History Main / PerishingAltRockVoice

[[folder: Metal]]

* Charlie Simpson from Fightstar fits all the criteria listed above.

* Phil Bozeman of Music/{{Whitechapel}}, as of ''Mark of the Blade'' (which introduced cleans on several songs).

The Perishing Alt-Rock Voice may be interspersed with {{Metal Scream}}s and Stuttering Wailing; it also frequently leads to mondegreens and IndecipherableLyrics, as well as SomethingSomethingLeonardBernstein. A staple of {{Grunge}} and ShoeGazing, as well as the bread and butter of DreamPop, with a tendency to make surprise appearances in {{Industrial}}. May overlap in use with Emo Whispering and {{Yarling}}: while it's easy to sound perishing if you're singing nasally [[note]]because you're actually blocking the nose and thereby getting less air[[/note]], a lot of perishing singers (like Music/MyBloodyValentine, or Thom from Music/{{Radiohead}}) aren't nasal at all, and (as per above) they're usually far from emoting overtly. Not infrequently crosses over into CreepyMonotone or DissonantSerenity. Related to ThreeChordsAndTheTruth, in that the more fanatical ones regard polished, full-bodied singing (which comes from extensive study with a singing teacher) as fake and scratchy, raw singing as authentic and genuine.

* Music/{{Beck}}

* Alice Glass of Music/CrystalCastles does this on "Celestica" and "Tell Me What To Swallow", the latter used to TearJerker effect once the [[AbusiveParents meaning of the lyrics]] becomes clear.

The Perishing Alt-Rock Voice may be interspersed with {{Metal Scream}}s and Stuttering Wailing; it also frequently leads to mondegreens and IndecipherableLyrics, as well as SomethingSomethingLeonardBernstein. A staple of {{Grunge}} and ShoeGazing, as well as the bread and butter of DreamPop, with a tendency to make surprise appearances in {{Industrial}}. May overlap in use with Emo Whispering and {{Yarling}}: while it's easy to sound perishing if you're singing nasally [[note]]because you're actually blocking the nose and thereby getting less air[[/note]], a lot of perishing singers (like Music/MyBloodyValentine, or Thom from Music/{{Radiohead}}) aren't nasal at all, and (as per above) they're usually far from emoting overtly. Not infrequently crosses over into CreepyMonotone or DissonantSerenity. Related to ThreeChordsAndTheTruth, in that the more fanatical ones regard polished, full-bodied singing as fake and scratchy singing as authentic.

* Music/PhoebeBridgers's voice has been described as a [[https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/phoebe-bridgers/small-and-quiet-singers-phoebe-bridgers-taylor-swift/ gentle purr]] and a [[https://www.thehofstrachronicle.com/category/arts-and-entertainment/2020/6/24/phoebe-bridgers-pushes-boundaries-with-punisher soft-spoken lullaby]]. She [[https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/asmr-billie-eilish-phoebe-bridgers-b1787744.html apparently]] takes inspiration from ASMRVideo.

* Probably the most perished example of this trope is Mark Kozelek from Music/RedHousePainters and Music/SunKilMoon. The complete lifelessness in his voice in every song he sings just makes the music all the more depressing.
* Music/KurtCobain from Music/{{Nirvana}}. His songs often alternated between quiet passages of this and a louder, more energetic sound.

* Most of the indie/AlternativeRock side of {{BritPop}} sounded like this at times.
* Win Butler of Music/ArcadeFire pulls this out fairly often.

* For Music/{{Can}}, both their first vocalists sound like this at times, with a tendency to Stuttering Wailing on the part of both, and (primarily) to Emo Whispering on the part of Damo.

* Chino Moreno of Music/{{Deftones}} alternates between this style and MetalScream.
** As does Richard Patrick from Music/{{Filter}}.

