Is there even an audience for new rock anymore?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Scott S., Jan 26, 2017.

  1. dmiller458

    dmiller458 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Midland, Michigan
    It was the tail end of both free form FM and the golden age of top 40 AM, the best of both worlds. During the 80s, most of the best rock was underground whether it was metal or alt/indie post-punk

    I don't want to get too many calluses from patting myself on the back, but you can start here:

    The Parliament/Funkadelic discography and appreciation thread

    I lived right on the I-75 corridor. The bigger bands would at least stop in Detroit. We could see the up & coming bands two-three times on the same tour.
     
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  2. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    LMFAO ty I was reading that and was like " coroners don't perform last rites Roman Catholic priests do". Then I was Nah don't mention it don't nit pick. I feel much better now. Now do I need to explain the origin of nit pick for the younger audience? Very good ty @Chris DeVoe again!
     
  3. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    Thank you. I'm neither a priest nor a coroner but I know the jobs both do. I think the writer wanted to talk about vivisection but couldn't make the metaphor work.
     
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  4. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    It is entirely possible to have a successful career in music and never sell a single CD or LP, solely based on YouTube views.
     
  5. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    Uh I never said that. I think that's one of those quotes that got mixed up in with the reply. You Tube views actually pay?
     
  6. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    My apologies for misattributing the quote.

    But yes, there are YouTube millionaires - the pointless and regrettable "PewDiePie" has made hundreds of millions from YouTube, and my current favorite pop songwriters The Gregory Brother (aka Schmoyoho, aaka Songify, aaaka Autotune The News) have hundreds of millions of YouTube views and in their entire career, they have had only one physical release and toured only once. As far as I can tell, Andrew, Michael, Evan and Sarah Gregory make their whole income from YouTube.
     
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  7. FrixFrixFrix

    FrixFrixFrix Senior Member

    Location:
    Parts Unknown
    The artists I listed are just stuff I like, off the top of my head. It is by no means comprehensive or meant to represent the majority of what's out there. If you're willing to put in the time and effort to find new stuff, the possibilities are limitless.

    The point being that there's plenty of fantastic music being made right now. And the notion that rock music is dead or all new music is inherently rehashed garbage is just patently untrue. Unfortunately, those opinions seem to be pretty pervasive around here.

    But, in the end, the only ones losing in that situation are those who refuse to be open to checking out new stuff. Just giving things you're not familiar with a shot already puts you a step ahead of everyone else, even if you don't end up finding something you like.
     
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  8. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    Wow I had no idea! I feel so old.now LMAO. A friend and I have been writing stuff for years. But it's mostly for our own amusement. Everything from pop to metal to punk. Lol we can make videos "The Geezers". Too funny!
     
  9. INSW

    INSW Senior Member

    Location:
    Georgia

    Reminds me of Bugsy Malone.
     
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  10. Radio Jammor

    Radio Jammor Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    84 Pages...and I felt the need to check through ever page before I commented, to ensure that what I wanted to say had not been covered. In some respects it has, but in specific aspects, it hasn't, so here I go...

    Now this particular thread has interested me because the last three bands I've got into are rock or rock-hybrid bands, and I've got into these bands not because of chart success, or hearing them on the radio, or seeing them on TV, or in any of the ways I got into bands and artists in the past, but as follows:

    Band 1: A Twitter post
    Band 2: Supporting band 1 (twice)
    Band 3: Supporting band 2 (twice)

    Band 1: Vintage Trouble (VT)
    They got briefly mentioned on page 50 of this thread. They are more a soul/R&B/rock band (described more than once as the modern day equivalent of Led Zeppelin being fronted by James Brown). Three of the band are American, one is Swedish and they regard LA as their base.

    They have though produced three albums and have made dents in the digital sales charts, rather than physical sales, but this band live almost entirely on their reputation as a live band.

    They've been on Letterman and Leno, are beloved by Whoopi Goldberg and in the UK have been on Later...with Jools. They've toured supporting Brian May, Bon Jovi, The Who, AC/DC and Paloma Faith, and now headline their own shows internationally. They were at Glasto in 2014, but their 2015 performance was more memorable.



    VT now headline their own tours, usually to the low thousands type of venue, with support, which is how I got into band number two.

    (I mean come-on; if you have supported The Who, etc, you must be decent, and you're going to have decent support when you headline, aren't you? Oh yes - you are!)

