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It’s not easy to define British music in the 2000s.<\/p>\n
There were plenty of bands that had staked their claim in the ’90s \u2014 Oasis<\/a>, Blur<\/a>, Radiohead<\/a>, etc. \u2013 that continued to have a great deal of influence in the new\u00a0millennium.<\/p>\n And then there were bands like Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay and the Kooks, who understandably borrowed elements of ’60s psychedelic rock, ’70s punk and ’90s Brit Pop to create a sound for a new generation.\u00a0We also can’t forget the rise of solo artists like Amy Winehouse, Adele or James Blunt, who are now household names.<\/p>\n READ MORE:\u00a0<\/b>22 British Acts That Didn’t Break Big in America<\/a><\/p>\n It’s worth noting that this\u00a0was uncharted territory for the music business as a whole with more and more music getting to fans via digital distribution.<\/p>\n “You can watch Radiohead make their next record on the internet,” Noel Gallagher<\/a> of Oasis said in a 2002 interview<\/a>, presumably referencing when Radiohead became one of the first acts to lean more heavily on the internet to promote their 2000 album Kid A<\/em><\/a>. In that same interview, Gallagher pointed to a computer and said it will “ultimately destroy the imagination of mankind.”<\/p>\n There may be some validity to that, but from a contemporary standpoint it appears lots of British\u00a0musicians had no problem accessing their imagination in the digital age. Below, in no particular order, we’re taking a look at 30 Essential British Acts of the 2000s, each of whom played a unique role in the country’s cultural tapestry.<\/p>\n These artists dominated the U.K. charts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Gallery Credit: Allison Rapp<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n30 Essential British Acts of the 2000s<\/h2>\n