Rock music is a genre of
popular musicPopular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres, and stands in contrast to art music, and traditional music which was disseminated orally...
that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s
rock and rollRock and roll is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States after World War II in the late 1940s, from a combination of the rhythms of the blues, from the African American culture, and from America's country music and gospel music scenes...
,
rhythm and bluesRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
,
country musicCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
and also drew on
folk musicThe term folk music originated in the 19th century as a term for musical folklore. It has been defined in several ways; as music transmitted by word of mouth, music of the lower classes, music with no known composer...
,
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
and
classical musicClassical music is the mainstream music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 9th century to present times...
.
The sound of rock often revolves around the
guitarThe guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that adapts readily to a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four-, seven-, eight-, ten-, eleven-, twelve-, thirteen- and eighteen-string guitars also exist. The size and shape of the neck and the base of the guitar...
back beat laid down by a
rhythm sectionA rhythm section is the musicians in a popular music band or ensemble who establish the rhythmic pulse of a song or musical piece, and who lay down the chordal structure. The term "rhythm section" may also refer to the instruments in this group...
of electric
bass guitarThe electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum....
,
drumsA drum set is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person . The term "drum kit" first became used in the 1700s in Britain...
, and keyboard instruments such as
organThe organ is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet...
,
pianoThe piano is a musical instrument which is played by means of a keyboard. Widely used in Western music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, or, since the 1970s,
synthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument that is capable of producing a variety of sounds by generating and combining signals of different frequencies...
s. Along with the guitar or keyboards,
saxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bored transposing musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by Adolphe Sax in 1841...
and blues-style
harmonicaThe harmonica is a free reed wind instrument which is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes. The pressure caused by blowing or drawing air into the reed chambers causes a reed or multiple reeds to vibrate up and down creating sound...
are sometimes used as soloing instruments. In its "purest form", it "has three chords, a strong, insistent back beat, and a catchy melody."
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, rock music developed different subgenres. When it was blended with folk music it created
folk rockFolk rock is a musical genre, combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
, with blues to create
blues-rockBlues-rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a tube...
and with jazz, to create
jazz-rock fusionFusion or, more specifically, jazz fusion or jazz rock, is a musical genre that developed in the late 1960s from a mixture of elements of jazz such as its focus on improvisation with the rhythms and grooves of funk and R&B and the beats and heavily amplified electric instruments and electronic...
. In the 1970s, rock incorporated influences from
soulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
,
funkFunk is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, and
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
music. Also in the 1970s, rock developed a number of subgenres, such as
soft rockSoft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock and roll to compose a softer, more toned-down sound for listening. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships...
,
glam rockGlam rock is a style that developed in the UK in the post-hippie early 1970s that was "performed by singers and musicians wearing outrageous clothes, makeup, hairstyles, and platform-soled boots." The flamboyant costumes, and visual styles of glam performers were a campy, theatrical blend of...
,
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
,
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
,
progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
, and
punk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
. Rock subgenres that emerged in the 1980s included
new waveNew Wave is a genre of rock and pop music that emerged in in the middle to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and...
,
hardcore punkHardcore punk, often just called hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated primarily in North America in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock...
and
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
. In the 1990s, rock subgenres included
grungeGrunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
,
BritpopBritpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
,
indie rockIndie rock is a genre of rock music that originated in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1980s. The term is often used to describe the means of production and distribution of independent underground music, as well as the style of music that was first associated with this means of...
, and
nu metalNu metal is a genre of heavy metal that blends hip-hop, grunge, alternative metal, funk metal and various other heavy metal influences such as industrial, groove and thrash.-Origins:...
.
A group of
musicianA musician is a person who performs or writes music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music:* An instrumentalist plays a musical instrument.* A singer uses his or her voice as an instrument....
s specializing in rock music is called a
rock band or
rock group. Many rock groups consist of an electric
guitaristA guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as acoustic guitars, electric guitars, classical guitars and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :...
, lead
singerSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. A person who sings is called a singer or vocalist...
,
bass guitaristA bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
, and a
drummerA drummer is a person who plays drums, particularly a drum kit , marching percussion or hand drums. The term percussionist applies to a musician performing on any percussion instrument, but usually refers to one who plays classical or Latin percussion. Most bands for Rock, Pop, Jazz, R&B etc...
, forming a
quartetIn music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
. Some groups omit one or more of these roles or utilize a lead singer who plays an instrument while singing, sometimes forming a
trioTrio is generally used in any of the following ways:*Three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.*The performance of a song by three people.*The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...
or
duoA duet is a musical composition or piece for two performers. In classical music the term is most often used for a composition for two singers or pianists; with other instruments, the word duo is also often used. A piece performed by two pianists performing together on the same piano is referred to...
; others include additional musicians such as one or two
rhythm guitarRhythm guitar is the use of a guitar to provide rhythmic chordal accompaniment for a singer or other instruments in a musical ensemble. In ensembles or "bands" playing within the acoustic, country, blues, rock or metal genres , a guitarist playing the rhythm part of a composition supports the...
ists or a
keyboardistA keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
. More rarely, groups also utilize stringed instruments such as violins or
celloThe cello is a bowed string instrument. The word derives from the Italian violoncello. A person who plays a cello is called a cellist. The cello is used as a solo instrument, in chamber music, and as a member of the string section of an orchestra...
s, woodwind instruments such as saxophones, and brass instruments such as
trumpetThe trumpet is a musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BC...
s or
tromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
s.
More recently the term
rock has been used as a
blanket termA blanket term is a word or phrase that is used to describe multiple groups of related things. The degree of relation may vary. Blanket terms often trade specificity for ease-of-use; in other words, a blanket term by itself gives little detail about the things that it describes or the relationships...
including forms such as
pop musicPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
,
soul musicSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, and sometimes even
hip hopHip hop as a cultural movement "manifest in B-boying , graffiti writing, DJing and eMCeeing/rapping – is an artistic commitment to seize freedom from oppressive social conditions...
, with which it has often been contrasted through much of its history.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and quickly spread to much of the rest of the world. Its immediate
originsRock and roll emerged as a defined musical style in America in the 1950s, though elements of rock and roll can be seen in rhythm and blues records as far back as the 1920s...
lay in a mixing together of various popular musical genres of the time, including
rhythm and bluesRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
, gospel music, and
country and westernCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
. In 1951, Cleveland, Ohio disc jockey
Alan FreedAlbert James Freed , generally known as Alan Freed and also as "Moondog", was an American disc-jockey who became internationally known for promoting African-American rhythm and blues music on the radio in the United States and Europe under the name of rock and roll...
began playing rhythm and blues music for a multi-racial audience, and is credited with first using the phrase "rock and roll" to describe the music.
There is much debate as to what should be considered the
first rock and roll recordThere are many candidates for the title of the first rock and roll record, but it is arguable whether any such thing exists. As with all forms of music, the roots of "rock and roll" are deep and wide...
. One leading contender is "
Rocket 88"Rocket 88" is a rhythm and blues song that was first recorded at Sam Phillips' recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee, on 3 March or 5 March 1951...
" by
Jackie BrenstonJackie Brenston was an American R&B singer and saxophonist who recorded, with Ike Turner's band, the first version of the proto-rock and roll song "Rocket 88".Brenston was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi...
and his Delta Cats (in fact,
Ike TurnerIke Wister Turner was an American musician, bandleader, talent scout, and record producer. Considered to be one of the fathers of rock and roll, his first recording, "Rocket 88" by "Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats," in 1951, is considered by some to be the "first rock and roll song" ever...
and his band The Kings of Rhythm), recorded by
Sam PhillipsSamuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American record producer who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
for
Sun RecordsSun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27 1952.
Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, Buddy McNeil,...
in 1951. Four years later,
Bill HaleyBill Haley was one of the first American rock and roll musicians. He is credited by many with first popularizing this form of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets and their hit song "Rock Around the Clock"...
's "
Rock Around the Clock"Rock Around the Clock" is a 12-bar-blues-based song written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers in 1952...
" (1955) became the first rock and roll song to top Billboard magazine's main sales and airplay charts, and opened the door worldwide for this new wave of popular culture.
Rolling StoneRolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...
magazine argued in 2004 that "
That's All Right (Mama)"That's All Right" is the name of the first single released by Elvis Presley, written and originally performed by blues singer Arthur Crudup as "That's All Right, Mama"...
" (1954),
Elvis Presley'sElvis Aaron Presley was an American singer and actor. A cultural icon, he is commonly known simply as Elvis and is also sometimes referred to as The King of Rock 'n' Roll or The King....
first single for Sun Records in
MemphisMemphis is a city in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. Memphis rises above the Mississippi River on the 4
th Chickasaw Bluff just south of the mouth of the Wolf River....
, was the first rock and roll record., but, at the same time,
Big Joe TurnerBig Joe Turner was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri...
's "Shake, Rattle & Roll", later covered by Haley, was already at the top of the
Billboard R&B chartsR&B/Hip-Hop Songs, formerly the Black Singles Chart, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues...
. Other artists with early rock and roll hits included
Chuck BerryCharles Edward "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.Chuck Berry is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music...
,
Bo DiddleyBo Diddley , born Ellas Otha Bates, was an American rock & roll singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He was known as "The Originator" because of his key role in the transition from blues music to rock & roll, influencing a host of legendary acts including Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton...
,
Fats DominoAntoine Dominique "Fats" Domino is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter.-Imperial Records era :...
,
Little RichardRichard Wayne Penniman , known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist and recording artist, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s...
,
Jerry Lee LewisJerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer, songwriter, and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
, and
Gene VincentVincent Eugene Craddock , better known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rock and roll and rockabilly. His 1956 top ten hit with his Blue Caps, "Be-Bop-A-Lula," is considered a significant early example of rockabilly...
.
The 1950s saw the growth in popularity of the
electric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses pickups to convert the vibration of its steel-cored strings into an electrical current, which is made louder with an instrument amplifier and a speaker. The signal that comes from the guitar is sometimes electronically altered with guitar effects such as...
, and the development of a specifically rock and roll style of playing through such exponents as Berry,
Link WrayFred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and occasional singer.Wray was noted for pioneering a new sound for electric guitars, as exemplified in his hit 1958 instrumental "Rumble", by Link Wray and his Ray Men, which pioneered an overdriven, distorted...
, and
Scotty MooreWinfield Scott "Scotty" Moore III is an American guitarist. He is best known for his backing of Elvis Presley in the first part of his career, between 1954 and the beginning of Elvis' Hollywood years...
. It also saw major developments in recording technology such as
multitrack recordingMultitrack recording is a method of sound recording that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources to create a cohesive whole. This is the most common method of recording popular music...
developed by
Les PaulLester William Polsfuss — known as Les Paul — was an American jazz and country guitarist, songwriter and inventor. He was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which "made the sound of rock and roll possible"...
, the electronic treatment of sound by such innovators as
Joe MeekJoe Meek was a pioneering English record producer and songwriter...
, and the
Wall of SoundThe Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios during the 1960s....
productions of
Phil SpectorHarvey Philip "Phil" Spector is an American pioneering record producer and songwriter who was convicted of murder in 2009....
. All these developments were important influences on later rock music.
The
social effects of rock and rollThe massive popularity and worldwide scope of rock music resulted in a powerful level of social impact. Far beyond simply a musical style; rock and roll influenced daily life, fashion, attitudes and language in a way few other social developments have equalled....
were worldwide and massive. Far beyond simply a musical style, rock and roll influenced lifestyles, fashion, attitudes, and language. In addition, rock and roll may have helped the cause of the civil rights movement because both African American teens and white American teens enjoyed the music.
Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music, as it was the first record label owned by an African American to primarily feature African-American artists who achieved crossover success. In the early 1960s, Motown and its soul-based subsidiaries were the most successful proponents of what came to be known as The Motown Sound, a style of soul music with a distinct pop influence. From 1961 to 1971, Motown had 110 top 10 hits, and artists such as
Stevie WonderStevie Wonder is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. Blind from birth, Wonder signed with Motown Records at the age of eleven, and continues to perform and record for the label. He has recorded more than thirty U.S...
,
Marvin GayeMarvin Pentz Gay, Jr., better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and instrumentalist with a three-octave vocal range. Starting as a member of the doo-wop group The Moonglows in the late fifties, he ventured into a solo career after the group disbanded in 1960...
,
The SupremesThe Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
, The Four Tops, and
The Jackson 5The Jackson 5 were an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
, were all signed to Motown labels. All of these acts have been inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of FameThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, dedicated to recording the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, and other people who have in some major way influenced the music...
.
Surf music
The instrumental rock and roll pioneered by performers such as
Duane EddyDuane Eddy is a Grammy Award-winning American guitarist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Rock and Roll's all-time, #1 instrumentalist.- Biography :...
,
Link WrayFred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and occasional singer.Wray was noted for pioneering a new sound for electric guitars, as exemplified in his hit 1958 instrumental "Rumble", by Link Wray and his Ray Men, which pioneered an overdriven, distorted...
, and
The VenturesThe Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. The band, formed by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, two masonry workers, has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide, having sold over 100 million records, and are to date the best-selling...
was developed by
Dick DaleDick Dale is a surf-rock guitarist, known as "The King Of The Surf Guitar"...
who added distinctive "wet" reverb, rapid alternate picking, as well as Middle Eastern and Mexican influences, producing the regional hit "
Let's Go Trippin'"Let's Go Trippin" is an instrumental by Dick Dale and the Del-Tones. It is often regarded as the first surf rock instrumental. It quickly reached #4 on influential Los Angeles station KFWB, and later reached #60 on the national charts....
