In today’s music scene beyond the 2020s, hit songs and classics from the 2000s are already remembered as classic numbers.
While there may not have been a massive movement that defined the era like grunge or alternative rock in the 1990s, the rapid spread of the internet gave rise to many remarkable songs and artists unique to a time when our very way of engaging with music was transforming.
So this time, we’re highlighting hit songs and timeless tracks from Western rock in the 2000s.
Centered around the keyword “rock,” we’ll deliver a diverse and exciting lineup!
- Masterpiece and hit songs by recommended Western bands from the 2000s
- [Masterpiece Selection] A Compilation of Classic Western Rock Songs
- Commercial songs from Western music that were hits in the 2000s. Popular commercial jingles.
- Debut songs by Western rock bands from the 2000s
- Dance music from Western artists that was a hit in the 2000s. World-famous classics and popular songs.
- Ballad songs from Western music that were hits in the 2000s
- Recommended Western rock bands; popular overseas bands.
- Recommendation of Western Rock: Recommended Foreign Rock Bands, Popular Bands
- Moving Western songs that were hits in the 2000s
- [Y2K] A roundup of debut songs by Western girl bands that emerged in the 2000s
- Hit Western songs from the 2010s. Recommended classics.
- [Western Music] Both Speed and Bittersweetness! Recommended Melodic Hardcore (Melodic Punk) Bands [2025]
- 2000s Western pop hits you still hear in commercials, movies, and on the streets
Now’s the time to listen! Classic and hit Western rock songs from the 2000s (1–10)
Welcome To The Black ParadeMy Chemical Romance
In the 2000s rock scene, the music genre known as “emo,” which became a major trend back then, has now permeated everyday language as a word for expressing emotion.
For better or worse, among the bands labeled as “emo” in the 2000s, the presence of My Chemical Romance—the most successful of the bunch—is indispensable when talking about 2000s rock.
The lead track from their third album, The Black Parade, which propelled their popularity onto a global stage—Welcome to the Black Parade—is a masterpiece that inherits the conceptual, grandiose, and dramatic rock of the ’60s and ’70s, and distills it through a 2000s filter in the best possible way.
Its catchy melodies that appeal to Japanese listeners and its expansive, story-driven worldbuilding… it reminded us just how cool stadium-sized rock can be.
Since the album itself is built around a single concept, if you like the song, be sure to check out the album as well!
Mr. BrightsideThe Killers
The moment you hear that guitar arpeggio in the intro, it instantly brings back memories of the 2000s—many people must feel that way.
Hailing from Las Vegas, The Killers became popular in the UK before their home country, and went on to achieve worldwide success as one of the biggest bands to emerge in the 2000s.
Among the many hits they crafted, deftly wielding a grand, 1980s new wave–style synth sound, their debut single “Mr.
Brightside” stands out as an especially beloved classic.
Brandon Flowers’s emotional vocals—pairing a poignant melody with the turmoil of suspecting a lover’s infidelity—are always incredible and make you want to sing along.
Personally, I also recommend checking out the music video featuring actor Eric Roberts, who is Julia Roberts’s brother.
Its lavish, glittering costumes and cinematic atmosphere, so characteristic of their Las Vegas roots, are truly fantastic!
NumbLinkin Park
From the late 1990s, bands playing so-called nu metal—loud, aggressive rock—debuted one after another and gained popularity, but the extraordinary success that Linkin Park achieved went far beyond the confines of any single genre movement.
They skillfully incorporated elements not only of heavy rock but also of electronica and hip-hop into their own sound, and produced many masterpieces with melodies that move every listener.
Now, in the 2020s—more than 20 years after their debut—is precisely the time to reevaluate their achievements.
Even within their brilliant discography that has profoundly influenced subsequent bands, 2003’s Numb stands out as a quintessential classic, highlighted by the searing, heart-rending emotion in the vocals of the late, incomparable singer Chester Bennington.
