I'm starting to doubt it after hearing numerous quality indie bands and watching them freefall further into oblivion. I also know a lot of people enthusiastic about new music, but most of them are looking for some singer/songwriter or vocalist niche, rock seems to hit them like it's a harsh remnant of another age. I'm afraid to say I'm pretty certain that if a new band came around as good as the Stones or Who, I doubt it would even get much traction with the tastes of the music buying public these days.
At this point, Rock is confined to its bed at the nursing home. It had a good run, dominating pop culture for a generation, but the music world moved on long ago.
they said the same thing in 1962...... it goes through cycles. A band, scene or movement will pop up at some point and set it off again just like Nirvana did in the early 90's.
A new audience for rock is too specific for my concerns. I just want there to be a new audience that is concerned with musical craftsmanship, including instrumental skills, and including demanding interesting things in terms of harmonic, melodic, rhythmic, etc. material.
What is the forum's weird fascination with HAVING to have rock music populate the airwaves again and charting before it's validated as being legit?
You know, I've pondered something lately. When I grew up you had your music education from family, friends, radio, and visits to the record store. Everything felt wide open and fluid, but the truth is it really led to musical tastes being quite narrow in the younger years. You tended to have the same albums as your mates, or at least in the same genre. As I got older, finances improved, and we branched out a little. When I look at today, how different! Back in the day, if I wanted to test a new band I essentially had to buy the album. Whether you liked it out of necessity - you just paid for the damn thing - or whether it more often than not turned out to be a good buy because of that narrow band of interest, I'm not sure. Today I'd just go to Youtube, or a nefarious web site, and listen to entire albums before deciding what to buy. I can sample just about any band I want, even if it's only 30-second clips. I think if I'd of grown up today, my head would have exploded. As such, I find that genres of music have less relevance. I happened to enjoy what is commonly known as "Noise" at times, and in the past I'd of been a rare bird. Now though, not so much. People seem to sample all kinds of things. With the advent of streaming, this can only increase, imo. So I wonder if genres matter at all now, other than for marketing purposes. Generally people seem to be exposed to more music, in a wider range of styles, and there is much less raising of hands in despair at the strangeness of it all. I suppose that's a good thing.
Overchoice - Wikipedia » "Initially more choices lead to more satisfaction, but as the number of choices increases it then peaks and people tend to feel more pressure, confusion, and potentially dissatisfaction with their choice. Although larger choice sets can be initially appealing, smaller choice sets lead to increased satisfaction and reduced regret."
I Yeah ....... when I was a kid I heard new stuff via the two or three Australian TV Shows such as Countdown, Rock Arena, Beatbox, FM radio and actually saw many bands for the first time by standing at the newsagency reading import copies of Circus and Hit Parader. If I wanted to hear what a record sounded like, I pretty much had to buy it.
A mass audience that would propel a band to dominate the pop charts? No, those days are long gone. A niche audience? Yes. Although I don't need the top 40 charts to validate my tastes, I do want to see the artists that I enjoy sustain a healthy enough audience to be able to sustain themselves.
When I look at any Top Charts - which combines all music styles - I might recognize maybe 1 or 2 of the top 50 as Rock. The rest are either Rap, hybrids like Back Eyed Peas, or stuff like Katy Perry etc... The Solo artists with huge $ behind them...
Except once I paid my $4.19 for an album, I was going to give it a good shot if I wasn't sure about the music on first listen. You just naturally paid more attention because you were, literally, more invested. Now, I might hear something interesting via the web and think, "Oh yeah! I'll have to check it out later," and an hour later it's completely slipped my mind and I'm on to the next thing. It makes sense, since your engagement increases with the more senses involved. An album required ears, eyes, and hands; a Spotify file can be ears-only.
Ian Hunter mentioned that his latest 'Fingers Crossed' is selling well. Of course that's relative to what it used to mean. Certainly a guy who's doing vital, relevant work, as good as he's ever been. With all the niche and niche-niche programming, you'd think someone would have figured out a format for artists like him, Nils Lofgren, Julian Cope, etc. You;d be grabbing a bit from a wide demographic, but enough, I think to succeed.