" in 1961 and launching the surf music craze. Like Dale and his Del-Tones, most early surf bands were formed in Southern California, including the Bel-Airs, the
ChallengersThe Challengers were an instrumental surf rock band in the 1960s, located in Los Angeles. They started early in the game and helped make the genre popular. Their debut album Surfbeat is the biggest selling surf album of all time and almost single-handedly brought surf from California to the rest of...
, and
Eddie & the ShowmenEddie & the Showmen were a surf rock band of the 1960s. Formed in Southern California by Eddie Bertrand, formerly of The Bel-Airs, they released several singles on Liberty records though never a full album. Their highest-charting single in Los Angeles was Mr...
.
The ChantaysThe Chantays are a surf rock band from the early 1960s, known for the hit instrumental "Pipeline" . They were formed in 1961 when five high-school friends decided to start their own band...
scored a top ten national hit with "
Pipeline"Pipeline" is a surf rock song by The Chantays which was recorded in 1963.The original release was on Downey 104-B, and was picked up for nationwide distribution by Dot Records, which released it as Dot 16440-B...
" in 1963 and probably the single most famous surf tune hit was 1963's "Wipe Out", by the Surfaris, which hit # 2 and # 10 on the Billboard charts in 1965.
The growing popularity of the genre led groups from other areas to try their hand. These included
The AstronautsThe Astronauts is the first science fiction novel by Polish writer Stanisław Lem published as a book, in 1951....
, from
Boulder, ColoradoBoulder is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County, Colorado, in the United States. Boulder is the 11th most populous city in the state of Colorado. The United States Census Bureau estimates that in 2008 the population of the city of Boulder was...
,
The TrashmenThe Trashmen are a rock and roll band formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1962. The group's lineup was Tony Andreason on lead guitar and vocals, Dal Winslow on guitar and vocals, Steve Wahrer on drums and vocals, and Bob Reed on bass guitar...
, from
Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis is the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Hennepin County. The city lies on both banks of the Mississippi River, just north of the river's confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Saint Paul, the state's capital. Known as the Twin Cities,...
, who had a number 4 hit with "Surfin Bird" in 1964 and
The RivierasThe Rivieras were a rock'n'roll group, formed in the early 1960s in South Bend, Indiana, United States.The Rivieras featured Marty Fortson vocals and guitar; Doug Gean playing bass guitar; Otto Nuss playing organ; second guitarist Joe Pennell and drummer Paul Dennert. Fortson left the group for...
from
South Bend, IndianaSouth Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, on the St. Joseph River. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total of 107,789 residents; its Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 316,663...
, who reached #5 in 1964 with "California Sun".
The AtlanticsThis article refers to the Australian Surf rock band. See paragraph at the end of this page for information on other bands called The Atlantics....
, from Sydney, Australia, made a significant contribution to the genre, with their hit "Bombora" (1963). European instrumental bands around this time generally focused more on the more rock and roll style played by The Shadows, but
The DakotasThe Dakotas is a collective term used around the world that refers to the U.S. states of North Dakota and South Dakota together. The term has been used historically to describe the Dakota Territory, and is continued to be used to describe the collective heritage, culture, geography, fauna,...
, who were the British backing band for Merseybeat singer
Billy J. KramerBilly J. Kramer is a former British Invasion/Merseybeat singer. In sharing Brian Epstein as a manager with The Beatles he enjoyed access to the songwriting of Lennon and McCartney, recording several of their original compositions.-Early life and career:He grew up as the youngest of seven siblings...
, gained some attention as surf musicians with "Cruel Sea" (1963), which was later covered by American instrumental surf bands, including The Ventures.
Surf music achieved its greatest commercial success as vocal music, particularly the work of the Beach Boys, formed in 1961 in Southern California. Their early albums included both instrumental surf rock (among them covers of music by Dick Dale) and vocal songs, drawing on rock and roll and doo wop and the close harmonies of vocal pop acts like the Four Freshmen. Their first chart hit, "
Surfin'"Surfin" is the title of a song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love for The Beach Boys. It was first released as a single on December 8, 1961 on Candix Records and it later appeared on the 1962 album Surfin' Safari. The B-side of the single was Luau. It was The Beach Boys first ever released...
" in 1962 reached the Billboard top 100 and helped make the surf music craze a national phenomenon. From 1963 the group began to leave surfing behind as subject matter as
Brian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the rock group The Beach Boys...
became their major composer and producer, moving on to the more general themes of male adolescence including cars and girl in songs like "
Fun, Fun, Fun"Fun, Fun, Fun", written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, was a hit single by The Beach Boys that was released in 1964 on the band's album Shut Down Volume 2.- Composition :...
" (1964) and "
California Girls"California Girls" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love and recorded by The Beach Boys in 1965. It features contrasting verse-chorus form. The song was released as a single, reaching #3 on the Billboard Hot 100...
" (1965). Other vocal surf acts followed, including one-hit wonders like
Ronny & the DaytonasRonny & the Daytonas were a surf rock group of the early 1960s, whose members included Paul Jensen , Don Henderson , Lynn Williams , Lee Kraft and John "Bucky" Wilkin , with contributions from many more such as Ronny Clark.-History:The group was formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1964 when Bill...
with "G. T. O." (1964) and Rip Chords with "Hey Little Cobra", which both reached the top ten, but the only other act to achieve sustained success with the formula were Jan & Dean, who had a number 1 hit with "Surf City" (co-written with Brian Wilson) in 1963. The surf music craze and the careers of almost all surf acts, was effectively ended by the arrival of the
British InvasionThe British Invasion is used to describe rock and roll, beat and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States from 1964 to 1966. The Second British Invasion refers to MTV and New Wave acts of the 1980s...
from 1964. Only the Beach Boys were able to sustain a creative career into the mid-1960s, producing a string of hit singles and albums, including the highly
Pet SoundsPet Sounds is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band The Beach Boys, released May 16, 1966, on Capitol Records. It has been widely ranked as one of the most influential records ever released in western pop music and has been ranked at number #1 in several music magazines' lists of...
in 1966, which made them, arguably, the only American rock or pop act that could rival the Beatles.
Early British rock and roll and the British Invasion
In the United Kingdom, the
trad jazzTrad jazz which is shorthand for "traditional jazz" may either refer to a music genre popular in Britain and Australia from the 1940s onward through the 1950s, or to the American "hot jazz" of the 1920s and early 1930s, which developed from the New Orleans and Ragtime styles of music...
and folk movements brought visiting blues music artists to Britain.
Lonnie DoneganLonnie Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
's 1955 hit "
Rock Island Line"Rock Island Line" is an American blues/folk song performed and first recorded by Lead Belly in the 1930s. Versions have been recorded by other artists...
" was a major influence and helped to develop the trend of skiffle music groups throughout the country, many of which, including
John LennonJohn Winston Ono Lennon, MBE was an English rock musician, singer-songwriter, author, and peace activist who gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles...
's
The QuarrymenThe Quarrymen were an English skiffle band, formed in Liverpool in 1957, who went on to become The Beatles, the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed rock band in world history. Consisting initially of John Lennon and several schoolfriends, The Quarrymen took their name from Quarry...
, moved on to play rock and roll.
Cliff RichardSir Cliff Richard OBE is a British singer-songwriter and entrepreneur.With his backing group The Shadows, Richard dominated the British popular music scene in the late 1950s and early 1960s, before and during The Beatles' first year in the charts...
had the first British rock 'n' roll hit with "
Move It"Move It" is a song recorded by Cliff Richard and the Drifters . Originally intended as the B-side to "Schoolboy Crush", it was released as Richard's debut single on August 29 1958 and became his first hit record. It is credited with being one of the first authentic rock and roll songs produced...
", effectively ushering in the sound of British rock. At the start of the 1960s, his backing group
The ShadowsThe Shadows are Britain's most successful instrumental and vocal group with a grand total of 69 UK hit singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and The Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s...
was one of a number of groups having success with instrumentals. While rock 'n' roll was fading into lightweight pop and ballads, British rock groups at clubs and local dances, heavily influenced by blues-rock pioneers like
Alexis KornerAlexis Korner , born Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner, was a pioneering blues musician and broadcaster who has sometimes been referred to as "the Founding Father of British Blues"...
, were starting to play with an intensity and drive seldom found in white American acts.
By the end of 1962, the British rock scene had started with
beat groupsBeat music, British beat, or Merseybeat , is a pop music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
like
The BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music...
drawing on a wide range of American influences including
soul musicSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, rhythm and blues and surf music. Initially, they reinterpreted standard American tunes, playing for dancers doing the
twistThe Twist was a dance in the 1960s, inspired by rock and roll music. It became a worldwide craze, enjoying immense popularity among young people and drawing fire from critics who felt it was too provocative. It was the first international rock and roll dance of its kind. It inspired dances such as...
, for example. These groups eventually infused their original rock compositions with increasingly complex musical ideas and a distinctive sound. In mid-1962
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
started as one of a number of groups increasingly showing blues influence, along with
The AnimalsThe Animals were an English music group of the 1960s known in the United States as part of the British Invasion. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature songs "The House of the Rising Sun" and "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", the...
and
The YardbirdsThe Yardbirds are an English rock band, notable for starting the careers of three of rock's more famous guitarists: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, all of whom were in the top fifteen of Rolling Stones' 100 Top Guitarists list...
.
British rock broke through to mainstream popularity in the United States in January 1964 with the success of
the BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music...
. "
I Want to Hold Your Hand"I Want to Hold Your Hand" is a song by the English pop and rock band The Beatles. Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and recorded in October 1963, it was the first Beatles record to be made using four-track equipment. McCartney and Lennon did not have any particular inspiration for the song...
" was the band's first number-one hit on the
Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart, starting the
British InvasionThe British Invasion is used to describe rock and roll, beat and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States from 1964 to 1966. The Second British Invasion refers to MTV and New Wave acts of the 1980s...
of the American music charts. The song entered the chart on January 18 1964 at number 45 before it became the number one single for 7 weeks and went onto last a total of 15 weeks in the chart. It also held the top spot in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
charts. A million copies of the single had already been ordered on its release. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" became The Beatles' best-selling single worldwide. Their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show February 9 is considered a milestone in American pop culture. The broadcast drew an estimated 73 million viewers, at the time a record for an American television program. The Beatles went on to become the biggest selling rock band of all time and they were followed by numerous British bands.
During the next two years, Chad & Jeremy, Peter and Gordon,
The AnimalsThe Animals were an English music group of the 1960s known in the United States as part of the British Invasion. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature songs "The House of the Rising Sun" and "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", the...
,
Manfred MannManfred Mann were a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboard player and founder, who later led the successful 1970s follow-on group Manfred Mann's Earth Band.-Beginnings :...
,
Petula ClarkPetula Clark, CBE is an English singer, actress, and composer whose career has spanned seven decades.Clark's professional career began as an entertainer on BBC Radio during World War II...
,
Freddie and the DreamersFreddie and the Dreamers were a British musical band who had a number of hit records between May 1963 and November 1965. Their act was based around the comic antics of the 5-foot-3-inch-tall Freddie Garrity, who was famous for bouncing around the stage with arms and legs flying.-UK history:The...
, Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, Herman’s Hermits,
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
,
The TroggsThe Troggs are an English rock band from the 1960s that had a number of hits in Britain and the USA, including their most famous song, "Wild Thing". The Troggs were from the town of Andover in southern England...
, and
DonovanDonovan , is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
would have one or more number one singles. Other acts that were part of the invasion included
The KinksThe Kinks are an English rock group categorised in the US as a British Invasion band. The Kinks have been cited as one of the most important and influential rock bands of the British Invasion era....
and
The Dave Clark FiveThe Dave Clark Five were an English pop rock group. It was the second group of the British Invasion, after The Beatles, to have a chart hit in the United States ....
. British Invasion acts also dominated the music charts at home in the United Kingdom.
The British Invasion helped make internationalize the production of rock and roll, opening the door for subsequent British (and Irish) performers to achieve international success. In America it arguably spelled the end of instrumental
surf musicSurf music is a genre of popular music associated with surf culture, particularly Orange County and other areas of Southern California. It was particularly popular between 1961 and 1965, has subsequently been revived and was highly influential on subsequent rock music...
, vocal girl groups and (for a time) the
teen idolA Teen idol is a celebrity who is widely idolized by teenagers; he or she is often young but not necessarily teenaged. Often teen idols are actors or pop singers, but some sports figures have an appeal to teenagers. Some teen idols are child actors...
s, that had dominated the American charts in the late 1950s and 60s. It dented the careers of established R&B acts like
Fats DominoAntoine Dominique "Fats" Domino is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter.-Imperial Records era :...
and
Chubby CheckerChubby Checker is an American singer-songwriter best known for popularizing the The Twist with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard's R&B hit "The Twist"...
and even temporarily derailed the chart success of surviving rock and roll acts, including Elvis. The British Invasion also played a major part in the rise of a distinct genre of rock music, and cemented the primacy of the rock group, based around guitars and drums and producing their own material as singer-songwriters.
