Post by BettyNewbie on Apr 4, 2017 13:12:58 GMT -5
In recent years, there's been a whole lot of hand-wringing over whether or not rock music is still relevant. Guitar-based bands rarely ever make it into the Top 40 anymore, and the current rock scene seems to be dominated by the same group of veterans from the 80s, 90s, and early 00s with little room for new artists to break through. Radio stations that play new rock are rapidly disappearing, either getting canned for more lucrative formats like Country, Rap, Spanish, and Talk or getting reformatted into "Classic Rock" and playing only 70s, 80s, and early 90s music.
Both Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers have spoken about rock's declining cultural cachet in recent years:
www.rollingstone.com/music/news/billy-corgan-mythology-nineties-irrelevant-20141218
www.theguardian.com/music/2016/may/23/rock-music-is-dead-red-hot-chili-peppers-flea-pearl-jam
Roger Daltrey feels that today's rock and pop stars aren't saying anything meaningful anymore:
consequenceofsound.net/2016/10/call-it-roger-daltrey-says-rock-music-is-dead/
Gene Simmons, on the other hand, blames the file-sharing bogeyman:
www.rollingstone.com/music/news/gene-simmons-rock-is-finally-dead-20140907
Patrick Carney of the Black Keys (one of the few new rock bands to gain any kind of mainstream attention) took aim at one, very specific (and Canadian) target:
www.mtv.com/news/1676785/black-keys-patrick-carney-nickelback/
However, others have more optimistic outlooks. Michele Catalano feels that those who declare rock music dead have a narrow view of what rock music should sound like:
www.forbes.com/sites/michelecatalano/2012/11/26/rock-is-dead-is-dead/#155a814523bb
Luke Ottenhof seems to hold a similar view, claiming that many are too caught up in the old straight white male-centric idea of what rock music is supposed to be:
www.aux.tv/2016/12/rock-music-isnt-dying-its-evolving/
Steven Hyden feels that people are too occupied with the "industrial-celebrity complex," and are dismissing great, innovative new bands simply because they aren't as big as Taylor Swift and Beyonce:
uproxx.com/music/rock-music-dead-2017/4/
Any thoughts? What side do you fall on? Or, do you just not care?
Both Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers have spoken about rock's declining cultural cachet in recent years:
Billy Corgan has been asked to revisit the heyday of Nineties alternative rock a number of times while promoting the Smashing Pumpkins' most recent record, Monuments to an Elegy, but in a new interview with The Guardian, the rocker seemed to hit a breaking point, saying: "Right now that era is irrelevant."
Corgan noted that neither the Pumpkins nor any of the other bands from that era are charting anymore, and dismissed the notion that a lot of new bands are being influenced by Nineties artists. "I don’t hear that," Corgan said. "The mythology [of that era] right now is irrelevant to combat the pop menace in America right now."
While Corgan didn't back up his rhetoric by naming names, he stated, "EDM is kicking everybody's fucking ass," and argued that no matter how sentimental people get about the Nineties, if that music, or the music it inspired, can't compete in the top cultural spheres, "it doesn't mean anything."
"Look at the numbers the DJs are making!" he said. "They’re kicking rock bands' ass. And we're sitting here talking about an era from 20 years ago because it's misty in people's minds. Meanwhile, there's 60,000 people in a field watching a guy with lights behind him."
Corgan noted that neither the Pumpkins nor any of the other bands from that era are charting anymore, and dismissed the notion that a lot of new bands are being influenced by Nineties artists. "I don’t hear that," Corgan said. "The mythology [of that era] right now is irrelevant to combat the pop menace in America right now."
While Corgan didn't back up his rhetoric by naming names, he stated, "EDM is kicking everybody's fucking ass," and argued that no matter how sentimental people get about the Nineties, if that music, or the music it inspired, can't compete in the top cultural spheres, "it doesn't mean anything."
"Look at the numbers the DJs are making!" he said. "They’re kicking rock bands' ass. And we're sitting here talking about an era from 20 years ago because it's misty in people's minds. Meanwhile, there's 60,000 people in a field watching a guy with lights behind him."
www.rollingstone.com/music/news/billy-corgan-mythology-nineties-irrelevant-20141218
Rock music is dead, or at least it is according to Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist Flea.