I would say there's most definitely many, many rock bands who still have very large followings. So yes, there is definitely an audience. As far as mainstream pop crossover appeal? Maybe a tiny bit. They are still pumping out new rock music on 94.1 WYSP, but I can't stand it. Tame Impala had a mainstream hit some years ago and it was cool to hear some good rock when out and about. I think they're still around and popular, but they're sound is always mutating into something a little less rock.
Time comes and goes as do the generations and their preferences as far as style and taste. This generation has far more to listen to and far more access to that in camparison to generations prior. Rock music is still a favorite amongst adolescents I'm sure but the era of the massive, culturally significant rock front man is done. It may come back but certainly not to the same extent. Big Jazz bands and standards vocalists weren't dominating the charts in the 70's/80's like they were in the 40's and 50's. Times change as does the buying public.
I laugh at this (a little bit). I teach a guitar class at a local public school. While I was encouraged that kids seemed interested in the instrument, I quickly had to rethink my initial assessment and realize that the only reason they showed up was because they were told it was going to be a cakewalk of a class by their counselors. Then they get me instead of my predecessor and I want to talk about harmonic relationships, melody, rhythm, and all things rock and roll that have been going on since the 1940's and guess what? "this is too hard..." "is this supposed to be AP Guitar?" "I just thought I'd be able to come to this class, chill, and jam out..." "if I have to do any practicing, well, that sucks..." "i don't have to know this...it's outdated..." Yep. I've heard it all. I've been a musician for 32 years, been recording and producing professionally for 15, teaching for 10. This is yes, a discouraging group of kids. Wealthy parents (I mean, what public school system has guitar classes other than rich neighborhoods?). Spoiled vibe in the classroom. But you know what? This is - to me - indicative of where we are with "guitar music". Here's a good one... "um...I want to learn this 2Pac song...that has guitar right?" Guitar is dying, rock is croaked out, kids don't want to learn anything unless it's going to be seen on a standardized test...I'm not sure who to blame. My knee jerk reaction always and forever is to blame the taste makers at the labels, but how much can blame can they take? We have the internet at our fingertips and streaming music is all around us. People can find things if they try hard enough. I don't think there is enough trying going on. It's very easy to write everything off - and I do regularly now - but I still want to believe (maybe I'm naive, maybe just hopeful) that this music is going to come back. My current audience is the wrong one. My friend teaches a similar course in a similar type of district. His famous saying? You're not gonna find the next Jimi Hendrix in Beverly Hills. He's right. And it's not because there aren't talented people over there. It's just because no one (seemingly) wants to try hard anymore. The stories of a band of newly anointed adults (and some still teens) going to a foreign country, playing 8 hour gigs 7 nights a week, and earning their 10,000 hours are OVER. So many just want quick fame. And for that I DO blame the labels. They make it easy (easier) to be fly by night sensations and then BAM - gone overnight. They encourage it because they know kids don't concentrate. They want to be on TV. They want to be a Kardashian. What a rant...my apologies. I just want to believe in the power of music forever and I'm not sure at this juncture I have as much faith as I did in my 20's. I just turned 38 and I don't think I have much time left doing this type of work. Not because I'm not good at it. I just think this thing with rock and guitar is ridiculously passe in 2017. All our heroes are passing away or are (here is a dark thought...) cued up on the list and only because they are old. I hate it. Yes...the life cycle...but damn...they are going to be memories soon. So, if you have kids...keep music alive for them in one way or another. Doesn't have to be rock. Doesn't have to be guitar. But keep INSTRUMENTS alive. Tell them to get out of Garageband and stop it with the loops. Record an actual drum kit. Record a guitar. Write a song. Back to work...
Rock music as we once knew it is on life support.Good thing we have the catalogues of all the rock giants of the 60s and 70s to keep us satiated until our time comes.Another wave of Beatles,Genesis,Hendrix,Floyd Who,Yes to name just a few?I don't think so.At least that's how I feel.