Garage rock
Garage rock was a form of amateurish rock music, particularly prevalent in North America in the mid-1960s and so called because of the perception that it was rehearsed in a suburban family garage. Garage rock songs revolved around the traumas of high school life, with songs about "lying girls" being particularly common. The lyrics and delivery were notably more aggressive than was common at the time, often with growled or shouted vocals that dissolved into incoherent screaming. They ranged from crude one-chord music (like
the SeedsThe Seeds were a rock band best known for the hit single "Pushin' Too Hard", released in 1966. Based in Los Angeles, California, its raw and abrasive energy and simple, repetitive lyrics came to exemplify the garage rock style of the 1960s...
and the Keggs) to near-studio musician quality (including
the KnickerbockersThe Knickerbockers were an American pop/rock music group best remembered for their 1965 hit, "Lies."-History:The band was formed in 1962 in Bergenfield, New Jersey by brothers Beau Charles and John Charles with fluctuating personnel until 1964, when they met Buddy Randell The Knickerbockers...
,
the RemainsThe Remains were a mid-1960s rock group from Boston, Massachusetts, led by Barry Tashian, who later was harmony vocalist and guitarist for Emmylou Harris and part of the duo, Barry and Holly Tashian...
, and
the Fifth EstateThe Fifth Estate was a rock n roll band originally formed in Stamford, Connecticut as the The D-Men in early 1964.- The Fifth Estate :...
). There were also regional variations in many parts of the country with flourishing scenes particularly in California and Texas. The Pacific Northwest states of Washington and Oregon had perhaps the most defined regional sound.
The style had been evolving from regional scenes as early as 1958. "Tall Cool One" (1959) by
The WailersThe Wailers were an American rock band from Tacoma, Washington. Formed around 1958, they are often considered the first garage rock group. They performed a hybrid of saxophone-driven R&B and Chuck Berry rock and roll....
and "
Louie Louie"Louie Louie" is an American rock 'n' roll song written by Richard Berry in 1955. It has become a standard in pop and rock, with hundreds of versions recorded by different artists. The song is written in the style of a Jamaican ballad; and tells, in simple verse-chorus form, the first-person story...
" by
The KingsmenThe Kingsmen are a 1960s garage rock / frat rock band from Portland, Oregon. They are best known for their 1963 recording of Richard Berry's "Louie Louie", which held the #2 spot on the Billboard charts for six weeks...
(1963) are mainstream examples of the genre in its formative stages. By 1963, garage band singles were creeping into the national charts in greater numbers, including Paul Revere and the Raiders (Boise),
the TrashmenThe Trashmen are a rock and roll band formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1962. The group's lineup was Tony Andreason on lead guitar and vocals, Dal Winslow on guitar and vocals, Steve Wahrer on drums and vocals, and Bob Reed on bass guitar...
(Minneapolis) and
the RivierasThe Rivieras were a rock'n'roll group, formed in the early 1960s in South Bend, Indiana, United States.The Rivieras featured Marty Fortson vocals and guitar; Doug Gean playing bass guitar; Otto Nuss playing organ; second guitarist Joe Pennell and drummer Paul Dennert. Fortson left the group for...
(South Bend, Indiana). Other influential garage bands, such as
the SonicsThe Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, originating from the early and mid-1960s. Among The Sonics' contemporaries were The Kingsmen, The Wailers, The Drastics, The Dynamics, The Regents, and Paul Revere & the Raiders...
(Tacoma, Washington), never reached the Billboard 100. In this early period many bands were heavily influenced by surf rock and there was a cross-pollination between garage rock and
frat rockFrat rock was an early influential American subgenre of rock and roll / roots rock. Frat rock was generally characterized as very energetic and upbeat yet raw "party" rock. The genre is named after the fact that many of these bands played gigs at fraternity houses during the genre's heyday in the...
, sometimes viewed as merely a sub-genre of garage rock.
The "
British InvasionThe British Invasion is used to describe rock and roll, beat and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States from 1964 to 1966. The Second British Invasion refers to MTV and New Wave acts of the 1980s...
" of 1964-6 greatly influenced garage bands, providing them with a national audience, leading many (often surf or
hot rodHot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another explanation is that the mufflers were...
groups) to adopt a British Invasion lilt, and encouraging many more groups to form. Thousands of garage bands were extant in the USA and Canada during the era and hundreds produced regional hits. Examples include: "I Just Don't Care" by New York City's
The D-MenThe D-Men were an American Beat group. They began in Stamford, CT in 1963.Played continuously around the US and in many NYC clubs including Trude Heller'sand The World and in many Greenwich Village clubs like The Bottom Line, andThe Downtown...
(1965), "The Witch" by Seattle's
The SonicsThe Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, originating from the early and mid-1960s. Among The Sonics' contemporaries were The Kingsmen, The Wailers, The Drastics, The Dynamics, The Regents, and Paul Revere & the Raiders...
(1965), "Where You Gonna Go" by Detroit's
Unrelated SegmentsThe Unrelated Segments were a Taylor, Michigan-based teen rocker group formed in late 1966 around the nucleus of singer Ron Stults and lead guitarist Rory Mack, who together previously teamed in the short-lived Village Beaus...
(1967), "Girl I Got News for You" by Miami's
BirdwatchersThe Birdwatchers were a garage rock pop band active in the 1960s in the Miami area. The band dabbled with an Everly Brothers sound in their early career , even releasing a version of "Wake Up Little Susie" on Tara, a local Florida label....
(1966) and "1-2-5" by Montreal's The Haunted. Despite scores of bands being signed to major or large regional labels, most were commercial failures. It is generally agreed that garage rock peaked both commercially and artistically around 1966. By 1968 the style largely disappeared from the national charts and at the local level as amateur musicians faced college, work or the
draftConscription is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by an established authority. It is most often used in the specific sense of requiring citizens to serve in the armed forces...
. New styles had evolved to replace garage rock (including
blues-rockBlues-rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a tube...
,
progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
and
country rockCountry-rock is a musical genre formed from the fusion of rock with country music, with its country origins being initially referenced to the rockabilly music of the 1950s....
). In Detroit garage rock stayed alive until the early 70s, with bands like the
MC5KICK OUT THE JAMS The MC5 is an American rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan in 1964 and active until 1972. They played hard rock music that also included blues-rock, psychedelic rock, rock & roll and garage rock...
and
The StoogesThe Stooges are an American rock band that were first active from 1967 to 1974, then reformed in 2003. The Stooges sold few records in their original incarnation and often performed for indifferent or hostile audiences...
, who employed a much more aggressive style. These bands began to be labelled
punk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and are now often seen as proto-punk or proto-
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
.
Blues-rock
Although the first impact of the British Invasion on American popular music was through beat and R&B based acts, the impetus was soon taken up by a second wave of bands that drew their inspiration more directly from American
bluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre created within the African-American communities in the Deep South of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, including the Rolling Stones and the
YardbirdsYardbirds may refer to:*The Yardbirds, a 1960s rock band featuring, at various times, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page*Yardbirds Home Center...
. British blues musicians of the late 1950s and early 60s had been inspired by the acoustic playing of figures such as Lead Belly, who was a major influence on the Skiffle craze, and
Robert JohnsonRobert Leroy Johnson was an American blues musician, among the most famous of Delta blues musicians. His landmark recordings from 1936–1937 display a remarkable combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that have influenced generations of musicians...
. Increasingly they adopted a loud amplified sound, often centred around the electric guitar, based on the
Chicago bluesThe Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums, piano, and sometimes saxophone, and making the harmonica louder with a...
, particularly after the tour of Britain by
Muddy WatersMcKinley Morganfield , better known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician and is generally considered "the Father of Chicago blues". He is also the actual father of blues musicians Big Bill Morganfield and Larry "Mud Morganfield" Williams...
in 1958, which prompted
Cyril DaviesCyril Davies was one of the first British blues harmonica players and blues musician.Born at St Mildred's, 15 Hawthorn Drive, Willowbank, Denham, Buckinghamshire, near London, he was the son of William Albert Davies, a labourer, and his wife Margaret Mary...
and guitarist
Alexis KornerAlexis Korner , born Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner, was a pioneering blues musician and broadcaster who has sometimes been referred to as "the Founding Father of British Blues"...
to form the band
Blues IncorporatedBlues Incorporated were a British R&B band in the early 1960s, led by Alexis Korner, featuring at various times such musicians as Jack Bruce, Charlie Watts, Terry Cox, Ginger Baker, Long John Baldry, Danny Thompson, Graham Bond, Cyril Davies, Malcolm Cecil and Dick Heckstall-Smith...
. The band involved and inspired many of the figures of the subsequent
British bluesBritish blues is a form of music derived from American blues that originated in the late 1950s and which reached its height of mainstream popularity in the 1960s, when it developed a distinctive and influential style dominated by electric guitar and made international stars of several proponents of...
boom, including members of the Rolling Stones and Cream, combing blues standards and forms with rock instrumentation and emphasis.
The other key focus for British blues was around
John MayallJohn Mayall, OBE is a pioneering English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. His musical career spans over fifty years but the most notable episode in it occurred during the late '60s...
who formed the
BluesbreakersJohn Mayall & the Bluesbreakers are a pioneering English blues band, led by singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist John Mayall, OBE. Mayall used the band name between 1963 and '67 then dropped it for some fifteen years, but in 1982 a 'Return of the Bluesbreakers' was announced and it has...
, whose members included
Eric ClaptonEric Patrick Clapton, CBE is an English blues-rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Clapton has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Yardbirds, of Cream, and as a solo performer, being the only person ever to be inducted three times...
(after his departure from
The YardbirdsThe Yardbirds are an English rock band, notable for starting the careers of three of rock's more famous guitarists: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, all of whom were in the top fifteen of Rolling Stones' 100 Top Guitarists list...
) and later
Peter GreenPeter Green may refer to:*Peter Green , English blues guitarist, founder of Fleetwood Mac*Peter Green , British historian & translator*Peter Green , Australian PR Manager & writer...
. Particularly significant was the release of
Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton (Beano) album (1966), considered one of the seminal British blues recordings and the sound of which was much emulated in both Britain and the United States. Eric Clapton went on to form supergroups Cream,
Blind FaithBlind Faith was an English blues-rock band that consisted of Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Steve Winwood and Ric Grech. The band, which was one of the first "super-groups", released their only album, Blind Faith, in August 1969...
and
Derek and the DominosDerek and the Dominos were a blues-rock band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer Eric Clapton with keyboardist Bobby Whitlock, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon, who had all played with Clapton in Delaney, Bonnie & Friends....
, followed by an extensive solo career that has been seminal in bringing blues-rock into the mainstream. Green, along with the Bluesbreaker's rhythm section
Mick FleetwoodMichael John Kells "Mick" Fleetwood is a British-born musician best known for his role as the drummer and namesake of the blues/rock and roll band Fleetwood Mac...
and
John McVieJohn Graham McVie is a British bass guitarist best known as a member of the rock group Fleetwood Mac. His surname, combined with that of Mick Fleetwood, was the inspiration for the band's name...
, formed Peter Green's
Fleetwood MacFleetwood Mac are a British/American rock band formed in 1967 in London, England.The only member present in the band from the very beginning is its namesake drummer Mick Fleetwood...
, who enjoyed some of the greatest commercial success in the genre. In the late '60s
Jeff BeckGeoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He was one of the three noted guitarists — the others being Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page — to have played with The Yardbirds...
, also an alumni of the Yardbirds, moved blues-rock in the direction of heavy rock with his band,
The Jeff Beck GroupThe Jeff Beck Group were an English rock band formed in London in January 1966 by former Yardbirds guitarist Jeff Beck. Their innovative approach to heavy sounding blues was a major influence on popular music.- The first Jeff Beck Group :...
. The last Yardbirds guitarist
Jimmy PageJames Patrick Page OBE is an Englishcomposer and record producer.Page has been described as "unquestionably one of the all-time most influential, important, and versatile guitarists and songwriters in rock history". In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Page #9 in its list of the 100 Greatest...
went on to form
The New Yardbirds which rapidly became
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
, whose early work was largely based around adaptations of blues standards. Many of the song on their first three albums and occasionally later in their careers, were expansions on traditional blues songs.
In American blues-rock had been pioneered in the early 1960s by guitarist
Lonnie MackLonnie Mack is a rock and blues guitarist/vocalist. In the early 1960s, he recorded several full-length rock guitar instrumentals strongly grounded in the blues, the best-known of which are "Memphis", "Wham!", "Chicken Pickin'" and "Suzie-Q"...
, but the genre began to take off in the mid-60s as acts followed developed a sound similar to British blues musicians. Key acts included
Paul ButterfieldPaul Butterfield was an American blues vocalist and harmonica player who gained international recognition in part as one of the acts performing at the original Woodstock Festival...
(whose band acted like Mayall's Bluesbreakers in Britain as a starting point for many successful musicians),
Canned HeatCanned Heat is a blues-rock/boogie band that formed in Los Angeles, California, USA, in 1965. The group has been noted for its own interpretations of blues material as well as for efforts to promote the interest in this type of music and its original artists...
, the early
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
,
Janis JoplinJanis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter and music arranger, from Port Arthur, Texas. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist...
,
Johnny WinterJohn Dawson "Johnny" Winter III is an American blues guitarist, singer and producer.Johnny and Edgar Winter were nurtured at an early age by their parents in their musical pursuits. Johnny Winter is known for his southern blues and rock and roll style, as well as his physical appearance...
