1998 establishments in England

New Order are an English Electronic band formed in 1980, currently consisting of founding members Bernard Sumner, Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert, alongside Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman. The band was formed in 1980 by Sumner (vocals, guitars, keyboards and synthesisers), ex member Peter Hook (bass and vocals) and Morris (drums, electronic drums, keyboards and synthesizers) – the remaining members of post-punk group Joy Division, following the suicide of vocalist Ian Curtis – with the addition of Gilbert (keyboards, synthesizers and guitars).

Gorillaz are a British virtual band created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett. The band primarily consists of four animated members: Stuart "2-D" Pot, Murdoc Niccals, Noodle, and Russel Hobbs. Their fictional universe is presented in music videos, interviews and short cartoons. In reality, Albarn is the only permanent musical contributor, and he often collaborates with other musicians. Remi Kabaka Jr. became producer for the band in 2016 after several years providing the voice of Russel Hobbs and was listed as an A&R producer alongside Albarn and Hewlett in the 2019 Gorillaz documentary Gorillaz: Reject False Icons.

Atomic Kitten are a British pop girl group formed in Liverpool in 1998 whose current members are Natasha Hamilton and Liz McClarnon. The band was founded by Colin Pulse, who served as principal songwriter during Atomic Kitten's early years. The group's debut album Right Now was released in October 2000 and peaked at number 39 in the UK. After five top ten singles, Katona quit four days after "Whole Again" first reached number one in the UK Singles Charts, and was replaced by former Precious singer Jenny Frost. "Whole Again" went on to become the group's most successful single, staying at number one for four weeks, and eventually becoming the 13th best-selling single of the 2000s. The group re-released their debut album, with some tracks re-recorded with Frost's vocals. In the UK, the album peaked at number one and was certified double platinum after selling over 600,000 copies.

Antimatter, a UK dark rock band, is the project of longtime member Mick Moss. The project was formed in 1997 by Duncan Patterson (former bassist/songwriter of Anathema) and Moss. The pair released three albums together – Saviour, Lights Out and Planetary Confinement. Shortly after the completion of Planetary Confinement, Patterson left to start another band called Íon. Moss continued and released the project's fourth album, Leaving Eden, following with 'Live@An Club', (released on his own label Music in Stone), Alternative Matter, Fear of a Unique Identity, The Judas Table, "Too Late", Welcome To The Machine, Live Between The Earth & Clouds, and, most recently, Black Market Enlightenment in 2018.

Phats & Small are an English dance music duo consisting of Jason "Phats" Hayward and Russell Small. They are best known for their single "Turn Around", which became an international hit in 1999.

Miserylab is a music project of Porl King, formed in the late 1990s after the disbanding of Rosetta Stone in 1998.

Zombina and The Skeletones are a horror punk band from Liverpool, England, formed in 1998 around the nucleus of vocalist Zombina and songwriter Doc Horror. The majority of their tongue-in-cheek lyrical content deals with themes of horror and science fiction, yet their musical style is upbeat and pop-oriented, with elements of garage punk, doo-wop and hard rock. Due to their apparent obsession with B-movies and black humour, their fanbase extends to the gothic rock, deathrock and psychobilly scenes.

Fierce were a British three-piece, all girl R&B group. They were signed to Colin Lester and Ian McAndrew's Wildstar Records, and scored four hit singles on the UK Singles Chart in 1999 and 2000. The biggest of the hits, "Sweet Love 2K", is a cover of the Anita Baker song "Sweet Love".

CSR plc (formerly Cambridge Silicon Radio) was a multinational fabless semiconductor company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Its main products were connectivity, audio, imaging and location chips. CSR was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index until it was acquired by Qualcomm in August 2015. Under Qualcomm's ownership, the company was renamed Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd.

Black Box Recorder were an English indie rock group. They debuted in 1998 with England Made Me and followed this up with The Facts of Life, which gave them their first hit with the single of the same name in April 2000. Their third album, Passionoia, was released in 2003. There is also a compilation album, The Worst of Black Box Recorder, a collection of B-sides, cover versions and remixes.