Or Is It Dead Already?
Saw a discussion on a news forum, sparked by this:
Why Steven Van Zandt Thinks Classic Rock ‘Is Going to Die’
UltimateClassicRock | May 23rd, 2024 | Corey Irwin
Basically, it was a bunch of old fogies like us spouting off. Sample:
“It will become like Classical Music. People will still listen to it, but nobody will be interested in new stuff.
All the good rock music has already been made.”
I don’t think the same way, but I feel the same way.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2U7TDOtfxts
;-p
Stairway to Heaven performed by blonde twins on harps. 4:51
Safe for work
Could they possibly be any cuter?
They are even better in person!
(And their shtick is still funny.)
Yes, they are cuter, as they change outfits between sets. They are performers!
And damned good harpists.
I have no interest in anything Steven Van Zandt has to say, even in matters of music. His thinking is poisoned by his ignorant political views, so his judgement is suspect. Music evolves. Rock music hasn’t been around 100 years yet. Gregorian chants have survived and they aren’t the catchiest tunes to dance to.
There are a ridiculous number of genres now, including one called post-rock. Have we moved beyond rock into some new world? Hardly. Contemporary music in any era is a patchwork of influences from previous eras. Exactly what does classic rock mean to people? I have a friend who is 14 years older than I am. We both love “classic rock” but it means different things to us. His tastes go further back into the 60s than mine. Moody Blues is one of his all-time favorite bands. I like them, but I wouldn’t put them in my top 10 favorite bands.
As much as I despise most new music, there are artists out there who are producing quality music. Elton John was my absolute favorite musician since the first time I heard the “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” album. About a dozen years ago I stumbled across Anders Osborne when Pandora kept playing one of his songs. After 40+ years of Elton John fandom, my favorite musician is now Anders Osborne. His albums have improved steadily as he has aged. Most bands have two successful albums, then fade or become homogenous. The last album that The Who release a few years ago was so awful, I didn’t even finish listening to it.
Back to my point, there is good music out there, but it’s harder and harder to find. Just like mining any commodity, at first you find plenty of it, then it becomes scarcer, and the search becomes harder. There are fusion genres that integrate several influences. A band like Snarky Puppy is a good example. Jazz, rock, gospel, all rolled into one. I basically stopped listening to the radio after about 1981 because music started to really suck, but I reluctantly have to admit that there are good musicians out there still. Anders Osborne is the obvious example.
Just one example of good rock music these days. I saw this guy open for Grace Potter and was blown away. They understand groove. Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights. I could go on, but I’ll shut up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNwaa512lVY
Now, there’s a person who has given this some serious thought. Thank you very much!
My own experience: I thought nothing good would be made in modern times. Then I heard (then-new) Barenaked Ladies. So — yes, rock and roll persists.
You mentioned bands either improving or fading away. I have always pictured the Beatles as an exponential curve upwards, from album to album.
An example of modern music. This is a band from–of all places–Croatia. This is a description from the bandcamp website:
Daliborovo Granje (eng. The Branches of Dalibor) are a 5 man psychedelic/progressive/post rock band from the Međimurje county in Croatia formed in 2014. They play instrumental music influenced by various world music melodies combined into the standard post-rock / psychedelic rock genre
So, what genre do they belong to? What influences are present? Emerson, Lake, and Palmer? Led Zeppelin? Croatian musicians we’ve never heard of? Pink Floyd? What is this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2L12mqA2FA&list=PLoB4d7cPUyT0cDujb5lm2drX2AeIsWKX7&index=3
And all this time I’ve been believing that R&R died on Feb. 3rd 1959 when Buddy Holly and crew died.
I live in Lubbock and have been brainwashed to believe that anyway.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wMsazR6Tnf8
She’s certainly hotter than Chrissy Hynde of the Pretenders I can tell you that.
As rock and roll evolves you can lose your taste for it. I lost interest in”current” r&r in the 90s with Grundge. You still get “classic” styled rock but it gets scarcer day by day.
So you weren’t just yanking my chain when you said Nirvana not only sucks but sucks like a black hole? But I think it’s Grunge not Grundge. Grundge is a cake like Strawberry Grundge Cake.
Grunge saved us from the pop metal hair bands (which I did/do listen to).
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Stating that rock-n-roll is going to die is kinda like stating that the science is settled.
I like all kinds of music from modern stuff to “Classic Rock”, but a lot of metal. What cracks me up is thinking about stuff like Pantera and Slayer being considered grandpa music, and I’ve even seen Metallica pop up on “Classic Rock” playlists/channels. To me, Classic Rock was the style from the 60’s-70’s. But then again, I consider classic cars to be anything before 1975. According to many states, a 1998 Honda Civic would be considered a “Classic Car” simply because it is more than 25 years old.