, The J. Geils Band and
Jimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter...
with his power trios, The Jimi Hendrix Experience and
Band of GypsysBand of Gypsys is a live album and a project by Jimi Hendrix, backed by Billy Cox and Buddy Miles, that followed Experience. Released before his death in 1970, it was the last album Hendrix himself authorized, and the only Hendrix-authorized album to be released on Capitol Records...
, whose guitar virtuosity and showmanship would be among the most emulated of the decade. Blues-rock bands like Allman Brothers Band,
Lynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band, formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1964. The band became prominent in the Southern United States in 1973, and rose to worldwide recognition before three members and one road crew member died in an airplane crash in 1977, including lead vocalist and primary...
and eventually
ZZ TopZZ Top is an American rock trio, formed in late 1969 in Houston, Texas, by Billy Gibbons , Dusty Hill , and Frank Beard...
from the southern states, incorporated country elements into their style to produce distinctive
Southern rockSouthern rock is a subgenre of rock music, and genre of country music. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitar and vocals.-1950s and 1960s – origins:...
.
Early blues-rock bands often emulated jazz, playing long, involved improvisations which would later be a major element of
progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
. From about 1967 bands like Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience had begun to move away from purely blues-based music into psychedelia. By the 1970s blues-rock had become heavier and more riff-based, exemplified by the work of Led Zeppelin and
Deep PurpleDeep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford, Hertfordshire in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members have tried not to categorise themselves as any one genre. The band...
, and the lines between blues-rock and
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
"were barely visible", as bands began recording rock-style albums. The genre was continued in the 1970s by figures such as
George ThorogoodGeorge Thorogood is a blues rock performer from Wilmington, Delaware, known for his hit song "Bad to the Bone" as well as for covers of blues standards such as Hank Williams' "Move It On Over" and John Lee Hooker's "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer"...
and
Pat TraversPatrick Henry "Pat" Travers is a Canadian rock guitarist, keyboardist and singer who began his recording career with Polydor Records in the mid 1970s...
, but, particularly on the British scene (except perhaps for the advent of groups such as
Status QuoStatus Quo, also known as The Quo or just Quo, are an English rock band whose music is characterized by their distinctive brand of boogie rock....
and
FoghatFoghat are a British rock band who had their peak success in the mid- to late-1970s. Their style can be described as "blues-rock," dominated by electric and electric slide guitar. The band has achieved five gold records...
who moved towards a form of high energy and repetitive
boogie rockBoogie rock is a music genre which came out of the hard heavy blues-rock of the late 1960s. It tends to feature a repetitive driving rhythm in place of instrumental experimentation found in the more progressive blues-rock bands of the period....
), bands became focused on
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
innovation, and blues-rock began to slip out of the mainstream.
Folk rock
By the 1960s, the scene that had developed out of the
American folk music revivalThe American folk music revival was a phenomenon in the United States in the 1950s to mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, of course, since traditional folk music has thousands of years of history, and performers like Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, and Cisco Houston had enjoyed a limited general...
had grown to a major movement, utilising traditional music and new compositions in a traditional style, usually on acoustic instruments. In America the genre was pioneered by figures such as
Woody GuthrieWoodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
and
Pete SeegerPeter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and a key figure in the mid-20th century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early '50s as a member of The Weavers, most notably the 1950 recording of Leadbelly's...
and often identified with progressive or
labor politicsThe term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and political governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing...
. In the early sixties figures such as
Joan BaezJoan Chandos Baez is a folk singer and songwriter known for her highly individual vocal style...
and
Bob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet and painter who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was, at first, an informal chronicler and then an apparently reluctant figurehead of social unrest...
had came to the fore in this movement as singer-songwriters. Dylan had begun to reach a mainstream audience with hits including "
Blowin' in the Wind"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released on his 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of rhetorical questions about peace, war, and freedom...
" (1963) and "
Masters of War"Masters of War" is a song by Bob Dylan, written in 1963 and released on the album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan. It is an adaptation, with new words by Dylan, of "Nottamun Town"....
" (1963), which brought "
protest songA protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...
s" to a wider public, but, although beginning to influence each other, rock and folk music had remained largely separate genres, often with mutually exclusive audiences.
Early attempts to combine elements of folk and rock included the Animals "House of the Rising Sun" (1964), which was the first commercially successful folk song to be recorded with rock and roll instrumentation and the Beatles "
I'm a Loser"I'm a Loser" is a song by The Beatles originally released on Beatles for Sale . "I'm a Loser" was once considered for release as a single in the UK until Lennon wrote "I Feel Fine"....
" (1965), arguably the first Beatles song to be influenced directly by Dylan. The folk rock movement is usually thought to have taken off with
The ByrdsThe Byrds were an American rock and roll band. Formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964, The Byrds underwent several personnel changes, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973....
recording of Dylan's "
Mr. Tambourine Man"Mr. Tambourine Man" is a song written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home, produced by Tom Wilson. The Byrds also recorded a version that was their first single and title track of their first album, and reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart...
" which topped the charts in 1965. With members who had been part of the cafe-based folk scene in Los Angeles, the Byrds adopted rock instrumentation, including drums and 12-string
RickenbackerRickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker ), is an electric guitar manufacturer, notable for putting the world's first electric guitars into general production in 1932...
guitars, which became an major element in the sound of the genre. Later that year Dylan adopted electric instruments, much to the
outrageAfter years of basic solo performances and simple acoustic albums, singer-songwriter Bob Dylan was the subject of much controversy at Newport Folk Festival on Sunday July 25, 1965. During his performance Dylan "went electric", by playing with an electric blues band in concert for the first time...
of many folk purists, with his "
Like a Rolling Stone"Like a Rolling Stone" is a song by American songwriter Bob Dylan. One of his best-known and most influential works, the song had its origin in an extended piece of verse which Dylan had written, before he recorded and released it in 1965....
" becoming a US hit single. Folk rock took off particularly in California, where it led acts like
The Mamas & the PapasThe Mamas & the Papas were a vocal group of the 1960s. The group recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968 with a short reunion in 1971, releasing five albums and 11 Top 40 hit singles...
and Crosby, Stills and Nash to move to electric instrumentation and in New York, where is spawned acts including
The Lovin' SpoonfulThe Lovin' Spoonful is an American pop rock band of the 1960s, named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. When asked about his band, leader John Sebastian said it sounded like a combination of "Mississippi John Hurt and Chuck Berry."...
and
Simon and GarfunkelSimon & Garfunkel is an American singer-songwriter duo consisting of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. They formed the group "Tom and Jerry" in 1957, and had their first taste of success with the minor hit "Hey, Schoolgirl". As Simon and Garfunkel, the duo rose to fame in 1965, backed by the hit single...
, with the latter's acoustic "Sound of Silence" being remixed with rock instruments to be the first of many hits.
These acts directly influenced British performers like
DonovanDonovan , is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
and
Fairport ConventionFairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
. In 1969 Fairport Convention abandoned their mixture of American covers and Dylan-influenced songs to produce to play traditional English folk music on electric instruments. This
electric folkElectric folk is the name given to the form of folk rock pioneered in England from the late 1960s, and most significant in the 1970s, which then was taken up and developed in the surrounding Celtic cultures of Brittany, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the Isle of Man, to produce Celtic rock and its...
was taken up by bands including
PentanglePentangle may refer to:*another word for a pentagram, a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes*Pentangle , a British folk-rock band*The Pentangle, the 1968 album by the band Pentangle...
,
Steeleye SpanSteeleye Span is a British electric folk band, formed in 1969 and remaining active today. Along with Fairport Convention they are amongst the best known acts of the British folk revival, and were among the most commercially successful, thanks to their hit singles "Gaudete" and "All Around My Hat"....
and The Albion Band, which turn prompted Irish bands like
HorslipsHorslips were a 1970s Irish Celtic rock band that composed, arranged and performed their music based on traditional Irish jigs and reels. They are regarded as the fathers of Celtic rock for their fusion of traditional Irish music with rock music and went on to inspire many local and international...
and Scottish acts like the
JSD BandThe JSD Band were one of the leading folk-rock bands of the early seventies. Following a split up, they reformed to produce two further albums due to the large amount of interest in their early albums...
, Spencer's Feat and later
Five Hand ReelFive Hand Reel was a Scottish/English/Irish Celtic rock band of late 1970s that combined experiences of traditional Scottish and Irish folk music with electric rock arrangements...
, to use their traditional music to create a brand of
Celtic rockCeltic rock is a genre of folk rock and a form of Celtic fusion which incorporates Celtic music, instrumentation and themes into a rock music context...
in the early 1970s.
Folk rock reached its peak of commercial popularity in the period 1967-8, before many acts moved off in a variety of directions, including Dylan and the Byrds, who began to develop
country rockCountry-rock is a musical genre formed from the fusion of rock with country music, with its country origins being initially referenced to the rockabilly music of the 1950s....
. However, the hybridization of folk and rock has been seen as having a major influence on the development of rock music, bringing in elements of psychedelia, and helping to develop the ideas of the singer-songwriter, the protest song and concepts of "authenticity".
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic music's
LSDLysergic acid diethylamide, LSD-25, LSD, formerly lysergide, commonly known as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family...
-inspired vibe began in the folk scene, with the
Holy Modal RoundersThe Holy Modal Rounders were an American folk music duo from the Lower East Side of New York City which started in the early 1960s, consisting of Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber. Their unique blend of folk music revival and psychedelia gave them a cult-like following from the late 1960s into the 1970s...
popularizing the term in 1964. With a background including folk and jug band music, bands like the Grateful Dead and Big Brother & the Holding Company became two famous bands of the genre.
The FillmoreThe Fillmore is a historic music venue in San Francisco, California, made famous by Bill Graham. Named for its original location at the intersection of Fillmore Street and Geary Boulevard, it lies on the boundary of the Western Addition and the Pacific Heights neighborhoods...
was a regular venue for groups like another former jug band,
Country Joe and the FishCountry Joe and the Fish was a rock band most widely known for musical protests against the Vietnam War, from 1966 to 1971.-History:The group's name is derived from leftist politics; "Country Joe" was a popular name for Joseph Stalin in the 1940s, while "the fish" refers to Mao Tse-Tung's statement...
, and
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
. Elsewhere,
The ByrdsThe Byrds were an American rock and roll band. Formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964, The Byrds underwent several personnel changes, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973....
had a hit with
Eight Miles High"Eight Miles High" is a song written by Gene Clark, Jim McGuinn, and David Crosby, first released as a single in March 1966 by the rock band The Byrds. The single reached #14 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #24 in the United Kingdom. The song was also included on the band's third album Fifth...
. The
13th Floor ElevatorsThe 13th Floor Elevators were an American rock band from Austin which existed 1965-1969. During their career, the band released four LPs and seven 45s for the International Artists record label....
titled their album
The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor ElevatorsThe Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators is a 1966 album by 13th Floor Elevators. The album's sound, featuring elements of folk, garage, blues and, of course, psychedelia, is notable for its use of the electric jug, as featured on the band's only hit, "You're Gonna Miss Me".The November...
. The music increasingly became associated with opposition to the
Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War or the Second Indochina War was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1959 to 30 April 1975...
.
In England,
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
had been developing psychedelic rock since 1965 in the
underground cultureThe UK underground was a countercultural movement in the United Kingdom linked to the underground culture in the United States and associated with the hippie phenomenon. Its primary focus was around Ladbroke Grove and Notting Hill in London...
scene. In 1966 the band
Soft MachineSoft Machine were an English rock band from Canterbury, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. They were one of the central bands in the so-called "Canterbury scene," and helped pioneer the progressive rock genre....
was formed.
DonovanDonovan , is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
had a folk music-influenced hit with
Sunshine Superman"Sunshine Superman" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. The "Sunshine Superman" single was released in the United States through Epic Records in July 1966, but due to a contractual dispute the United Kingdom release was delayed until December 1966, where it...
, one of the early psychedelic pop records. In August 1966
The BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music...
released their
RevolverRevolver is the seventh album by English rock group The Beatles, released on 5 August 1966. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, in contrast with their previous, folk rock inspired Rubber Soul. It reached #1 on both the UK chart and U.S...
album, which featured psychedelia in "
Tomorrow Never Knows"Tomorrow Never Knows" is the final track of The Beatles' 1966 studio album Revolver. It is credited as a Lennon/McCartney song, but was written primarily by John Lennon....
" and in "
Yellow Submarine"Yellow Submarine" is a 1966 song by The Beatles , with lead vocals by Ringo Starr. Although it had previously been released on the Revolver album, it became the title song for the 1968 animated United Artists film, also called Yellow Submarine...
", along with the memorable album cover.
The Beach BoysThe Beach Boys are an American rock band. Formed in 1961, the group gained popularity for its close vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting a Southern California youth culture of cars, surfing, and romance...
responded in the U.S. with
Pet SoundsPet Sounds is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band The Beach Boys, released May 16, 1966, on Capitol Records. It has been widely ranked as one of the most influential records ever released in western pop music and has been ranked at number #1 in several music magazines' lists of...
. From a blues rock background, the British supergroup
CreamCream were a 1960s British blues-rock band and supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker. Their sound was characterised by a hybrid of blues, hard rock and psychedelic rock...
debuted in December, and
Jimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter...
became popular in Britain before returning to the US.