The Californian rocker used an interview on SiriusXM’s Pearl Jam Radio to bemoan the current state of rock, saying it was “a dead form in a lot of ways”.
Speaking to Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, Flea recalled his days during the band’s 90s heyday: “I just remember being so excited that we were playing with [Pearl Jam] and with Smashing Pumpkins, because it was just an exciting time for rock music. A lot of times, especially recently, I look at rock music as kind of a dead form in a lot of ways. Nothing to take away from us and [Pearl Jam], because obviously I believe we’re relevant bands that come with a real energy.”
Flea said that when he expressed his desire to make it in a rock band he was told he was “a fucking lunatic” who would “never get a decent job”, adding: “I was like ‘fuck it, I don’t care, this is what I want to do, this means everything to me, I found a home.’ I’ve been a weird, neurotic, loner kid all my life, I was always the kid you called fag in high school, punk rock gave me a home.”
This, he says, is a marked contrast to today’s route into rock’n’roll: “Nowadays, you decide you want to be in a rock band [and] it’s like, ‘Oh great, let’s get you an image consultant, and a lawyer, and a manager, and let’s see what we can do here. It’s a great money-making opportunity for you, junior.’”
The Californian rocker used an interview on SiriusXM’s Pearl Jam Radio to bemoan the current state of rock, saying it was “a dead form in a lot of ways”.
Speaking to Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, Flea recalled his days during the band’s 90s heyday: “I just remember being so excited that we were playing with [Pearl Jam] and with Smashing Pumpkins, because it was just an exciting time for rock music. A lot of times, especially recently, I look at rock music as kind of a dead form in a lot of ways. Nothing to take away from us and [Pearl Jam], because obviously I believe we’re relevant bands that come with a real energy.”
Flea said that when he expressed his desire to make it in a rock band he was told he was “a fucking lunatic” who would “never get a decent job”, adding: “I was like ‘fuck it, I don’t care, this is what I want to do, this means everything to me, I found a home.’ I’ve been a weird, neurotic, loner kid all my life, I was always the kid you called fag in high school, punk rock gave me a home.”
This, he says, is a marked contrast to today’s route into rock’n’roll: “Nowadays, you decide you want to be in a rock band [and] it’s like, ‘Oh great, let’s get you an image consultant, and a lawyer, and a manager, and let’s see what we can do here. It’s a great money-making opportunity for you, junior.’”
www.theguardian.com/music/2016/may/23/rock-music-is-dead-red-hot-chili-peppers-flea-pearl-jam
Roger Daltrey feels that today's rock and pop stars aren't saying anything meaningful anymore:
The Who have been playing to millions upon millions of dads and rock purists for decades. But even frontman Roger Daltrey isn’t blind to the state of popular rock ‘n’ roll in 2016. In an interview with The Times, Daltry called the time of death on the long-standing musical genre.
“The sadness for me is that rock has reached a dead end,” he said, before angering legions of dad-rockers even more by going over to their least favorite genre. “The only people saying things that matter are the rappers and most pop is meaningless and forgettable.”
While The Who have turned in their fair share of unforgettable performances, Daltry says that rock and pop music’s top stars have lost the ability to make a lasting impression. “You watch these people and you can’t remember a bloody thing,” he said.
“The sadness for me is that rock has reached a dead end,” he said, before angering legions of dad-rockers even more by going over to their least favorite genre. “The only people saying things that matter are the rappers and most pop is meaningless and forgettable.”
While The Who have turned in their fair share of unforgettable performances, Daltry says that rock and pop music’s top stars have lost the ability to make a lasting impression. “You watch these people and you can’t remember a bloody thing,” he said.
consequenceofsound.net/2016/10/call-it-roger-daltrey-says-rock-music-is-dead/
Gene Simmons, on the other hand, blames the file-sharing bogeyman:
The Kiss bassist recently made controversial remarks about Donald Sterling, immigration and depression (which he eventually backed off from), and now the Kiss bassist has another enormous statement to make: "Rock is finally dead," Simmons declared in an interview with Esquire. "The death of rock was not a natural death. Rock did not die of old age. It was murdered," he added. But rock's killer wasn't the blurring of musical genres or lack of craftsmanship. Instead, Simmons blames file sharing and the fact that no one values music "enough to pay you for it" for murdering rock n' roll.