* Music/ImogenHeap seems like a strong female example.
* Jeremy Enigk of Music/SunnyDayRealEstate.
* Chris Simpson of the short lived emo band Mineral.
* Jim and Willaim Reid of Music/TheJesusAndMaryChain
* Matt Berninger of Music/TheNational seems to be heading toward this as of late, as exemplified by their 2017 song “Walk It Back”.
* Speaking of "Walk It Back", Music/LisaHannigan (whose distorted vocals can be heard on the track) reaches this on occasion.
* Ed Kowalczyk of Music/{{Live}}

* Music/NewOrder, especially through TheEighties.
** New Order's previous incarnation Music/JoyDivision also has shades of this, particularly in the tracks recorded near the end of lead singer Ian Curtis' lifespan. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in an ''extremely'' dark way, seeing as how Curtis [[CreatorBreakdown was being eaten away by rapidly worsening depression]], eventually [[DrivenToSuicide dying by suicide,]] cutting the band's career as Joy Division short.
* [[Music/NineInchNails Trent Reznor]] sounds like this a lot of the time, except for the times he [[CarefulWithThatAxe screams]].
* Music/MarilynManson, when not [[CarefulWithThatAxe screaming]], singing somewhat normally or taking a stroll through yet another musical genre, with his standard always-sounding-like-he's-gonna-pass-out singing, is often this, especially in softer songs or softer sections of songs, like "The Nobodies".
* Stephen Malkmus from Music/{{Pavement}}

* Ian [=McCulloch=] from Music/EchoAndTheBunnymen had a quivering wail in TheEighties and TheNineties, followed by a deeper rasp in TheNoughties after years of smoking.

* Chris Martin from Music/{{Coldplay}}.
* Jarvis Cocker of Music/{{Pulp}}.
* Craig Nicholls of Music/TheVines on their slower songs. For some other songs, he uses a MetalScream.
* Music/SufjanStevens, although he can go for a more energetic sound when doing electronica.

* Jason Pierce from {{Music/Spiritualized}}.
* Mark Oliver Everett from Music/{{Eels}}.
* The as-yet-unnamed main singer from ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'''s FakeBand, "sloshy".
* For the Music/VelvetUnderground, there's Music/LouReed's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xcwt9mSbYE dry version]] and Music/{{Nico}}'s [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KiU5P4ihIQ Euro-dirge one]]. John Cale also definitely qualifies, as does his replacement, Doug Yule. Velvet Underground may well be the {{Trope Maker}}s.

* Toni Halliday from Music/{{Curve}}, but to a noticeably lesser extent than other shoegaze bands, drifting in and out of it between songs and even within the same song (their biggest hit, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZO8eCE3cyM Fait Accompli]]", is a good example). Some of the band's later songs distorted and dampened down Halliday's vocals, achieving an odd effect where she has the volume of a perishing alt-rock voice, but a thousand times more power and emotion. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTA-_E5rLr4 Observe.]]
* Ditto Ronnie Martin of Music/JoyElectric. Perhaps he doesn't want to sound out of place among all those synthesizers.

* Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star sings like this.
* Charlie Simpson from FightStar fits all the criteria listed above.
* Anders Friden from Music/InFlames, when he's not [[HarshVocals growling]], uses a vocal style that is very reminiscent of this trope despite InFlames being a MelodicDeathMetal band. (although their later work incorporates greater levels of AlternativeMetal.
* This is Music/LanaDelRey's default setting.
* Both singers of Music/TheXX have this, always.
* Music/AlanisMorissette in her quiet moments.
* Similarly, Music/{{Bjork}}.
* Music/LisaGermano.
* Music/ToriAmos.
* Music/BillieEilish.
* ''[[{{Music/Gorillaz}} Windmill, windmill, for the land, turn forever hand-in-hand.]]''
** [[{{Music/Gorillaz}} I ain't happy, I'm feeling' glad/I've got sunshine in a bag...]]
** See also: Music/{{blur}}.
* Music/LizPhair, specially in ''Music/ExileInGuyville'' (the opening track "6′1″ is probably the most low-energy)
* Lena Kowski of Jabberwock, when she's not busy inducing CarefulWithThatAxe.
* Annie Lennox's dominating voice was one of the reasons behind the Music/{{Eurythmics}} success during the '80s with their second album ''Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)''. Her voice in their debut album ''In The Garden'' is this trope however, appearing to float over the songs.
* Julie Christmas, when she's not screaming.
* Used to great effect by current indie darlings [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPqr7v8hSG4 Warpaint]]
* Brian Molko of Music/{{Placebo}}, moreso in earlier songs.
* The Wygal sisters of Music/{{Splendora}} were queens of the alt-rock monotone, which is almost certainly why they got to do the theme song for ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}''.
** Speaking of ''Daria'', love interest [[DreadfulMusician Trent Lane]] ''tries'' to pull this sound off, but ends up sounding totally stoned (and probably is).
* Music/OKGo tends towards this, but the level of "perishing" varies between songs. The most evident example is probably their cover of Music/{{The Cure|Band}}'s "The Lovecats," which is [[IntercourseWithYou fairly obviously]] of the "sexed-out bliss" variety.
* Black Moth Super Rainbow later became known for running all of their lead vocals through vocoder, but their first album, ''Falling Through A Field'', more often featured vocalist Tobacco singing in a hoarse, monotone whisper through some light distortion instead.
* Alice Glass of Music/CrystalCastles does this on "Celestica" and "Tell Me What To Swallow", the latter used to TearJerker effect once the [[AbusiveParents meaning of the lyrics]] becomes clear.
* Jonas Renske from Music/{{Katatonia}} sings like he's permanently on the verge of having an emotional breakdown after being traumatized for years.
* Music/NickDrake may not be the TropeMaker (Lou Reed and John Cale probably have a heavier claim) but he could certainly qualify as one of the {{Trope Codifier}}s.
* A recurring but not chronic habit of Natalie Merchant's during her tenure with Music/TenThousandManiacs.
* Remarkably early example (of the ennui/snark variety) in ''Film/{{Bedazzled 1967}}'' (1967) - Stanley (Dudley Moore) wishes to be a pop star and is instantly in a ''Ready, Steady, Go'' style show, passionately singing his heart out. His thunder is immediately stolen when the Devil (Peter Cook) does a droning number, dismissing his backup singers' praises in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1OHlLICfEk robotic monotone]].
* Music/JackWhite with his Music/TheWhiteStripes, side project bands and solo careers. ''Especially'' live. One moment he's droning in monotones, the next he's screaming with the utmost control, the next moment he could ''start preaching to the crowd''. Also count his guitar; he wrings out every note worthy of being in the song.

* Kelly Jones from Music/{{Stereophonics}}, which has been once described as "whiskey vocals".
* J. Loren of the band HURT uses this often. Most notable in "Overdose". Justified, there, as the narrator is explaining the reasons behind [=ODing=], and 'dies' at the end.
* Mark Gardener of Music/{{Ride}}.
* Music/NeilYoung does this in his very early recordings, e.g. "On The Way Home" and [[Music/AfterTheGoldRush "After The Gold Rush"]], and heavily on the ''On The Beach'' and ''Tonight's The Night'' albums [[note]]Mostly because he was stoned and/or drunk off his ass during the recording of both[[/note]]. Some fans consider him the {{Trope Maker|s}}.
* Joe Newman of Music/AltJ.
* Fernanda Takai of Music/PatoFu.
* Ichirō Yamaguchi sings this way in {{Music/Sakanaction}}'s song "Monochrome Tokyo". It starts pretty monotonous, and then in the chorus he almost sounds like he's in pain.
* Canadian band/comedy troupe Radio Free Vestibule (aka The Vestibules) invoked this along with nearly every other 90's alt-rock trope in their self-explanatory [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwujU8nra2o The Grunge Song]].
* TK from LingTositeSigure sings with a falsetto so often that it's become his SignatureStyle.

* Dave Pirner from Music/SoulAsylum.
* Music/{{Elliott Smith}}'s vocals have been described as "spiderweb-thin."

* Jack White with his Music/TheWhiteStripes, side project bands and solo careers. ''Especially'' live. One moment he's droning in monotones, the next he's screaming with the utmost control, the next moment he could ''start preaching to the crowd''. Also count his guitar; he wrings out every note worthy of being in the song.

* Black Moth Super Rainbow later became known for running all of their lead vocals through vocoder, but their first album, ''Falling Through A Field'', more often featured vocalist Tobacco singing in a hoarse, monotone whisper through some light distortion instead. Arguably, he sounded more like he was from the UncannyValley ''before'' he started using a vocoder.

* Mark Oliver Everett from Music/{{Eels}}