The psychedelic scene took off in 1967, with
The DoorsThe Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger. They are considered a controversial and influential band, due mostly to Morrison's cryptic lyrics and unpredictable...
and
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
releasing drug-themed LPs and the Beatles releasing
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by English rock band The Beatles. Released in the UK on 1 June 1967, it became a defining album in the emerging psychedelic rock style; it has since been recognised by prominent critics and publications as one of the most influential...
and
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
released
Their Satanic Majesties RequestTheir Satanic Majesties Request is the sixth studio album by The Rolling Stones and was released on 8 December 1967 by Decca Records/ABKCO Records in the United Kingdom and the following day in the United States by London Records/ABKCO...
. As the
Summer of LoveThe Summer of Love refers to the summer of 1967, when as many as 100,000 people converged on the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, creating a phenomenon of cultural and political rebellion...
reached its peak, the
Monterey Pop FestivalThe Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. Monterey was the first widely-promoted and heavily-attended rock festival, attracting an estimated 6,000 total attendees with to...
featured
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
and introduced
Janis JoplinJanis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter and music arranger, from Port Arthur, Texas. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist...
and
Jimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter...
. The culmination of the socially unifying trend was the
rock festivalA rock festival, or a rock fest, is a large-scale outdoor rock music concert, featuring multiple acts, often spread out over several days. The first rock festivals were put on in the late 1960s and were important socio-cultural milestones...
s such as
WoodstockWoodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music", held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
in 1969. The
Paisley UndergroundPaisley Underground is an early genre of alternative rock, based primarily in Los Angeles, California, which was at its most popular in the mid-1980s.- History :...
bands of Los Angeles epitomized the role played by 1960s psychedelia and folk-rock in American
New WaveNew Wave is a genre of rock and pop music that emerged in in the middle to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and...
.
Pop rock
Although the term pop, to describe popular music, has been used since the early twentieth century, from the mid-1950s the it began to be used for a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll. In the aftermath of the British Invasion, from about 1967, it was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, to describe a form that was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. In contrast rock music was seen as focusing on extended works, particularly albums, was often associated with particular sub-cultures (like the counter-culture), placed an emphasis on artistic values and "authenticity", stressed live performance and instrumental or vocal virtuosity and was often seen as encapsulating progressive developments rather than simply reflecting existing trends.
Nevertheless much pop and rock music has been very similar in sound, instrumentation and even lyrical content. The terms "pop-rock" and "power pop" have been used to describe more commercially successful music that uses elements from, or the form of, rock music. Pop-rock has been defined as an "upbeat variety of rock music represented by artists such as Elton John, Paul McCartney,
The Everly BrothersThe Everly Brothers are brothers and country-influenced rock and roll performers, known for steel-string guitar playing and close harmony singing. The Everlys are the most successful U.S...
,
Rod StewartRoderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer and songwriter born and raised in London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English lineage....
,
ChicagoChicago is an American pop rock/jazz fusion band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. The band began as a politically charged, sometimes experimental, rock band and later moved to a predominantly softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had a steady stream of hits...
, and
Peter FramptonPeter Kenneth Frampton is a British/American musician, singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He was previously associated with the bands Humble Pie and The Herd, among others. In 1982 Frampton tried unsuccessfully to split his ties with A&M Records; however, he re-signed with the label in...
." In contrast, music reviewer George Starostin defines it as a subgenre of
pop musicPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
that uses catchy pop songs that are mostly guitar-based. Starostin argues that most of what is traditionally called "power pop" (a term coined by
Pete TownshendPeter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
of The Who in 1966, but not much used until it was applied to bands like
BadfingerBadfinger was a rock band formed in Swansea, Wales in the early 1960s and was one of the earliest representatives of the power pop genre. During the early 1970s the band was tagged as the heir apparent to The Beatles, partly because of their close working relationship with the 'Fab Four' and...
in the 1970s), falls into the pop rock subgenre and that the lyrical content of pop rock is "normally secondary to the music." Throughout its history there have been rock acts that have used elements of pop, or achieved commercial success, and pop artists who have used rock music as a basis for their work, or striven for rock "authenticity".
Progressive rock
Progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
bands went beyond the established rock music formulas by experimenting with different instruments, song types, and musical forms. Some bands such as
The BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music...
,
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
,
The Moody BluesThe Moody Blues are an English band originally from Erdington in the city of Birmingham. Founding members Michael Pinder and Ray Thomas performed an initially rhythm and blues-based sound in Birmingham in 1964 along with Graeme Edge and others, and were later joined by John Lodge and Justin...
and
Procol HarumProcol Harum are a British rock band, formed in the 1960s, who contributed to the development of progressive rock, and by extension, symphonic rock...
experimented with new instruments including wind sections, string sections, and full orchestras. Many of these bands moved well beyond the formulaic three-minute rock songs into longer, increasingly sophisticated songs and chord structures. With inspiration from these earlier artists, referred to as "proto-prog", it flowered into its own genre, initially based in the UK, after
King CrimsonKing Crimson is a progressive rock band founded by guitarist Robert Fripp and drummer Michael Giles in 1969. They have typically been categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, although they have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation drawing from jazz, classical and...
's 1969 genre-defining debut album,
In the Court of the Crimson KingIn the Court of the Crimson King is the 1969 debut album by the British progressive rock group King Crimson. The album reached #3 on the British charts...
.
Progressive rock bands pushed "rock's technical and compositional boundaries" by going beyond the standard rock or popular verse-
chorusA refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
-based
song structureThe structures or musical forms of songs in popular music are typically sectional, repeating forms, such as strophic form. Other common forms include thirty-two-bar form, verse-chorus form, and the twelve bar blues...
s. Additionally, the arrangements often incorporated elements drawn from
classicalClassical music is the mainstream music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 9th century to present times...
,
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, and
world musicWorld music is the traditional music or folk music of a culture that is created and played by indigenous musicians that is closely related to the music of the regions of their origin.-Terminology:...
. Instrumentals were common, while songs with lyrics were sometimes conceptual, abstract, or based in fantasy. Progressive rock bands sometimes used "
concept albumIn popular music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical". Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs...
s that made unified statements, usually telling an epic story or tackling a grand overarching theme." Progressive rock came into most widespread use around the mid-1970s. Few bands achieved major mainstream success, but large cults followed many of the groups.
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
,
SupertrampSupertramp were a British progressive rock band that released a series of top-selling albums in the 1970s and early 1980s.Their early music included ambitious concept albums, from which were drawn a number of hits including "Goodbye Stranger", "Bloody Well Right", "The Logical Song", "Breakfast in...
,
YesYes are an English progressive rock band that was formed in London in 1968. Their music is marked by sharp dynamic contrasts, extended song lengths, abstract lyrics, and a general showcasing of instrumental prowess. Yes blends symphonic and other 'classical' structures with their own brand of...
,
Emerson, Lake & PalmerEmerson, Lake & Palmer were an English progressive rock supergroup. In the 1970s, the band was extremely popular, selling over 35 million albums and headlining huge concerts...
,
MarillionMarillion are a British rock group. Formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England in 1979, their recorded studio output comprises fifteen albums and is generally regarded as comprising two distinct eras, delineated by the departure of original vocalist & frontman Fish in late 1988 after their first...
,
RushRush is a Canadian rock band originally formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
,
Jethro TullJethro Tull are a British rock group formed in 1967. Their music is characterised by the songs, vocals and flute work of Ian Anderson, who has led the band since its founding, and guitarist Martin Barre, who has been with the band since 1969....
,
GenesisGenesis are a Grammy Award-winning English rock band formed in 1967, and are among the top 30 highest-selling recording artists of all time with approximately 150 million albums sold worldwide, including 21.5 million albums sold in the United States. In 1988, the band won the Grammy Award for Best...
, and a few less notable others were able to work in hit singles to their otherwise complex and untraditional albums to garner a larger audience.
With the advent of
punk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
in the late 1970s, critical opinion in England moved toward a simpler and more aggressive style of rock, with progressive bands increasingly dismissed as pretentious and overblown, ending progressive rock's reign as one of the leading styles in rock. This was part of a wider commercial turn in popular music in the second half of the 1970s, during which many
funkFunk is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
or
soulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
bands switched to
discoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
, and
smooth jazzSmooth jazz is a sub-genre of jazz which is influenced stylistically by R&B, funk and pop.Beginning in the early 1970s, it was an evolution into jazz with a modern, electronic sensibility...
gained popularity over
jazz fusionFusion or, more specifically, jazz fusion or jazz rock, is a musical genre that developed in the late 1960s from a mixture of elements of jazz such as its focus on improvisation with the rhythms and grooves of funk and R&B and the beats and heavily amplified electric instruments and electronic...
.
However, established progressive bands still had a strong fan base; Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Genesis, ELP, Yes, Queen, and Pink Floyd all regularly scored Top Ten albums with massive accompanying tours, the largest yet for some of them. From 1976 to 1980,
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
pioneers
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
would display a minor prog-influence on their
Presence and
In Through the Out DoorIn Through the Out Door is the eighth studio album by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was recorded over a three week period in November and December 1978 at ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, and released by Swan Song Records on 15 August 1979...
albums.
By 1979, by which time punk had mutated into
new waveNew Wave is a genre of rock and pop music that emerged in in the middle to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and...
, Pink Floyd released their rock opera
The WallThe Wall is the ninth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Presented as a double album, it was released on 30 November 1979. It was subsequently performed live, with elaborate theatrical effects, and adapted into a film....
, one of the best selling albums in history. Many bands which emerged in the aftermath of punk, such as
Siouxsie & the BansheesSiouxsie & the Banshees were a British rock band formed in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin, the only constant members....
,
Cabaret VoltaireCabaret Voltaire were a British music group from Sheffield, England.Initially composed of Stephen Mallinder, Richard H. Kirk and Chris Watson, the group was named after the Cabaret Voltaire, a nightclub in Zurich, Switzerland that was a center for the early Dada movement.Their earliest performances...
,
UltravoxUltravox are a British New Wave rock band that rose to prominence in the late 1970s/early 1980s. They were one of the primary exponents of the British electronic pop music movement of the early 1980s. The band was particularly associated with the New Romantic and New Wave movements...
,
Simple MindsSimple Minds are a rock band from Scotland, who had their greatest worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band, from the south side of Glasgow, produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s, and later went on to produce some politically inspired and...
, and
WireWire are an English rock band formed in London in October 1976, by Colin Newman , Graham Lewis , Bruce Gilbert , and Robert Gotobed .c) Despite little attention in the beginning, Wire's first three albums are among the most influential on the postpunk era, cited by Michael Stipe of...
, showed the influence of prog, as well as their more usually recognised punk influences.
Glam rock
Glam rock emerged out of the English Psychedelic and art rock scene of the late 1960s, defined by artists such as T. Rex,
Roxy MusicRoxy Music are an English art rock group initiated during the early 1970s by art school graduate Bryan Ferry . The other members are Phil Manzanera , Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson . Former members include Brian Eno , and Eno's replacement Eddie Jobson...
,
Steve Harley & Cockney RebelSteve Harley & Cockney Rebel are an English rock band from the early 1970s. Their music covers a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years they have had five albums in the UK Albums Chart and twelve singles in the UK Singles Chart.-Career:...
, and
David BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. Active in five decades of popular music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, also with origins in the theatrics of groups such as
The CockettesThe Cockettes were a psychedelic drag queen troupe founded by Hibiscus in the late 1960s in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood. The troupe performed outrageous parodies of show tunes and gained an underground cult following that led to mainstream exposure.In 1971, over differences in...
, performers such as
Lindsay KempLindsay Kemp is a British dancer, actor, teacher, mime artist and choreographer.Born in South Shields on May 3 1938, Kemp was raised in Yorkshire and attended Bradford Art College before studying dance with Hilde Holger and mime with Marcel Marceau....
, and acts such as
Syd BarrettSyd Barrett , born Roger Keith Barrett, was an English singer, songwriter, guitarist and artist. He is most remembered as a founding member of psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd, providing major musical and stylistic direction in their early work, although he left the group in 1968 amidst...
's
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
(as represented in David Bowie's cover of
See Emily Play"See Emily Play" was the second single recorded by British psychedelic rock group Pink Floyd. It was written by original frontman Syd Barrett and recorded on May 23, 1967. The single featured "Scarecrow" as its B-side...
) and
Eddie CochranRaymond Edward "Eddie" Cochran was an American rock and roll musician and an important influence on popular music during the late 1950s, early 1960s.- Early life and career :...
(as represented by T. Rex's cover of "
Summertime Blues"Summertime Blues" is a 1958 song recorded by Eddie Cochran about the trials and tribulations of teenage life in America.It was written in the late 1950s by Eddie Cochran and his manager Jerry Capehart. Originally a single B-side, it peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 29, 1958 and...
"). The commonly accepted origin of Glam rock was when Tyrannosaurus Rex - a band produced by
Tony ViscontiAnthony Edward Visconti is an American record producer and sometimes a musician or singer.Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of notable performers, including the Moody Blues, as well as T.Rex, Mary Hopkin, Thin Lizzy, Ralph McTell, Sparks, Gentle Giant, Semi Precious Weapons, The...
and championed by the legendary
John PeelJohn Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004. He was known for his eclectic taste in music and...