"It's very sad for new bands. My heart goes out to them. They just don't have a chance. If you play guitar, it's almost impossible," Simmons tell his son Nick, who interviewed him for Esquire. "You're better off not even learning how to play guitar or write songs, and just singing in the shower and auditioning for The X Factor. And I'm not slamming The X Factor, or pop singers. But where's the next Bob Dylan? Where's the next Beatles? Where are the songwriters? Where are the creators? Many of them now have to work behind the scenes, to prop up pop acts and write their stuff for them."
Simmons goes on to say that 1958 to 1983 was music's pinnacle as he could name 100s of iconic musicians. Since then, Simmons lists two bands that have carried on the spirit of that era: Nirvana and, surprisingly, Tame Impala, which Simmons' son turned him on to. "The craft is gone, and that is what technology, in part, has brought us," Simmons said. "What is the next Dark Side of the Moon? Now that the record industry barely exists, they wouldn't have a chance to make something like that. There is a reason that, along with the usual top-40 juggernauts, some of the biggest touring bands are half old people, like me."
Simmons then points the finger at who he suspects is guilty for killing rock: "My sense is that file sharing started in predominantly white, middle- and upper-middle-class young people who were native-born, who felt they were entitled to have something for free, because that's what they were used to. If you believe in capitalism — and I'm a firm believer in free-market capitalism — then that other model is chaos. It destroys the structure." Simmons also uses this train of thought to slyly apologize for his previous statements about immigration by adding, "I find that many of the more patriotic people are immigrants."
"It's very sad for new bands. My heart goes out to them. They just don't have a chance. If you play guitar, it's almost impossible," Simmons tell his son Nick, who interviewed him for Esquire. "You're better off not even learning how to play guitar or write songs, and just singing in the shower and auditioning for The X Factor. And I'm not slamming The X Factor, or pop singers. But where's the next Bob Dylan? Where's the next Beatles? Where are the songwriters? Where are the creators? Many of them now have to work behind the scenes, to prop up pop acts and write their stuff for them."
Simmons goes on to say that 1958 to 1983 was music's pinnacle as he could name 100s of iconic musicians. Since then, Simmons lists two bands that have carried on the spirit of that era: Nirvana and, surprisingly, Tame Impala, which Simmons' son turned him on to. "The craft is gone, and that is what technology, in part, has brought us," Simmons said. "What is the next Dark Side of the Moon? Now that the record industry barely exists, they wouldn't have a chance to make something like that. There is a reason that, along with the usual top-40 juggernauts, some of the biggest touring bands are half old people, like me."
Simmons then points the finger at who he suspects is guilty for killing rock: "My sense is that file sharing started in predominantly white, middle- and upper-middle-class young people who were native-born, who felt they were entitled to have something for free, because that's what they were used to. If you believe in capitalism — and I'm a firm believer in free-market capitalism — then that other model is chaos. It destroys the structure." Simmons also uses this train of thought to slyly apologize for his previous statements about immigration by adding, "I find that many of the more patriotic people are immigrants."
www.rollingstone.com/music/news/gene-simmons-rock-is-finally-dead-20140907
Patrick Carney of the Black Keys (one of the few new rock bands to gain any kind of mainstream attention) took aim at one, very specific (and Canadian) target:
In the new issue of Rolling Stone, Carney laments the current state of rock music (which, admittedly, is rather dire) and places the blame squarely on the shoulders of the Canadian quartet, whom he believes have ruined the genre with their "watered-down, post-grunge crap."
"Rock and roll is dying because people became OK with Nickelback being the biggest band in the world," he says. "So they became OK with the idea that the biggest rock band in the world is always going to be sh--. Therefore, you should never try to be the biggest rock band in the world. F--- that! Rock and roll is the music I feel the most passionate about, and I don't like to see it f---ing ruined and spoon-fed down our throats [with] this ... horrendous sh--. When people start lumping us into that kind of sh--, it's like 'F--- you,' honestly."