    The second band is from Warrington, England and they are called Slydigs. Now they are more your classic English rock band, but with a modern kick. You can hear The Who and Oasis as influences, and they certainly have tracks in their repertoire that touch on social issues (as do VT), and they don't just 'bang it out' either, as they have their slower tracks - but that said, they do bang it out pretty well, too.

    If you have heard of Slydigs, it is most likely because of who they've supported (pun unintended). They haven't just supported VT, but they too have also supported The Who, including on the North American leg of their 50th Anniversary tour. They were later invited back to do the European leg, also.

    Oh, and one of their songs featured on Rock Band 4.

    Slydigs are now at the point where they are starting to headline their own tours, albeit to smaller venues in the hundreds range, but they are getting around the UK and Europe at least. And that brings me to band number three, a band who have supported Slydigs twice, Maker.

    Maker are from Kent, in England. Their style is a kind of Hendrix era funky bluesy, rock style. When I first heard them whilst waiting for Slydigs, I couldn't help but think of them as a band that would not have been out of place on The Old Grey Whistle Test, circa 1972.

    Maker have been at a few festivals now and have toured in support of Ocean Colour Scene.

    Give or take a year, all three of these bands were formed circa 2010. Now I would say out the three, clearly VT are going pretty well for themselves, with international tours and acclaim. Slydigs are doing OK, with UK and European tours (and judging from the snaps of the drummer's 30th birthday holiday in LA, where he met up with the lead singer from VT), whilst perhaps Maker are just about getting by.

    Now in my opinion, all of these bands deserve much more success than they have. But what is the definition of success, these days - especially for a bad that has rock as at least part of their repertoire?

    I think you can call Vintage Trouble a success. This is despite limited chart success in any chart, let alone the mainstream charts, because what constitutes a successful rock band these days is not the same as it was 15-20 years ago, perhaps less. Their success isn't in record sales but in ticket sales and live appearances. These guys are awesome live and have plenty of recommendations to that effect. And whilst this does translate into some product sales, it translates more into ticket sales.

    I also think rock bands have it harder - at least in the UK - because they are not in vogue, at all. There is no Whistle Test any more, let alone Top of the Pops. The closest to that is the Jools show, which VT made it onto, and had their chart success partly as a consequence of that and other TV appearances, but the programme makers at the BBC don't seem to be quite so comfortable these days with getting on a 'proper' rock band like Slydigs (or Maker, for that matter), unless they've already achieved some attention, or are already established.

    That means the likes of Slydigs and Maker are bands that who seem to be eternally lumped in to being no better than a good regional band, with media attention in accordance with that standing, i.e. the local press and regional TV news.

    Despite their credentials for live music, these bands are struggling for the kind of exposure that would get them the kind of commercial kick that an appearance on national TV might give them - but even then, because they are rock bands, they would still suffer from the current out of fashion status that rock is badly suffering from, which means that no matter their credentials or how good you might think they are, they are going to struggle to compete against other current artists who are more in line with current music trends, i.e. Katy Perry, Adele, Beyonce, Rihanna, Drake, Ed Sheeran...

    This in turn means that they are going to struggle to be heard by even those who profess to like rock music, because they haven't been successful enough in terms of sales, or exposure, to even get their attention.

    Now I think that's a crying shame.

    So, as per the OP, is there a market for new rock music? My answer is sure there is. The problem isn't the quality of the bands, nor the desire of (most) people who might like them to give them a chance and listen to them, but the inability of rock bands to break through and be heard in the first place, to sufficient audience numbers, in order to get the chance to be a rock star of old.

    Addendum: As a newbie on the site, I've just discovered the media restrictions, which means I will follow up with a couple of additional posts to do what I wanted to do in this one.
     
  11. Radio Jammor

    Radio Jammor Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Slydigs - Light The Fuse
     
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  12. Radio Jammor

    Radio Jammor Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Maker - Girl Quit Your Crying
     
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  13. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Well, there’s going to be a lot of people rocking in Paris next summer.

     
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  14. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    I find I like Greta Van Fleet, If young people are making music like that and have sell out shows, then Rock will never die. If School of Rock produces such high caliber musicians then some of them are bound to go on in whatever genre, and one of those will be rock, then Rock will never die. If the music is good, all things being subjective, then there's gonna be an audience. I've only just discovered Arabs in Aspic, Wobble and Imaad Wasif, all of which are progressive or alternative and thanks to this thread I'm discovering new Rock, GVF for one. Everything old is new again. So yeah rock has an audience us discussing it proves that.