- frontman/singer
Marc BolanMarc Bolan , was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist whose hit singles, fashion sensibilities and stage presence with T...
changed the band's name to T. Rex, releasing the number 1 UK single
Ride A White Swan"Ride a White Swan" is a song by the British glam rock act T. Rex which became their first hit single in 1970, and is regarded as the birth of glam rock...
in December 1970, ushering in Glam rock and the band as a pop phenomenon. Following soon after were other notable acts such as
SladeSlade are an English rock band. Slade were one of the most recognizable acts of the glam rock movement and were, at their peak, the most commercially popular band in the UK...
and Roxy Music, and eventually David Bowie's
Ziggy StardustZiggy Stardust may refer to:* a persona adopted by David Bowie in the early 1970s*The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Bowie's 1972 concept album* "Ziggy Stardust" , a song from the album...
persona, who brought Glam rock its relatively novel and modest popularity in America, and leading to American artists such as
Lou ReedLewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician best known as the guitarist, vocalist and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground as well as a successful solo artist whose career has spanned several decades. The Velvet Underground gained little mainstream attention during their career,...
,
Iggy PopIggy Pop is a songwriter, and occasional actor. Although he has had only limited mainstream commercial success, Iggy Pop is considered an influential innovator of punk rock, hard rock, and other related styles...
,
New York DollsThe New York Dolls are an American rock band, formed in New York City in 1971. In 2004 the band reformed with three of their original members, two of whom, David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain, continue on today and have released two records of new material...
,
JobriathJobriath was the stage name of Bruce Wayne Campbell , who was a glam rock singer from 1973 to 1974.-Biography:...
, and
Alice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
adopting Glam or Glam-influenced styles.
Glam itself was a nostalgic mesh of various styles, both visual art and music, ranging from 1930s Hollywood glamor, to 1950s pin-up sex appeal and rock n' roll teenage rebellion, to pre-war
CabaretCabaret is a form of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue—a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance being introduced by a master of ceremonies, or MC.Cabaret...
theatrics, to
VictorianVictorian literature is the literature produced during the reign of Queen Victoria and corresponds to the Victorian era. It forms a link and transition between the writers of the romantic period and the very different literature of the 20th century.The 19th century saw the novel become the...
literary and Symbolist styles, to ancient and occult
mysticismMysticism is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight. Mysticism usually centers on a practice or practices intended to nurture those experiences or...
and
mythologyMythology is the study of myths and or of a body of myths. For example, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece. The term "myth" is often used colloquially to refer to a false story;...
(such as Bowie's references to
Aleister CrowleyAleister Crowley , born Edward Alexander Crowley, was an English occultist, writer, mountaineer, poet, yogi, and possibly a spy...
's "starman" in his song of the same name, and themes of reincarnation and self-invention in T. Rex's Cosmic Dancer). Glam is most noted for its sexual and gender ambiguity and androgyny, and use of theatrics.
Throughout glam rock's popularity, many bubble-gum acts - such as
Elton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE is an English singer-songwriter, composer and pianist.In his four-decade career, John has sold more than 200 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single, Candle in the Wind 1997, has sold over 37 million copies, becoming the...
, Slade,
Gary GlitterGary Glitter is the stage name of Paul Francis Gadd , an English glam rock singer and songwriter.Glitter first came to prominence in the glam rock era of the early 1970s...
, and
Alvin StardustAlvin Stardust is an English pop singer and stage actor.-Career:...
- adopted raunchier and more sexual takes on Glam style. Other previously famous acts such as
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
and
Lou ReedLewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician best known as the guitarist, vocalist and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground as well as a successful solo artist whose career has spanned several decades. The Velvet Underground gained little mainstream attention during their career,...
re-invented themselves in a glam fashion, often to great success (including Reed's biggest hit single, "Walk on the Wild Side"). However, glam's success in America was modest at best, with artists such as T. Rex and Roxy Music having only a fraction of the success they had in the UK. However, glam went on to influence many other genres, including punk, new wave, goth, jangle pop, college rock, and grunge, with artists as diverse as
Siouxsie SiouxSusan Janet Ballion , better known by her stage name, Siouxsie Sioux , is a British singer-songwriter, best known as the vocalist of Siouxsie & the Banshees between 1976 and 1996, and of its splinter group The Creatures...
, Johnny Rotten,
Billy CorganWilliam Patrick Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet. Corgan is the vocalist and lead guitarist for alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. When the band broke up in 2000, Corgan went on to form the short-lived Zwan with former Pumpkins drummer Jimmy...
,
Peter MurphyPeter Murphy may refer to:* Peter Murphy , British musician with the band Bauhaus* Peter Murphy , English Stuckist artist...
(whose band
Bauhaus' is the common term for the ', a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught. It operated from 1919 to 1933....
covered T. Rex's
Telegram SamTelegram Sam was the third UK number one single for the British rock group T. Rex. The song also appeared on their 1972 album The Slider....
and Bowie's Ziggy Stardust), and
Adam AntAdam Ant is an English musician, who gained popularity as the lead singer of New Wave/post-punk group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring ten UK top ten hits between 1979 and 1983, including three No.1s...
citing glam artists as key influences. Glam has since enjoyed sporadic modest revivals through bands such as
Chainsaw KittensThe Chainsaw Kittens were a part of the American alternative rock scene, drawing from pop, glam rock, punk, New Wave and British Invasion music. Their lyrics tackled such varied topics as religion, the Stonewall Riots, Federico Fellini, Oklahoma, Erik Menendez, and Oscar Wilde.Based in Norman,...
and The Darkness.
Christian rock
Christian rock began to develop in the late 1960s and emerged as a sub-genre in the 1970s with artist like
Larry NormanLarry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and humorist. Norman's recordings are noted for their Christian and social subject matter, and he is often described as the "father of Christian rock music"...
, usually seen as the first major "star" of Christian rock. The genre has been particularly popular in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Many Christian rock performers have ties to the
contemporary Christian musicContemporary Christian music is a genre of popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
scene, while other bands and artists are closely linked to independent music. Since the 1980s a number of Christian rock performers have gained mainstream success, including figures like
Amy GrantAmy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, author, media personality and occasional actress, best known for her contemporary Christian music. Grant was born in Augusta, Georgia....
and in Britain
Cliff RichardSir Cliff Richard OBE is a British singer-songwriter and entrepreneur.With his backing group The Shadows, Richard dominated the British popular music scene in the late 1950s and early 1960s, before and during The Beatles' first year in the charts...
. From the 1990s there were increasing numbers of acts who attempted to avoid the Christian band label, preferring to be seen as groups who were also Christians, including P.O.D and
Collective SoulCollective Soul is an American rock band from Stockbridge, Georgia. They have enjoyed popularity on alternative rock, mainstream rock and pop music radio throughout the 1990s and into the new millennium, recording seven #1 mainstream rock hits...
.
Hard rock and heavy metal
- Main article heavy metal
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
and hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
A second wave of British and American rock bands became popular during the early 1970s. Bands such as
The WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964. The primary lineup consisted of guitarist Pete Townshend, vocalist Roger Daltrey, bassist John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They became known for energetic live performances including the pioneering spectacle of instrument destruction...
,
Deep PurpleDeep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford, Hertfordshire in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members have tried not to categorise themselves as any one genre. The band...
,
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
,
Thin LizzyThin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band who formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1969. The band were led throughout their recording career by bassist, songwriter and singer Phil Lynott, and are best known for their songs "Whiskey in the Jar", "Jailbreak" and "The Boys Are Back in Town", all major...
,
AerosmithAerosmith is an American hard rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and seen by some as America's greatest rock and roll band. Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues,, and has...
,
Grand Funk RailroadGrand Funk Railroad is an American rock band. Highly popular during the 1970s, Grand Funk Railroad sold more than 25 million records, toured constantly, packed arenas worldwide, and received four RIAA gold albums during 1970—the most for any American group that year...
,
Black SabbathBlack Sabbath are an English rock band, formed in Birmingham in 1968 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple lineup changes, with a total of twenty-two former members...
,
Alice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
,
MountainMountain is an American rock band. The band broke up in 1972, reformed two years later, and have since reconvened and resumed performing and recording. Mountain remains popular in some circles despite having fallen out of the mainstream during the seventies. They were influential during the...
,
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
,
KissKiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in December 1972. Easily identified by its members' trademark face paint and stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid and late-1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
,
Judas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, formed in 1969. Judas Priest's core line-up consists of bass player Ian Hill, vocalist Rob Halford and guitarists Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing. The band has gone through several drummers, though Scott Travis has held the position since...
and
AC/DCAC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Although the band are commonly classified as hard rock and are considered pioneers of heavy metal, they have always classified their music as "rock and roll".AC/DC underwent several line-up...
played highly amplified, guitar-driven
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
, marked by aggressive overdriven electric guitars and an insistent 4/4 drumbeat. As the decade progressed, bands began incorporating different sounds into their music such as the use of synthesizers and using influences from
progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
and
discoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
in their records. Although it remained popular throughout the decade, music critics overwhelmingly disliked the heavy metal genre. In the 1980s bands such as
MetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk...
,
Iron MaidenIron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in East London, formed in 1975. The band are directed by founder, bassist and songwriter Steve Harris...
,
SlayerSlayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981. The band was founded by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Slayer rose to fame as one of the leaders of the American thrash metal movement with their 1986 release, Reign in Blood, which has been called...
,
MegadethMegadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1983. Founded by Dave Mustaine following his departure from Metallica, the band has since released twelve studio albums, six live albums, two EPs, twenty six singles, thirty-two music videos, and three compilations.As...
, and
AnthraxAnthrax is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 1981. The band was one of the most popular of the 1980s thrash metal scene and is notable for being the first to combine heavy metal with rap music...
continued the popularity of the style.
Arena rock era
The arena rock era can be traced to the late 1960s, when bands such as
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
,
The WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964. The primary lineup consisted of guitarist Pete Townshend, vocalist Roger Daltrey, bassist John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They became known for energetic live performances including the pioneering spectacle of instrument destruction...
and
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
garnered audiences large enough to fill stadiums. Those bands set the stage for huge live performances in stadiums and arenas around the globe. Some popular act often associated as premier performers of the arena rock era include;
BostonBoston is an American rock band from Boston, Massachusetts that achieved its most notable successes during the 1970s and 1980s. Centered on guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, and producer Tom Scholz, the band is a staple of classic rock radio playlists...
,
StyxStyx is an American rock band. Their hit songs have included "Come Sail Away", "Lady", "Mr. Roboto", "Renegade", "Babe", "Blue Collar Man" and "The Best of Times"...
,
ForeignerForeigner is an English rock band formed in New York City in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones, ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald, and American vocalist Lou Gramm...
,
JourneyJourney is an American rock band formed in 1973 in San Francisco, California with former members of Santana. The band has gone through several phases, but its strongest commercial success came in the late 1970s to the early 1980s...
and
KansasKansas is an American rock band which became popular in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind". They have remained a classic rock radio staple and a popular touring act in North America and Europe....
. Those hard rock bands would go on to sell-out the world’s largest venues throughout most of the 1970s.
In the 1980s many acts were at the zenith of their popularity and leading tours of the world's largest stadiums. Eventually, however, the financial and logistical strains of producing elaborate arena rock concerts would limit the growth of the size of rock concerts. In the 1990s, festivals became a more popular concert format, including such notable events as Monsters of Rock, Lollapollooza, and the Lilith Fair. These concerts often provided the audience a greater range of performances, often including multi-band collaborations and musical improvisations, without the pretense of a staged spectacle.
Punk rock
Punk rock developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States and the United Kingdom. Rooted in
garage rockGarage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name. In the early 1970s, some rock critics retroactively labelled it as punk rock...
and other forms of what is now known as
protopunkProtopunk is a term used retrospectively to describe a number of music artists who were important precursors of the punk rock movement of the mid-1970s and later, or who have been cited by early punk musicians as influential....
music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock. They created fast, hard-edged music, typically with short songs, stripped-down instrumentation, and often political, anti-establishment lyrics. Punk embraces a
DIYThe DIY ethic refers to the ethic of being self-reliant by completing tasks oneself as opposed to having others who are more experienced or able complete them for you. It promotes the idea that an ordinary person can learn to do more than he or she thought was possible...
(do it yourself) ethic, with many bands self-producing their recordings and distributing them through informal channels.
By late 1976, acts such as the
RamonesThe Ramones were an American rock band often regarded as the first punk rock group. Formed in Forest Hills, Queens, New York in 1974, all of the band members adopted pseudonyms ending with the surname 'Ramone', though none of them were actually related. They performed 2,263 concerts, touring...
and
Patti SmithPatricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer–songwriter, poet and visual artist who was a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses. Called the "Godmother of Punk", she integrated the beat poetry performance style with three-chord rock...
, in New York City, and the
Sex PistolsThe Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They are responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
and
The ClashThe Clash were an English rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk rock. Along with punk, they experimented with reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap and rockabilly...
, in London, were recognized as the vanguard of a new musical movement. The following year saw punk rock spreading around the world. Punk quickly, though briefly, became a major cultural phenomenon in the United Kingdom. For the most part, punk took root in local scenes that tended to reject association with the mainstream. An associated
punk subcultureThe punk subculture is a subculture based around punk rock. It includes music, ideologies, fashion, visual art, dance, literature and film. The punk scene is composed of an assortment of smaller factions that distinguish themselves from one another through unique variations...
emerged, expressing youthful rebellion and characterized by distinctive
clothing stylesPunk fashion is the clothing, hairstyles, cosmetics, jewelry, and body modifications of the punk subculture. Punk fashion varies widely, ranging from Vivienne Westwood designs to styles modeled on bands like The Exploited. The distinct social dress of other subcultures and art movements, including...
and a variety of anti-authoritarian ideologies.