"Rock and roll is dying because people became OK with Nickelback being the biggest band in the world," he says. "So they became OK with the idea that the biggest rock band in the world is always going to be sh--. Therefore, you should never try to be the biggest rock band in the world. F--- that! Rock and roll is the music I feel the most passionate about, and I don't like to see it f---ing ruined and spoon-fed down our throats [with] this ... horrendous sh--. When people start lumping us into that kind of sh--, it's like 'F--- you,' honestly."
www.mtv.com/news/1676785/black-keys-patrick-carney-nickelback/
However, others have more optimistic outlooks. Michele Catalano feels that those who declare rock music dead have a narrow view of what rock music should sound like:
The truth is, rock is out there. Maybe it’s not the rock and roll you know and love but it’s rock and there’s a distinction between the two: Rock and roll is what my parents listened to. Rock and roll is Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis. Rock is the monster that swallowed rock and roll whole, chewed it up , spit out Led Zeppelin and The Who and proceeded to evolve, devolve and re-evolve over and over again.
It’s hard to define today what rock has become, as the path from the 1960s to now has taken off on so many meandering side roads its hard to even count all the genres and subgenres, let alone have a conversation about their definition within the realm of rock music.
The problem with talking about rock as a living, breathing presence is those who want to declare it dead are generally those who are stuck in a belief that every band has to be prescribed a specific genre, that calling them “rock” isn’t enough. Instead they drill down until they’ve dug up a subgenre so deep it’s five times removed from the original rock label and cast off as something else entirely. Which is not fair, as rock is the umbrella under which so many bands fall and to say the genre as a whole is dead is to put a toe tag on all the subgenres as well. It’s not that the genre of rock should remain untouched or that subgenres are unnecessary; in a time when searching for music requires research skills, the need to specifically narrow down what you are looking for is a bonus feature rather than a bug. Still, the genres which fall under the rock category should still recognize themselves as rock, for that genre is the sum of its whole.
...
Rock is not things. Rock is not afraid. Rock is not radio friendly or hit driven. Rock is not what the band plays during the last dance at your sister’s wedding. Rock is not complacent, cooperative or content to just be. It exists for a reason and that reason is not to sell you a t-shirt. It exists to make you feel, and whether that feeling comes out in a fist pump, a head bang or power drumming on the steering wheel, it’s there beneath every sweeping note, every tortured lyric, every awkward time change.
So where is this rock, you ask? That’s the thing. You have to ask. You have to look. You have to turn stones, move boulders and go down rabbit holes of “you might like this if you like this” links to get to it. But it’s there.
It’s in Miami, Florida under the name Torche, a bombastic sludge band full of power and fury, signifying everything. It’s in Sacramento, where the Deftones are still churning out their specific brand of experimental metal and Trash Talk, a hardcore band is playing a devastating set of power and might. It’s in Atlanta, Georgia with the heavy metal of Mastodon and where the Black Lips turn out garage style rock reminiscent of MC5 who, by the way, produced the greatest rock song ever made. Rock is hanging in New Jersey with Titus Andronicus and the Gaslight Anthem and in Southern California with Queens of the Stone Age and Northern California with Ceremony. It’s big in Japan with Boris and making noise in Canada with Metz. It’s right in your face with the tried and true, with Soundgarden and Linkin Park. Rock is everywhere. It’s not only alive but thriving. You have to look past the whole construct of genres and labels and realize that rock is the sum of its parts. It’s the finding the various parts that’s the journey to realizing rock is a living, breathing organism that’s a long way from the “rock is dead” pastiche ringing true.
It’s hard to define today what rock has become, as the path from the 1960s to now has taken off on so many meandering side roads its hard to even count all the genres and subgenres, let alone have a conversation about their definition within the realm of rock music.