Re-released as a mashup with the hit rapper Jay-Z’s Encore, it can be called a pivotal track beloved across genres and generations.
Beyond the excellence of the music itself, the lyrics—evoking despair and resignation—reflect Chester’s state of mind at the time, and are almost painfully raw.
If you like this song, be sure to read the Japanese-to-English translation of the lyrics.
A Certain RomanceArctic Monkeys
In 2005, as the early-2000s rock ’n’ roll revival—led by American bands like The Strokes and The White Stripes—was beginning to settle, Arctic Monkeys emerged from Sheffield, England, sending shockwaves through the scene that could fairly be called the signal fire of a British rock resurgence.
Their debut single shot straight to No.
1 in the UK, and their debut album the following year, 2006’s “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not,” also comfortably topped the UK charts, propelling them to instant stardom.
Since then, while evolving their sound, they’ve become one of Britain’s finest rock bands on the world stage.
Their early classic “A Certain Romance,” which closes the aforementioned debut album, is an absolute masterpiece.
Though it was never released as a single, it’s beloved by fans and stands as an indie rock anthem cherished by the British public.
Beyond the delicate band interplay and the beauty of the guitar solo in the latter half, Alex Turner’s lyrics are truly outstanding—imbued with a distinctly British lyricism that evokes the end of a naive boyhood.
MapsYeah Yeah Yeahs
In the 2000s rock scene, New York was a hotbed of musical trends—The Strokes alone make that clear—evoking a surge of excitement reminiscent of the 1970s.
For those who were avidly following American indie rock at the time, many listeners likely felt intrigued by a band simply because they hailed from New York.
Among those New York acts, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs—led by the sole female member, Karen O—were a crucial band that dominated the indie rock scene of the 2000s.
On their 2003 debut album, Fever to Tell, which earned high praise for its unique style of next-generation art-punk, the song “Maps,” introduced here, stands out as a beautiful masterpiece that seems to embody the group’s quieter side.
The restrained, tight ensemble, the heartbreak-themed lyrics, and Karen’s vocals—holding back a rush of emotion—carry a certain sorrow, even a melancholic air.
The music video, with Karen’s disarmingly raw expressions, is also superb as a visual work, so I highly recommend experiencing the song and video together.
1901Phoenix
It’s a classic by Phoenix from France that capped off the 2000s and helped set the course for bands in the 2010s.
Debuting in 2000, they crafted a high-sense sound that exquisitely blends music from all over the world, drawing buzz among indie rock fans who haunt record stores.
Back then they were a best-kept secret, but with each release their reputation grew; their fourth album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, released in 2009, succeeded in the U.
S.
, even winning a Grammy, and it finally felt like the world had caught up with their music.
1901, included on that album and released as a hit single, as mentioned at the start, is one of their signature songs and a guaranteed live highlight.
It’s the epitome of sleek, ultra-stylish disco-pop—an incredible anthem that, when experienced live, floods you with a sense of euphoria.
The vocals in English with a French accent are a unique charm you won’t find with other bands.
The lyrics aren’t actually all that bright, but it never turns gloomy—that’s French-style dandyism for you!
Feel Good Inc.Gorillaz
In hindsight, you could say they were pioneers of what we now call VTubers.
Gorillaz is a project that began in 1998, a collaboration between Damon Albarn, frontman of the quintessential British rock band Blur, and comic artist Jamie Hewlett.
Their song “Feel Good Inc.
,” famous as a 2005 iPod commercial track, is one of Gorillaz’s signature tunes—a standout from a virtual band that’s among the most widely known in the world and an exemplar of remarkable commercial success.
Featuring the veteran American hip-hop group De La Soul, it’s an exceptional, cutting-edge pop song built around a hip-hop groove—truly a classic born of the 2000s.
The track is thoroughly enjoyable on its own, but because Gorillaz is a conceptual project, your enjoyment will only multiply if you also check out the brilliant music video—said to be influenced by Castle in the Sky—and the richly detailed backstories of the characters.