By the beginning of the 1980s, faster, more aggressive styles such as
hardcoreHardcore punk, often just called hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated primarily in North America in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock...
and
Oi!Oi! is a working class street-level subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s.The music and associated subculture had the goal of promoting unity between punks, skinheads and other non-aligned working class youths...
had become the predominant mode of punk rock. Musicians identifying with or inspired by punk also pursued a broad range of other variations, giving rise to
post-punkPost-punk is a popular musical movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
and the
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
movement.
Since punk rock's initial popularity in the 1970s and the renewed interest created by the punk revival of the 1990s, punk rock continues to have a strong underground cult following. This has resulted in several evolved strains of hardcore punk, such as
D-beatD-beat is a style of hardcore punk developed in the early 1980s by imitators of Discharge, for whom the genre is named. Discharge may have themselves inherited the beat from Motörhead. The first such group was The Varukers. The vocal content of D-beat tends towards shouted slogans...
(a distortion-heavy subgenre influenced by the UK band
DischargeDischarge is a British punk rock band formed in 1977 by Terry "Tezz" Roberts and Roy "Rainy" Wainwright. They are often considered among one of the very first bands to play hardcore punk, and mixing punk with metal...
),
anarcho-punkThe term anarcho-punk is sometimes applied exclusively to bands that were part of the original anarcho-punk movement in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
(such as Crass),
grindcoreGrindcore, sometimes shortened to grind, is an extreme music genre that emerged during the mid–1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk.Grindcore is characterized by...
(such as
Napalm DeathNapalm Death are an English extreme metal band from Birmingham, formed in 1981. The band was formed in the village of Meriden , England in May 1981 by Nicholas Bullen and Miles Ratledge....
), and
crust punkCrust punk is one of the evolutions of anarcho-punk and hardcore punk, mixed with extreme metal guitar riffs. The style, which evolved in the mid-1980s in the UK, often had songs with dark, pessimistic lyrics, lingering on political and social issues.Crust is typically played at a fast tempo with...
.
New Wave
Punk rock attracted devotees from the art and collegiate world and soon bands sporting a more literate, arty approach, such as
Talking HeadsTalking Heads was an American rock band formed in 1974 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison...
, and
DevoDevo , often spelled DEVO or DEV-O, is an American New Wave band formed in Akron, Ohio in 1973. They are best known for their 1980 hit "Whip It", which made it to #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart...
began to infiltrate the punk scene; in some quarters the description
New WaveNew Wave is a genre of rock and pop music that emerged in in the middle to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and...
began to be used to differentiate these less overtly punk bands.
If punk rock was a social and musical phenomenon, it garnered little in the way of record sales (small specialty labels such as
Stiff RecordsStiff Records is a record label created in London in 1976 by entrepreneurs Dave Robinson and Andrew Jakeman , and active until 1985. It was reactivated in 2007....
had released much of the punk music to date) or American radio airplay, as the radio scene continued to be dominated by mainstream formats such as
discoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
and
album-oriented rockAlbum-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Freeform and Progressive:The roots of the Album-Oriented Rock radio format began with programming concepts rooted in 1960s idealism...
.
Record executives, who had been mostly mystified by the punk movement, recognized the potential of the more accessible New Wave acts and began aggressively signing and marketing any band that could claim a remote connection to punk or New Wave.
Many of these bands, such as
The CarsThe Cars were an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
and
The Go-Go'sThe Go-Go’s are an all-female American rock band formed in 1978. They made rock history as the first all-woman band that both wrote their own songs and played their own instruments to top the Billboard album charts....
were essentially pop bands dressed up in New Wave regalia; others, including
The PoliceThe Police were an English rock trio, from London, England, formed originally in 1977. The trio consisted of Gordon Sumner, CBE , widely known by his stage name of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
and
The PretendersThe Pretenders are a British rock band. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...
managed to parlay the boost of the New Wave movement into long-lived and artistically lauded careers.
Between 1982 and 1985, influenced by
KraftwerkKraftwerk is an influential electronic band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The signature Kraftwerk sound combines driving, repetitive rhythms with catchy melodies, mainly following a Western classical style of harmony, with a minimalistic and strictly electronic instrumentation.The group's simplified...
, David Bowie, and
Gary NumanGary Numan is an English singer, composer, and musician. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of commercial electronic music and has been described as the "King of synthpop." Numan is widely known for his chart-topping 1979 hits "Are 'Friends' Electric?" and "Cars"...
, New Wave went in the direction of such New Romantics as
Spandau BalletSpandau Ballet is a British band formed in London in the late 1970s. Initially inspired by the New Romantic fashion, their music has featured a mixture of funk, jazz, soul and synthpop. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s, achieving ten Top Ten singles and four Top Ten albums in...
,
UltravoxUltravox are a British New Wave rock band that rose to prominence in the late 1970s/early 1980s. They were one of the primary exponents of the British electronic pop music movement of the early 1980s. The band was particularly associated with the New Romantic and New Wave movements...
,
Duran DuranDuran Duran are an English rock band from Birmingham, United Kingdom. They were one of the most successful of the 1980s bands and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States. Since the 1980s they have placed 14 in the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart and 21 in the...
,
A Flock of SeagullsA Flock of Seagulls are a British Grammy Award winning band originally formed by brothers Mike Score and Ali Score , with Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds...
,
Culture ClubCulture Club were a British pop group that formed in the early 1980s. The band consisted of Boy George , Andy Woodard , Roy Hay , and Jon Moss...
,
Talk TalkTalk Talk were a British musical group that were active from 1981 to 1991. The group had a string of international hit singles including; "Today", "Talk Talk", "It's My Life", "Such a Shame", "Dum Dum Girl", "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World".-Beginnings:Talk Talk began as a...
and the
EurythmicsEurythmics are a British musical duo, formed in 1980 by Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart.The pair have achieved significant global, commercial and critical success, selling 75 million records worldwide, winning numerous awards, and have undertaken several successful world tours...
, sometimes using the synthesizer to replace all other instruments.
This period coincided with the rise of
MTVMTV is a cable television network based in New York City and launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs...
and led to a great deal of exposure for this brand of
synthpopSynthpop is a subgenre of pop and electronic music in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It originated during the New Wave era of the late 1970s and to mid-1980s, and it has continued to exist and develop ever since....
. Some rock bands reinvented themselves and profited too from MTV's
airplay* Airplay is the amount of time a song is played on the radio.It may also refer to:* Airplay , Foster & Graydon music project from 1980* Citroën C1, Citroën C1 Airplay...
, for instance
Golden EarringGolden Earring are a Dutch rock band, founded in 1961 in The Hague as the Golden Earrings . They had international chart success with the songs "Radar Love" in 1973, "Twilight Zone" in 1982, and "When The Lady Smiles" in 1984. In their home country, they had over 40 hits and made over 30 gold and...
, who had a second round of success with "Twilight Zone", but in general the times of guitar-oriented rock were over. Although many "Greatest of New Wave" collections feature popular songs from this era, New Wave more properly refers to the earlier "skinny tie" rock bands such as
The KnackThe Knack is a Los Angeles-based rock quartet that rose to fame with their first single, "My Sharona", an international hit in the second half of 1979....
or
BlondieBlondie is an American rock band founded by singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the early American new wave and punk rock scenes of the mid 1970s...
.
Post-punk
Alongside New Wave,
post-punkPost-punk is a popular musical movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
developed as an outgrowth of punk rock. In a way it was tied to punk rock. Sometimes thought of as interchangeable with New Wave, post-punk was typically more challenging, arty, and abrasive. The movement was effectively started by the debut of
Public Image Ltd.Public Image Ltd. are an English musical group formed in 1978 by vocalist John Lydon, guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble....
, The Psychedelic Furs, and
Siouxsie & the BansheesSiouxsie & the Banshees were a British rock band formed in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin, the only constant members....
and was soon joined by bands such as
Joy DivisionJoy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences,...
, The Fall,
Gang of FourGang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
,
The CureThe Cure are an English alternative rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976 by Robert Smith, Lawrence Tolhurst and Michael Dempsey. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
, and
Echo & the BunnymenEcho & the Bunnymen are an English post-punk group, formed in Liverpool in 1978. Their original lineup consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson, supplemented by a drum machine. By 1980, Pete de Freitas had joined as the band's drummer, and their...
. Predominantly a British phenomenon, the genre continued into the 1980s with some commercial exposure domestically and overseas, but the most successful band to emerge from post-punk was
IrelandIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
's
U2U2 are a rock band that formed in Dublin, Ireland. The band consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr...
, which by the late 1980s had become one of the biggest bands in the world.
1980s
In the 1980s, popular rock diversified. This period also saw the
New Wave of British Heavy MetalThe New Wave of British Heavy Metal is a heavy metal movement that started in the late 1970s, in Britain, and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Sometimes compared to Beatlemania, the era developed as a reaction in part to the decline of early heavy metal bands such as Deep...
with bands such as
Iron MaidenIron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in East London, formed in 1975. The band are directed by founder, bassist and songwriter Steve Harris...
and
Def LeppardDef Leppard are an English rock band from Sheffield, who formed in 1977 as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Largely on the strength of their albums Pyromania and Hysteria, Def Leppard became one of the top-selling rock bands throughout the 1980s, selling over 65 million albums...
gaining popularity. The early part of the decade saw
Eddie Van HalenEdward Lodewijkz "Eddie" Van Halen , is a Dutch-born American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen. Van Halen is widely known for his rapid guitar playing, tapping, and high frequency feedback...
achieve musical innovations in rock guitar, while vocalists
David Lee RothDavid Lee Roth is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality, best known as the original and current lead singer of Van Halen. In addition to his work with Van Halen, Roth is a successful solo artist, having released several platinum and gold solo albums...
(of Van Halen) and
Freddie MercuryFreddie Mercury was a British musician, best known as the frontman of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his vocal prowess and flamboyant performances...
(of
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
as he had been doing throughout the 1970s) raised the role of frontman to near performance art standards. Concurrently, pop-New Wave bands remained popular, with performers like
Billy IdolWilliam Michael Albert Broad , better known as Billy Idol, is an English rock musician. He first achieved fame in the punk rock era as a member of the band Generation X. He then embarked on a successful solo career, aided by a series of stylish music videos, making him one of the first MTV stars...
and
The Go-Go'sThe Go-Go’s are an all-female American rock band formed in 1978. They made rock history as the first all-woman band that both wrote their own songs and played their own instruments to top the Billboard album charts....
gaining fame.
American working-class oriented
heartland rockHeartland rock is a genre of rock music that was very popular in the late 1970s and 1980s. It was characterized by a straightforward musical style, a concern with the average, blue collar American life, and a conviction that rock music has a social or communal purpose beyond just...
gained a strong following, exemplified by
Bruce SpringsteenBruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss", is an American singer-songwriter. He records and tours with the E Street Band...
,
Bob SegerRobert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock musician and singer-songwriter.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as The Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s. By the early 1970s, he had dropped the "System" from his recordings, and continued to strive for...
, John (Cougar) Mellencamp and others. Led by the American folk
singer-songwriterA singer–songwriter is a musician who writes, composes and sings their own material including lyrics and melodies. They often provide the sole accompaniment to an entire composition or song, typically using a guitar or piano...
Paul SimonPaul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter. He entered the public consciousness in 1965 as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, along with longtime artistic partner Art Garfunkel. Simon solely wrote most of duo's songs, including such memorable songs as "The Sound of Silence", "The Boxer",...
and the British former
progressive rockProgressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
star
Peter GabrielPeter Brian Gabriel is an English musician and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career. More recently he has focused on producing and promoting world music and pioneering...
, rock and roll fused with a variety of folk music styles from around the world; this fusion came to be known as "
world musicWorld music is the traditional music or folk music of a culture that is created and played by indigenous musicians that is closely related to the music of the regions of their origin.-Terminology:...
", and included fusions like
aboriginal rockAboriginal rock refers to a style of music which mixes rock music with the instrumentation and singing styles of Aboriginal people. Two countries with prominent Aboriginal rock scenes are Australia and Canada.-Australia:...
.
Rhythm and bluesRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
acts like
PrincePrince, from French "Prince" , is a general term for a monarch, for a member of a monarchs' or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in some members of Europe's highest nobility...
and
Rick JamesRick James was an American musician. James was a popular R&B and funk singer in the late 1970s and 1980s, scoring four #1 hits on the U.S. R&B charts. Among his best-known songs are "Superfreak" and "You and I"...
expperimented with rock sounds and both had crossover appeal. Also, more extreme forms of rock music began to evolve; in the early eighties, the harsh and aggressive sounds of
thrash metalThrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized by its fast tempo and aggression. Thrash metal songs typically use fast, percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work. Thrash metal lyrics often deal with social issues using direct and denunciatory...
attracted large underground audiences and a few bands, including
MetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk...
and
MegadethMegadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1983. Founded by Dave Mustaine following his departure from Metallica, the band has since released twelve studio albums, six live albums, two EPs, twenty six singles, thirty-two music videos, and three compilations.As...
, went on for mainstream success.
By the mid to late 80's, the teen band
RenegadeRenegade is an American rock n' roll band composed of Luis Cardenas, Kenny Marquez and Tony De La Rosa. Although each member hails from the United States, the band is widely recognized as being the first Hispanic or "Chicano rock" band to gain acceptance in the United States. Throughout Latin...
coined the term Commercial Metal to signify a combination of heavy metal instrumentation with pop rock melodies. The term caught on and remains a viable genre description to this day.