The problem with talking about rock as a living, breathing presence is those who want to declare it dead are generally those who are stuck in a belief that every band has to be prescribed a specific genre, that calling them “rock” isn’t enough. Instead they drill down until they’ve dug up a subgenre so deep it’s five times removed from the original rock label and cast off as something else entirely. Which is not fair, as rock is the umbrella under which so many bands fall and to say the genre as a whole is dead is to put a toe tag on all the subgenres as well. It’s not that the genre of rock should remain untouched or that subgenres are unnecessary; in a time when searching for music requires research skills, the need to specifically narrow down what you are looking for is a bonus feature rather than a bug. Still, the genres which fall under the rock category should still recognize themselves as rock, for that genre is the sum of its whole.
...
Rock is not things. Rock is not afraid. Rock is not radio friendly or hit driven. Rock is not what the band plays during the last dance at your sister’s wedding. Rock is not complacent, cooperative or content to just be. It exists for a reason and that reason is not to sell you a t-shirt. It exists to make you feel, and whether that feeling comes out in a fist pump, a head bang or power drumming on the steering wheel, it’s there beneath every sweeping note, every tortured lyric, every awkward time change.
So where is this rock, you ask? That’s the thing. You have to ask. You have to look. You have to turn stones, move boulders and go down rabbit holes of “you might like this if you like this” links to get to it. But it’s there.
It’s in Miami, Florida under the name Torche, a bombastic sludge band full of power and fury, signifying everything. It’s in Sacramento, where the Deftones are still churning out their specific brand of experimental metal and Trash Talk, a hardcore band is playing a devastating set of power and might. It’s in Atlanta, Georgia with the heavy metal of Mastodon and where the Black Lips turn out garage style rock reminiscent of MC5 who, by the way, produced the greatest rock song ever made. Rock is hanging in New Jersey with Titus Andronicus and the Gaslight Anthem and in Southern California with Queens of the Stone Age and Northern California with Ceremony. It’s big in Japan with Boris and making noise in Canada with Metz. It’s right in your face with the tried and true, with Soundgarden and Linkin Park. Rock is everywhere. It’s not only alive but thriving. You have to look past the whole construct of genres and labels and realize that rock is the sum of its parts. It’s the finding the various parts that’s the journey to realizing rock is a living, breathing organism that’s a long way from the “rock is dead” pastiche ringing true.
www.forbes.com/sites/michelecatalano/2012/11/26/rock-is-dead-is-dead/#155a814523bb
Luke Ottenhof seems to hold a similar view, claiming that many are too caught up in the old straight white male-centric idea of what rock music is supposed to be:
‘Rock’ is being presented in skeptical quotations here because its function, its form, and even its defining qualities have all been upended; the game changed, man. The utility, accuracy and currency of the word ‘rock’ are about as parenthetical in 2016 as anything else that might warrant use of sarcastic air-quotes. Because ‘rock’ as it used to be is not ‘rock’ as it is.
‘Rock’ as it used to be (and, to some extent, still is) was a domain for straight white dudes to sing songs for and about other straight white people, often about fucking. The cult of personality around ‘rock’ as it used to be was pervasive; Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Steven Tyler, Mick Jagger, Axl Rose (who actually recorded himself and a drunk girl having sex, and then put it on one of his band’s records). The ‘good old days’ of ‘rock’ were about showy and self-congratulatory sex, drugs, and cock-rock and roll.
In 2016, that species of ‘rock’ might be dead (and that would be fine, actually), but what’s sprung up in its place is a genre that’s typified by reflective, introspective, caring, compassionate leaders. ‘Rock’ bands like Speedy Ortiz and Modern Baseball are implementing hotlines at their shows for people who feel unsafe. 2016’s ‘rock’ stars are discussing mental health, gender fluidity, and sexism. Rock has rarely been this fucking alive – even if it doesn’t top the charts.
Let’s say acts like PWR BTTM, Jeff Rosenstock, Angel Olsen, Sheer Mag, Mitski, and Sad13 all exist under the swollen banner of ‘rock’ (they do). These are modern ‘rock’ acts in an elemental sense; they play distorted guitars with drums, bass, and, generally speaking, accessible, conventional melodic tendencies. But they’re tweaking traditionally exclusive ‘rock’ music frameworks to fit a new narrative.
