Did rock music slink off and die somewhere?

Dopesick

One rock band I've been enjoying a lot the past few years is Royal Thunder. I'd imagine a lot of people here will dig them as well.

ICBM

Myranda said:

Isn't assuming its an act just because she's young and pretty just as shallow? There's a lot of nergy in her performance. If it's an act it's a convincing one

I don't mean that, I mean the whole bad-girl teen-whore persona. It's just so contrived - I very much doubt she's actually like that. The band is a cliché to the point of a perfectly straight-faced comedy.

AlexC

Most of what’s called ‘rock’ is a visual cliche. Which is what puts me off a lot it tbh. And a lot of it is an audio cliche too.

Phil_aka_Pip

AlexC said:

Most of what’s called ‘rock’ is a visual cliche. Which is what puts me off a lot it tbh. And a lot of it is an audio cliche too.

But couldn't you say that about any stylised genre? Folk, classical, jazz ... ?

AlexC

Phil_aka_Pip said:

AlexC said:

Most of what’s called ‘rock’ is a visual cliche. Which is what puts me off a lot it tbh. And a lot of it is an audio cliche too.

But couldn't you say that about any stylised genre? Folk, classical, jazz ... ?

Yes. Very much so. There’s base roots to every music. But we all know that it’s the acts and players that break away from that that have ingredient X - however you quantify that.

ThePrettyDamned

ICBM said:

Myranda said:

Isn't assuming its an act just because she's young and pretty just as shallow? There's a lot of nergy in her performance. If it's an act it's a convincing one

I don't mean that, I mean the whole bad-girl teen-whore persona. It's just so contrived - I very much doubt she's actually like that. The band is a cliché to the point of a perfectly straight-faced comedy.

I assumed that was intentional with them too - not saying she isn't rock (what is more rock than songs about blowjobs and clichéd gigs?) but it does feel slightly parody

FarleyUK

Check out Inglorious. They're really rather good.

Philly_Q

Dopesick said:

One rock band I've been enjoying a lot the past few years is Royal Thunder. I'd imagine a lot of people here will dig them as well.

I love the two EPs and the first album (and I have two of their T shirts!).  But I've been disappointed by the last two albums, they're too mellow.  I'll keep following them though.

EricTheWeary

If your starting point is the Billboard charts I wonder how much now ( if it ever was the case) that actually reflects what most people are listening to? 
If you looked at something like festival ticket sales there is clearly a fairly healthy appetite for folk music in the UK , for example, but it's rarely reflected in music charts. There are Asian music stars selling out major venues here but completely under the radar for generated music sales. 
It's all there if you want to look for it. 

NelsonP

Travisthedog said:

Check out Greta Van Fleet and your faith will be restored

Guitarist magazine readers check out Greta van fleet...



Seriously though these guys are great once you get past the led zep comparison.

prowla

I've never been particularly into what the mainstream radio plays and have no interest in the charts.

A couple of things on Planet Rock got my attention last week; one was playing Xanadu (Rush) and the other a track by The Van Helstrom Brothers (Finnish), so old and new.

A lot of today's music runs separate from the major record companies and radio stations, and they're not particularly relevant to me.

equalsql

Another Greta Van Fleet recommendation here.

frictionfraction

A good read is 

Uncommon People: The Rise and Fall of the Rock Stars by David Hepworth  

TTBZ

If you want decent and interesting guitar work I think you're better off with some current stoner rock stuff like Elder, rather than them bands that try to emulate classic rock bands.

ThorpyFX

Travisthedog said:

Check out Greta Van Fleet and your faith will be restored

This with bells on! Also I’ve recently seen Raveneye supported by a band called the treatment.  They were both rock ‘n’ roll all the way through l had an amazing night and really restored my faith in new rock music.

stickyfiddle

sgosden said:

-snip-

saleable & bland. Good old 'king of leon syndrome', take a good band that have made a name of themselves by doing something a bit different, then all of a sudden they're pushing out middle of the road pop rock.

Mumford and sons were massively popular because for their upbeat, fun songs. Now they're writing radio 1 level soft rock.

Bring me the horizon went from crazy heavy > angsty > sounding like coldplay.

Deaf Havana released one of my favourite albums (fools and worthless liars). next thing you know they're bent over waiting for a cover shoot with NME.

Paramore, and panic at the disco, have gone from legendary pop punk bands to generic alt rock.

Its an inevitability that a band on the brink of the popular scene will lean towards writing things that are more appealing to the mass market. its just a shame they tend to have to sacrifice the elements of their music that made them 'popular' in the first place.

I don't know about the others, but Paramore's last couple of records are *brilliant* pop music. It'd be dull as fuck if they'd just released 5 records in a row that all sounded like their debut. 

57Deluxe

Rock lives - in Netflix/Sky/Amazon drama soundtracks

darthed1981

p90fool said:

Phil_aka_Pip said:

p90fool said:

Phil_aka_Pip said:

 I can't think of another time when the charts contained such a high percentage of listenable music. They certainly don't now.

Not to you, but they do to 18 year olds. 

Quite honestly, a singles chart which appealed mainly to 60 year olds would be a living death, 1953 all over again. 

More like 1958?

Plenty of teen acts in the charts in 1958. 

I bet there were a heck of a lot of people bemoaning scruffy oiks like this "Elvis Presley" fellow and whatever racist epithet they would use for Chuck and Little Richard and wishing people would put on proper tuxs and play in proper bands with horns in 1958.