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The Groove

The greatest avant-garde artists of all time

52 artists ranked by the Groove — music.nw’s own measure of renown. Not an opinion, a fact computed from the record. Why?

CB
No. 1

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1965–1982 · experimental rock
2.686
Why this number?
The full board
2 Kraftwerk Germany flagGermany · 1970– · electronic 2.672
3 Radiohead United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1991– · alternative rock 2.377
4 Arcturus Norway flagNorway · 1990– · progressive metal 2.276
5 Coil United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1982–2004 · experimental 1.928
6 David Bowie United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1947–2016 · rock 1.745
7 Frank Zappa United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1940–1993 · rock 1.591
8 Einstürzende Neubauten Germany flagGermany · 1980– · industrial 1.440
9 SOPHIE United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1985–2021 · deconstructed club 1.367
10 The Mothers of Invention United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1964–1975 · rock 1.366
11 Philip Glass United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1937– · classical 1.350
12 Ye United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1977– · hip hop 1.185
13 Björk Iceland flagIceland · 1965– · electronic 1.100
14 The Residents United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1966– · experimental 1.066
15 Miles Davis United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1926–1991 · jazz 1.050
16 Boards of Canada United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1986– · electronic 0.972
17 Magma France flagFrance · 1969– · zeuhl 0.956
18 This Heat United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1975–1982 · experimental rock 0.846
19 Animal Collective United States of America flagUnited States of America · 2000– · neo-psychedelia 0.818
20 The Velvet Underground United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1964–1996 · art rock 0.792
21 King Crimson United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1968–2021 · progressive rock 0.738
22 Kate Bush United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1958– · art rock 0.709
23 Tom Waits United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1949– · rock 0.703
24 Eric Dolphy United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1928–1964 · avant-garde jazz 0.703
25 Robert Wyatt United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1945– · art rock 0.698
26 Can Germany flagGermany · 1968–1991 · krautrock 0.646
27 Talk Talk United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1981–1991 · post-rock 0.623
28 Talking Heads United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1974–1991 · new wave 0.604
29 Sonic Youth United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1981–2011 · alternative rock 0.569
30 Jefferson Airplane United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1965–1973 · psychedelic rock 0.522
31 Wendy Carlos United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1939– · experimental 0.462
32 Patti Smith United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1946– · art rock 0.447
33 Electric Masada United States of America flagUnited States of America · 2003– · heavy metal 0.444
34 Amon Düül II Germany flagGermany · 1969– · krautrock 0.431
35 Earth United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1990– · drone 0.418
36 Ween United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1984–2024 · alternative rock 0.406
37 Pink Floyd United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1965–2014 · progressive rock 0.398
38 Joanna Newsom United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1982– · folk 0.382
39 Wire United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1976– · post-punk 0.375
40 Zeal & Ardor Switzerland flagSwitzerland · 2013– · avant-garde metal 0.356
41 Venetian Snares Canada flagCanada · 1975– · breakcore 0.334
42 The Mars Volta United States of America flagUnited States of America · 2001– · rock 0.326
43 Butthole Surfers United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1982– · alternative rock 0.320
44 Swans United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1982– · experimental rock 0.274
45 Brian Eno United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1948– · ambient 0.273
46 David Byrne United States of America flagUnited States of America · 1952– · art rock 0.273
47 Soft Machine United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1966– · progressive rock 0.272
48 Super Furry Animals United Kingdom flagUnited Kingdom · 1993– · rock 0.259