    @Chris DeVoe , gentlemen one and all have a safe and blessed Holiday season however you celebrate it.
    PaxAmoLux, Iam
     
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  15. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    That's tasty! Reminds me of the Black Crows. A lot! I can dig it.
     
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  16. pig bodine

    pig bodine God’s Consolation Prize

    Location:
    Syracuse, NY USA
    YouTube “vloggers ” are the new pop stars of the middle school set. My kids, their friends and my younger nieces and nephews are all into them. My co-workers tell me the same thing.
     
  17. WilliamWes

    WilliamWes Likes to sing along but he knows not what it means

    Location:
    New York
    I don't think that people that have turned away from music will allow a path for being turned on because if we offer up new rock that sounds like old rock, they will call them copycats with no original ideas, and if it sounds 'new' compared to classic rock, the new ideas will 'suck' and the modern sound is too much of a turnoff.

    Whatever way we offer up the music, the music fan who has turned away has to be willing to come back but also to accept that the music from now is going into older ears and an older life where 'new' music does not feel fresh like it did when we we're younger.
     
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  18. Chris DeVoe

    Chris DeVoe RIP Vickie Mapes Williams (aka Equipoise)

    True, but musicians are building their entire careers on YouTube as well. Look at Lindsey Sterling who is with a major label now - she managed to build her fan base herself on YouTube before they ever approached her.
     
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  19. WilliamWes

    WilliamWes Likes to sing along but he knows not what it means

    Location:
    New York
    Chris, claiming YouTube means nothing is just a defense mechanism. If we mention 'Twitter' then the response will be 'I don't care about tweets', if we mention Facebook or Instagram the same response.

    There's a general resistance to whatever is modern and music world changes. But not just that- here we have rock fans that cringe when other genres come up and the rigidness makes any additions to rock - whether it be pop, or hip hop or dance beats, something to be allergic to. Then we have the comparisons to deal with- 'oh they don't sound like my 70's stuff'.

    So as we present arguments for trying music nowadays, each path we offer will have a roadblock placed so we have to argue around it to get someone to open their ears. I start asking myself, how many roadblocks can I argue around before I feel its no longer worth trying to convince someone who's back is turned.
     
  20. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    @Radio Jammor , just listened to Vintage Trouble, HotDamn! That is sweet! Liked that a lot. They got a new fan! Feels like the Delta even if they said they're from LA. Needs me some Don Julio , double shot.
     
  21. Radio Jammor

    Radio Jammor Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Glad to hear it. Well, they are LA based now but Ty, the singer is originally from New Jersey, Rick on the bass is from Florida, Nalle, lead guitar is Swedish and as for drummer Richard, I don't know where in the States he's from. He may be Canadian for all I know! He doesn't have much of a personal profile, but he is one mad drummer, and really nice in person. In fact the band really make an effort to connect with their fans, including at gigs, where they still often stick around at the end.

    There are artists I like more than VT but these guys and this band are special. I can't recommend seeing them live enough. But to give you an idea, that the next short clip I regard as a fairly standard reaction from a first timer to a VT gig.



    Plenty of clips of them on YT. Do check them out.

    Couple of little factoids about singer Ty Taylor: he was in the last 15 of Rock Star: INXS. He provided the voice of Lester Grimes (Ato Essandoh) from the short-lived TV show, Vinyl.
     
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  22. Radio Jammor

    Radio Jammor Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Yes. That's a good comparison and pretty sure I've seen it made before in one or more band reviews.
     
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  23. Synthfreek

    Synthfreek I’m a ray of sunshine & bastion of positivity

    Mind blown that someone doesn't realize artists get money from YouTube views.
     
  24. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    Oh I checked out several you tube videos then downloaded everything they released. I love this kinda music! Good time, gimme another shot & a beer let's boogie mama kinda music. They're in Europe right now they're in USA in May I think but nothing near by. Yeah they gotta another Troublemaker. I gotta see them live! He's a crowd mover! Looks like a lot of fun live. Like I have said before the day I stop grooving to new, old and everything in between is the day they plant my sorry old butt. Thanx! Peace
     
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  25. William Smart

    William Smart 21st Century Schizoid Man

    Location:
    North Haven, CT
    Well glad I could blow your mind brother. Peace, Iam
     

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