‘Rock’ as it used to be (and, to some extent, still is) was a domain for straight white dudes to sing songs for and about other straight white people, often about fucking. The cult of personality around ‘rock’ as it used to be was pervasive; Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Steven Tyler, Mick Jagger, Axl Rose (who actually recorded himself and a drunk girl having sex, and then put it on one of his band’s records). The ‘good old days’ of ‘rock’ were about showy and self-congratulatory sex, drugs, and cock-rock and roll.
In 2016, that species of ‘rock’ might be dead (and that would be fine, actually), but what’s sprung up in its place is a genre that’s typified by reflective, introspective, caring, compassionate leaders. ‘Rock’ bands like Speedy Ortiz and Modern Baseball are implementing hotlines at their shows for people who feel unsafe. 2016’s ‘rock’ stars are discussing mental health, gender fluidity, and sexism. Rock has rarely been this fucking alive – even if it doesn’t top the charts.
Let’s say acts like PWR BTTM, Jeff Rosenstock, Angel Olsen, Sheer Mag, Mitski, and Sad13 all exist under the swollen banner of ‘rock’ (they do). These are modern ‘rock’ acts in an elemental sense; they play distorted guitars with drums, bass, and, generally speaking, accessible, conventional melodic tendencies. But they’re tweaking traditionally exclusive ‘rock’ music frameworks to fit a new narrative.
www.aux.tv/2016/12/rock-music-isnt-dying-its-evolving/
Steven Hyden feels that people are too occupied with the "industrial-celebrity complex," and are dismissing great, innovative new bands simply because they aren't as big as Taylor Swift and Beyonce:
However, the frankly tiresome conversation about whether rock is, in fact, deceased isn’t all that concerned with artistic evolution, or with cultural shifts that have occurred in the rock underground. Instead, reports of rock’s death stem from a preoccupation with commerciality and celebrity as the defining metrics for which musical artists are considered worthy or “relevant” in 2017.
Essentially, the argument forwarded by these “rock is dead!’ thinkpieces goes like this: Because there are currently no rock bands as famous as Beyonce or Taylor Swift or Adele, the entire genre is in a death spiral. Whether the music is actually, you know, good doesn’t seem to matter.
There’s no disputing that rock for the most part has retreated from pop music. Which means that the sorts of mega-selling arena bands that defined rock in the popular consciousness from the late ’60s to the late ’90s probably aren’t coming back. And that makes me sad, because I like those kinds of bands — the Led Zeppelins, the Metallicas, the Pearl Jams. But this is hardly a new development. In fact, it’s been happening since at least the early ’00s.
Back then, rock radio essentially collapsed — stations in major markets either changed formats or they filtered out emerging bands in favor of established names and oldies from the ’90s. Today, the best new bands have virtually no shot at exposure via radio, which is still vitally important for breaking new artists. The best bet for a rock band in the mainstream is to play down the “rock” aspects of their music in favor of more pop-friendly sounds, an approach favored by outliers such as Twenty One Pilots and The 1975. (Both of those bands are currently playing arenas.)
But again, this is unrelated to the artistic quality of modern rock bands, or their ability to persevere in spite of considerable challenges. Rock bands have proven amazingly resilient as the music industry has reverted — as it always does — to a pop-centric focus in response to prolonged economic hardship. One only has to do a cursory search on Bandcamp to find literally thousands of rock bands that have taken it upon themselves to distribute their music directly to fans. And those fans, in turn, have started up their own websites to cover punk, emo, and metal acts in spite of mainstream media indifference, and even established DIY music venues to host live performances for kids who can’t afford to attend expensive music festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza. Rock, which is frequently dismissed as nostalgia-obsessed and geared toward senior citizens, has endured precisely because passionate teens and twenty-somethings have fought to carve out their own spaces for the music that moves them, media-driven cultural trends be damned.
