In the USA, college rock was a term used to describe 1980s alternative rock bands which combined the experimentation of post punk and new wave with a more melodic pop style. So named because it was primarily played on college radio stations, college rock bands such as R.E.M. and the Replacements met with considerable commercial and critical success in the mid 1980s. By the 1990s, however, the genre had been supplanted by grunge and indie rock.
