Lovers Rock: 40 Alternative and Indie Bands Featuring Romantic Couples
It’s tough enough keeping a band together – stroking egos, maintaining a creative balance, getting along on tour buses. Bringing a romantic relationship into the mix just seems like a death wish. Yet, the 40 alternative and indie rock bands in this gallery are/were not only about the music, but oftentimes commitment, marriage and children.
In each of the above cases, we found an instance of where music and romance were interconnected. Some of these groups are centered on a long-running relationship (Mates of State, the Cramps, Low), while others witnessed the romance fizzle but the band continue (Sleater-Kinney, the Subways, the White Stripes), although not always for long. Still other bands couldn’t handle the end of members’ relationships, with one member departing the act (the Apples in Stereo, Swans) or it wrecking the group entirely (Sonic Youth, Handsome Furs).
For every couple in this gallery that have stayed together through commercial ups and downs and seemingly kept their relationship out of the music, like Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads, there’s a Gwen Stefani and Tony Kanal of No Doubt, where they turned their breakup into one of their biggest hits. And then there's the unique case of the Velvet Underground, where the bohemian atmosphere surrounding Andy Warhol's Factory in the mid-'60s resulted in singer Nico reportedly having affairs with both Lou Reed and John Cale during her stint in the band.
Here are 40 alternative groups that feature (or featured) romantic couples among their members. Click above to begin.