Rock music has been incorporating orchestral moments into songs for decades. From Led Zeppelin to Queen, there are some great examples, and the alt-rock scene was very quick to pick up the torch.
Over the years, there have been some alt-rock bands making brilliant use of string and orchestra arrangements — like Radiohead and Muse — and we have a few that deserve a moment in the spotlight…
“Blood” – The Dear Hunter
The Dear Hunter has often utilized orchestral music in their songs (“Waves” is a good example). One of my absolute favorites is “Blood,” from their 2016 album Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional.
The song is kind of a gothic-inspired alt-rock tune. Like many The Dear Hunter songs, it uses subtly epic orchestral elements to develop its grandiose sound.
“Lakini’s Juice” – Live
Live’s “Lakini’s Juice” stands out as a song with surprisingly good use of orchestra. Mainly by how the string arrangement creates a juxtaposition between itself and the heavy guitar that drives the song’s melody.
It’s a dark, dissonant alt-tock song that grows into a bombastic rock track. It also has a clever use of orchestral parts throughout its five-minute runtime.
“Daydream” – Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins have always delivered exceptionally well when it comes to incorporating orchestral elements into their music. This is why the song of theirs that made this list is one of the first — if not THE first — that they ever crafted using string elements.
The final song on the Smashing Pumpkins’ debut album, “Daydream” starts acoustic and builds into a gorgeous, stringed dream-pop experiment. All while, then-bassist D’Arcy Wretzky handled vocals. It’s a great ’90s alt-rock song that gives Beatles-worship in the best way.
“Bittersweet Symphony” – The Verve Pipe
I mean, this is it. Right? The perfect example of an alt-rock song utilizing symphonic elements to elevate its sound. One could even say that The Verve Pipe’s “Bittersweet Symphony” set the standard for everything that came after it.
Between the strings and the infrequent electronic dynamics, “Bittersweet Symphony” is an iconic alt-rock song that took the world by storm and hasn’t really let go for three decades.
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