While no rock band currently rests with pop’s top one-percent, rock is arguably the only genre left with a sizable middle class, where you can make a living without having to compete against one-person multi-national corporations like Taylor Swift and Adele, the Wal-Mart and Target of popular music. Only a fool picks up a guitar in 2017 with the expectation that fame and fortune is around the corner. However, for many rock musicians, there’s value in the personal connections that artists and fans can only forge during a live gig in a 500-person club, or from selling a record by hand at the merch table (or electronically via Bandcamp, where fans be assured that artists are actually being paid, unlike pop stars racking up millions of spins on Spotify). From those personal connections spring devoted followings and enduring careers that often outlast the average pop-career cycle. So, while Mitski might not be a superstar in 2017, I would bet on her still making albums that people care about in 2027.
In a different time, perhaps, these efforts would be more widely applauded. Instead, opting to making art outside of the industrial-celebrity complex seems to be regarded more often than not with suspicion by the music press. It’s this suspicion that lurks behind every “rock is dead!” thinkpiece. For many critics, it’s become de rigueur to equate existing outside of the mainstream with cultural insignificance or even (here’s that word again) death.
Essentially, the argument forwarded by these “rock is dead!’ thinkpieces goes like this: Because there are currently no rock bands as famous as Beyonce or Taylor Swift or Adele, the entire genre is in a death spiral. Whether the music is actually, you know, good doesn’t seem to matter.
There’s no disputing that rock for the most part has retreated from pop music. Which means that the sorts of mega-selling arena bands that defined rock in the popular consciousness from the late ’60s to the late ’90s probably aren’t coming back. And that makes me sad, because I like those kinds of bands — the Led Zeppelins, the Metallicas, the Pearl Jams. But this is hardly a new development. In fact, it’s been happening since at least the early ’00s.
Back then, rock radio essentially collapsed — stations in major markets either changed formats or they filtered out emerging bands in favor of established names and oldies from the ’90s. Today, the best new bands have virtually no shot at exposure via radio, which is still vitally important for breaking new artists. The best bet for a rock band in the mainstream is to play down the “rock” aspects of their music in favor of more pop-friendly sounds, an approach favored by outliers such as Twenty One Pilots and The 1975. (Both of those bands are currently playing arenas.)
But again, this is unrelated to the artistic quality of modern rock bands, or their ability to persevere in spite of considerable challenges. Rock bands have proven amazingly resilient as the music industry has reverted — as it always does — to a pop-centric focus in response to prolonged economic hardship. One only has to do a cursory search on Bandcamp to find literally thousands of rock bands that have taken it upon themselves to distribute their music directly to fans. And those fans, in turn, have started up their own websites to cover punk, emo, and metal acts in spite of mainstream media indifference, and even established DIY music venues to host live performances for kids who can’t afford to attend expensive music festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza. Rock, which is frequently dismissed as nostalgia-obsessed and geared toward senior citizens, has endured precisely because passionate teens and twenty-somethings have fought to carve out their own spaces for the music that moves them, media-driven cultural trends be damned.
While no rock band currently rests with pop’s top one-percent, rock is arguably the only genre left with a sizable middle class, where you can make a living without having to compete against one-person multi-national corporations like Taylor Swift and Adele, the Wal-Mart and Target of popular music. Only a fool picks up a guitar in 2017 with the expectation that fame and fortune is around the corner. However, for many rock musicians, there’s value in the personal connections that artists and fans can only forge during a live gig in a 500-person club, or from selling a record by hand at the merch table (or electronically via Bandcamp, where fans be assured that artists are actually being paid, unlike pop stars racking up millions of spins on Spotify). From those personal connections spring devoted followings and enduring careers that often outlast the average pop-career cycle. So, while Mitski might not be a superstar in 2017, I would bet on her still making albums that people care about in 2027.
In a different time, perhaps, these efforts would be more widely applauded. Instead, opting to making art outside of the industrial-celebrity complex seems to be regarded more often than not with suspicion by the music press. It’s this suspicion that lurks behind every “rock is dead!” thinkpiece. For many critics, it’s become de rigueur to equate existing outside of the mainstream with cultural insignificance or even (here’s that word again) death.
uproxx.com/music/rock-music-dead-2017/4/
Any thoughts? What side do you fall on? Or, do you just not care?