt Has 2 Meanings Describing music which is different to the mainstream, generally used for indie music. We would welcome information from anyone who knows the origin of this term. Refers to recordings of a song, and Alternative Take of a song is a recording other than that on general release.

Guitar-based rock with desultory male vocalists or chirpy female vocalists. It grew in response to the last gasp of dinosaur bands from the 1970s and from the commercial success of bands such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Also known as modern rock.

Alternative is the ninth album by UK electronic music duo Pet Shop Boys. It was first released in 1995.