Neo soul – a modern style of
soul music that differs from standard
contemporary R&B by having a less conventional sound that focuses on more soulful and emotive vocals and lyrics. Originally referred to as
alternative R&B, neo soul (which originated in the 1990s) is firmly considered to be a soul genre first and foremost.
Neotraditional country – alternative country music that attempts to imitate pre-Nashville 'traditional' country.
Nerdcore – hip hop with lyrics concerning typically 'nerdy' subjects.
New wave music – a style of
rock music that developed alongside
punk rock and is known for heavy usage of electronic instruments and distinctive music videos.
No wave – an
avant-garde style of
punk rock that rejected punk's adherence to basic
rock elements, which usually resulted in most no wave music having abrasive atonal sounds and repetitive, driving rhythms. Despite its name being a play on words off of
new wave music, no wave has little to do with that genre.
Noise music – trend in orchestral, rock, and electronic music where harsh, non-melodic, and often random sounds are used alongside or in place of conventional sounds.
Noise pop – a style of
alternative rock in which noises and feedback are used, but made into a melodic, often relaxing sound usually found in
pop music.
Nu jazz – modern jazz music that borrows from funk and EDM.
Nu metal – a style of
alternative metal that borrows elements from other genres (especially
hip hop music) and is known for its usage of down-tuned seven-string guitars, angst-filled lyrics that are delivered via screaming and/or rapping, and occasionally featuring a DJ to provide instrumentation such as sampling and turntable scratching.
Old-school hip hop – a term for
hip hop music recorded before approximately 1984; this style tended to have simpler
rapping techniques with lyrics that generally focused on party-related subject matter, resulting in songs that are much longer than those created by later hip hop artists.
Organ trio – a style of jazz from the 1960s that blended blues and jazz (and later "
soul jazz") and which was based around the sound of the
Hammond organ.
Pibroch – a type of music involving the Scottish bagpipes, typically using complex variations of a theme, like for service or ceremonies.
Piedmont blues – a style of
blues that originated on the East Coast of the United States. Characterized by syncopated fingerpicked guitar playing and
ragtime-based rhythms.
Pilipino – music that was created in the Philippines.
Plus 8 - features sped-up NY garage 4-to-the-floor rhythms that are combined with breakbeats. Snares are placed over the 2nd and 4th kickdrums, so in other places of the drum pattern.
Pop music – a genre of
popular music that is specifically designed to have wide appeal, usually by having catchy hooks, simple beats and melodies, clean production and vocals, and lyrics that usually center on love and romantic relationships (frequently the adolescence versions of these topics).
Pop punk – a style of
punk rock that contains elements of
pop music, particularly its catchy hooks, simple melodies, and clean production. Pop punk also shares pop's adolescence themes, although said themes are mostly written from a comedic, punk point of view and usually delve into topics frequently avoided in pop, such as teenage drunkenness and drug usage.
Post-grunge – a
grunge-inspired style that strips away that genre's mainstream-unfriendly elements (i.e. its introspective lyrics and abrasive tone) and replaces them with a cleaner production and lyrics about relationships.
Postmodern music – can refer to any music made in the postmodern era, although its usage is often limited to music (usually
classical music, although the term has been applied to some
popular musicians) inspired by postmodernism.
Post-punk – a
punk-inspired style that explores approaches beyond the genre's conventions.
Prostopinije – a style of monodic church
chant used by churches tied to the Rusyn people.
Proto-punk – any style of
garage rock that seems to contain elements of
punk rock but was made before its actual existence.
Psychedelic music – music that attempts to replicate the effects of and enhance the mind-altering experiences of hallucinogenic drugs; characterized by its disjunctive song structures, surreal lyrics, and its usage of Indian instruments (especially the sitar and tabla) and elaborate studio effects.
Psychedelic pop – a
psychedelic style of
pop music that replaces the disjunctive song structures and surreal lyrics found in psychedelic music with standard pop song structures and lyrics; one of the three original forms of psychedelic music.
Psychedelic rock – a
psychedelic style of
rock music that adds electrical guitar distortion and feedback into psychedelic music; one of the three original forms of psychedelic music.
Psychedelic soul – a style of
soul music that incorporates the
psychedelic elements of
psychedelic rock, particularly its usage of electrical guitar distortion and feedback and elaborate studio effects. Unlike other forms of psychedelic music, psychedelic soul lyrics tend to be more political than surreal.
Quiet Storm – music in the early 70s that started out as a style created by bands like The Temptations, The Smiths Connection, and Minnie Riperton that spawned a whole radio format. This style is very melodious with very smooth voices and mellow tones that evoke something either sensual or sentimental.
R
Raga rock – a fusion of
rock music and
Indian music; related to
Indian rock, the term is usually only applied to Western rock musicians (including those of Indian descent) incorporating Indian elements (such as its usage of
drone and the sitar) into their sound.
Reggae – a Jamaican music genre that is known for its offbeat rhythm (particularly the
one drop rhythm and
ska stroke) and Rastafarian-influenced lyrics.
Ringbang – a Caribbean fusion of music genres, a philosophy, and an aesthetic propounded by
Eddy Grant in 1994.
Riot grrrl – a
hardcore punk movement led by women that is heavily associated with third-wave feminism.
Rock music – a broad offshoot of
rock and roll that is typically characterized by a basic backbeat, 4/4 riffs, and is musically centered on the (usually electric) guitar, bass guitar, drums and vocals, although there are numerous styles within rock where this characterization does not apply.
Rock opera – a collection of
rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story.