New Wave of British Heavy Metal
The
New Wave of British Heavy MetalThe New Wave of British Heavy Metal is a heavy metal movement that started in the late 1970s, in Britain, and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Sometimes compared to Beatlemania, the era developed as a reaction in part to the decline of early heavy metal bands such as Deep...
(frequently abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a heavy metal music movement that started in the late 1970s, in
BritainGreat Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island. With a population of about 59.6 million people, it is the third most populated island on Earth. Great Britain is surrounded by over 1000 smaller...
, and achieved some international attention by the early 1980s. The era developed as a reaction in part to the decline of early
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
bands such as
Deep PurpleDeep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford, Hertfordshire in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members have tried not to categorise themselves as any one genre. The band...
,
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
,
Black SabbathBlack Sabbath are an English rock band, formed in Birmingham in 1968 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple lineup changes, with a total of twenty-two former members...
and
Judas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, formed in 1969. Judas Priest's core line-up consists of bass player Ian Hill, vocalist Rob Halford and guitarists Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing. The band has gone through several drummers, though Scott Travis has held the position since...
. NWOBHM bands toned down the
bluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre created within the African-American communities in the Deep South of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
influences of earlier acts, increased the tempos, and adopted a "tougher", harder-edged sound. The era is considered to be a main foundation for heavy metal sub-genres with acts such as
MetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk...
citing NWOBHM bands like
Diamond HeadDiamond Head are a British heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Stourbridge, England. They were one of the leading members of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and are acknowledged by later bands like Metallica and Megadeth as an important early influence.-Early history:Formed by school friends in...
and
MotörheadMotörhead are a British rock band formed in 1975 by bassist, singer and songwriter Lemmy, who has remained the sole constant member. The band was part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which re-energized heavy metal in the late '70s and early '80s. Usually a power trio, Motörhead had...
as a major influence on their musical style.
The early movement was associated with acts such as:
Iron MaidenIron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in East London, formed in 1975. The band are directed by founder, bassist and songwriter Steve Harris...
,
SaxonSaxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As leading lights in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal they had huge success in the 1980s with 8 UK Top 40 albums including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
,
MotörheadMotörhead are a British rock band formed in 1975 by bassist, singer and songwriter Lemmy, who has remained the sole constant member. The band was part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which re-energized heavy metal in the late '70s and early '80s. Usually a power trio, Motörhead had...
,
Def LeppardDef Leppard are an English rock band from Sheffield, who formed in 1977 as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Largely on the strength of their albums Pyromania and Hysteria, Def Leppard became one of the top-selling rock bands throughout the 1980s, selling over 65 million albums...
,
Angel WitchAngel Witch is a British heavy metal band which formed in London, England in 1977 as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement.-Biography:...
,
Tygers of Pan TangTygers of Pan Tang are a heavy metal band originating from Whitley Bay in the North-East of England, formed in 1978. They are a notable band of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement...
,
BlitzkriegBlitzkrieg are a heavy metal band from Leicester formed in 1980, consisting of Brian Ross , Ken Johnson , Guy Laverick , Paul Brewis and Phil Brewis...
,
AvengerAvenger are a heavy metal band from Newcastle, England. Associated with the NWOBHM scene, they released two albums in the 1980s before splitting up. The band reunited in 2005.-History:...
,
Sweet SavageSweet Savage are a metal band from Belfast, Northern Ireland, formed in 1979. The band once included current Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell...
,
GirlschoolGirlschool are a long-running British all-female heavy metal band originating out of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal scene.Though enjoying little commercial success beyond the early 1980s, they maintain a worldwide cult following and were inspirational for many succeeding female...
,
JaguarJaguar are a heavy metal Band formed in Bristol, England in December 1979. They had moderate success throughout Europe and Asia in the early 80's during the heyday of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement.-Career:...
,
DemonDemon are an English heavy metal group, formed in 1980 by vocalist Dave Hill and guitarist Mal Spooner, both hailing from Leek, Staffordshire. They drew their initial audience from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in 1980....
,
Diamond HeadDiamond Head are a British heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Stourbridge, England. They were one of the leading members of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and are acknowledged by later bands like Metallica and Megadeth as an important early influence.-Early history:Formed by school friends in...
,
SamsonSamson was a British hard rock band formed in 1977 by guitarist and vocalist Paul Samson. They are best known for their first three albums with future Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson, then known as "Bruce Bruce", and drummer Thunderstick , who wore a leather mask and performed on stage in a...
and
TankTank is a British heavy metal band, formed in 1980 by Algy Ward, a former member of The Damned. The band is considered to be part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement...
, among others. The image of bands such as
SaxonSaxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As leading lights in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal they had huge success in the 1980s with 8 UK Top 40 albums including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
(long hair, denim jackets, leather and chains) would later become synonymous with
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
as a whole during the 1980s. Some bands, although conceived during this era, saw success on an underground scale, as was the case with
VenomVenom are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1978 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England.Considered a seminal influence for thrash and coming to prominence towards the end of the 'New Wave of British Heavy Metal', Venom have found little mainstream success or critical acclaim, but are widely regarded...
and
Quartz-History:Quartz dates back to as early as 1974 when they were known as Bandy Legs. They signed to Jet Records in 1976 and supported Black Sabbath and AC/DC. The band changed their name to Quartz for their 1977 debut album, Quartz. The album was produced by Tony Iommi and Quartz toured with Black...
.
Glam metal
Glam metalGlam metal is a term used to describe the visual style or fashion of certain heavy metal music bands that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
was popular in the 1980s. Combining a heavy metal musical style and a glam rock visual look influenced from various artists such as:
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
,
SweetSweet is a British rock band that rose to prominence as one of the main glam rock acts in the 1970s, with the original line-up consisting of Brian Connolly, Steve Priest, Frank Torpey, and Mick Tucker...
and the
New York DollsThe New York Dolls are an American rock band, formed in New York City in 1971. In 2004 the band reformed with three of their original members, two of whom, David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain, continue on today and have released two records of new material...
, the earliest glam metal bands to gain notability included:
Mötley CrüeMötley Crüe is a American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The band was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
,
RattRatt is an American heavy metal band that formed in San Diego and enjoyed significant commercial success in the 1980s. The band is most notable for their songs "Round and Round," "Wanted Man," "Lay It Down," "You're in Love", "Way Cool Jr." and "Back For More." Though the group lost popularity in...
and
Quiet RiotQuiet Riot was an American heavy metal band whose 1983 US Festival appearance helped to solidify metal's image. They are best known for their hit singles "Cum on Feel the Noize" and "Metal Health." They were founded in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads and bassist Kelly Garni, under the name Mach 1...
. They became known for their debauched lifestyles, teased hair and use of make-up and clothing. Their songs were bombastic and often defiantly macho, with lyrics focused on sex, drinking and drugs. In 1987 a second wave of glam metal acts emerged including
WarrantWarrant is an American glam metal band from Hollywood, California that experienced success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with two multi-platinum albums...
,
L.A. GunsL.A. Guns are an American glam metal band whose music is frequently associated with the L.A. glam metal scene which grew up around the Sunset Strip in the 1980s, in particular the sleaze rock subgenre. Guns N' Roses, which once featured three of the original L.A...
,
PoisonPoison is an American glam metal band that achieved great success and popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They have become icons of the '80s MTV era and have had widespread commercial success. To date, the band has sold more than 60 million records worldwide, including 14.5 million in the...
and
Faster PussycatFaster Pussycat is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1986.The group was most successful during the late 1980s with their self-titled debut album and their 1989 gold album Wake Me When It's Over....
.
Heartland rock
American working-class oriented
heartland rockHeartland rock is a genre of rock music that was very popular in the late 1970s and 1980s. It was characterized by a straightforward musical style, a concern with the average, blue collar American life, and a conviction that rock music has a social or communal purpose beyond just...
, characterized by a straightforward musical style, a concern with the average, blue collar American life, gained a strong following in the US during the 1980s.
While the genre emerged recognizably into the mainstream in the late 1970s with the commercial success of
Bruce SpringsteenBruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss", is an American singer-songwriter. He records and tours with the E Street Band...
,
Bob SegerRobert Clark "Bob" Seger is an American rock musician and singer-songwriter.As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as The Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s. By the early 1970s, he had dropped the "System" from his recordings, and continued to strive for...
, and
Tom PettyThomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...
, the genre's antecedents appeared throughout pop chart history, via popular artists like
Bob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet and painter who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was, at first, an informal chronicler and then an apparently reluctant figurehead of social unrest...
,
Creedence Clearwater RevivalCreedence Clearwater Revival was an American rock band that gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a number of successful singles drawn from various albums....
, Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels and
Van MorrisonVan Morrison is a critically acclaimed singer and songwriter with a reputation for being at once stubborn, idiosyncratic, and sublime...
, and lesser-known examples (
The Flaming EmberThe Flaming Ember was an American white soul band from Detroit, Michigan, who found brief commercial success starting in 1969.The group originally formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1964. At that time, they were known as The Flaming Embers...
, whose 1971 hit "Westbound Number Nine" was an example of the mixing of garage rock, rhythm and blues and rock influences that would later exemplify the genre) and earlier ones like
Eddie CochranRaymond Edward "Eddie" Cochran was an American rock and roll musician and an important influence on popular music during the late 1950s, early 1960s.- Early life and career :...
and
Del ShannonDel Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...
.
The genre reached its commercial, artistic and influential peak in the mid-1980s, with
John MellencampJohn Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is a Grammy-winning American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his rootsy, organic brand of heartland rock that is infused with catchy pop hooks and...
joining Springsteen, Seger, and Petty as its most prominent artists.
In concert, heartland rock often took the form of crowd-rousing anthems, leading to comparisons with Midwestern
arena rockArena rock is a loosely defined term describing a generation of rock music. It was established by heavy metal, hard rock and progressive rock bands in the 1970s...
groups such as
REO SpeedwagonREO Speedwagon is an American rock band from Champaign-Urbana, Illinois United States. Formed in 1967, the band grew in popularity during the 1970s and peaked in the early 1980s. REO Speedwagon has charted two number one songs, "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling", both power ballads...
and
Head EastHead East is a hard rock band originally from South Central Illinois, then Champaign, Illinois. The band was formed by vocalist John Schlitt, guitarist Mike Somerville, keyboardist Roger Boyd, bassist Dan Birney, and drummer Steve Huston. They met and formed the band while studying at the...
, whose style however owed more to seventies
pop rockPop rock is a mix of pop music and rock music utilizing a catchy pop style with light lyrics, and guitar-based songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
.
Heartland rock faded away as a recognized genre by the early 1990s, as rock music in general, and blue collar and white working class themes in particular, lost influence with younger audiences, and as heartland's artists turned to more personal works. Many heartland rock artists continue to record today with critical and commercial success, most notably Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and John Mellencamp, although their works have become more personal and experimental and do not fit easily into a single genre anymore. Newer artists whose music would clearly have been labeled heartland rock had it been released in the 1970s or 1980s, such as Pittsburgh's
Tom BreidingTom Breiding is a musician originally from Wheeling, West Virginia who now resides in McMurray, Pennsylvania . He is a popular draw in the Pittsburgh area music scene. His musical styles range from country music to heartland rock...
, often find themselves these days labeled alt-country and finding little more than a cult following.
The emergence of alternative rock
The term alternative rock was coined in the early 1980s to describe rock artists which didn't fit into the mainstream genres of the time. Bands dubbed "alternative" could be most any style not typically heard on the radio; however, most alternative bands were unified by their collective debt to punk rock. Important bands of the 1980s alternative movement included
R.E.M.R.E.M. is an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Michael Stipe , Peter Buck , Mike Mills , and Bill Berry . R.E.M. was one of the first popular alternative rock bands, and gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's unclear vocals. R.E.M...
,
Jane's AddictionJane's Addiction is an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The band is composed of Perry Farrell , Dave Navarro , Eric Avery and Stephen Perkins . After breaking up in 1991, Jane's Addiction briefly toured in 1997, reunited in 2001 and then parted ways in 2004...
,
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Mark Ibold and Steve Shelley ....
,
The SmithsThe Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the songwriting partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
, the Pixies,
Hüsker DüHüsker Dü was an American rock band formed in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist Bob Mould, bassist Greg Norton, and drummer Grant Hart. Hüsker Dü never achieved mainstream success, but attained an influence far larger than their modest sales...
,
The CureThe Cure are an English alternative rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976 by Robert Smith, Lawrence Tolhurst and Michael Dempsey. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
and countless others. Artists largely were confined to independent record labels, building an extensive underground music scene based around
college radioCampus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the station is based...
, fanzines, touring, and word-of-mouth. Although these groups never generated spectacular album sales, they exerted a considerable influence on the generation of musicians who came of age in the 80s and ended up breaking through to mainstream success in the 1990s. Notable styles of alternative rock during the 1980s include
jangle popJangle pop is a genre of alternative rock from the mid-1980s that "marked a return to the chiming guitars and pop melodies of the '60s" bands such as The Byrds, with their electric twelve-string guitars and power pop song structures. Mid-1980s jangle pop was a non-mainstream, "pop-based format"...
,
gothic rockGothic rock is a musical subgenre of Post-Punk and Alternative Rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
,
college rockCollege rock was a term used in the United States to describe 1980s alternative rock before the term "alternative" came into common usage. So named because it was primarily played on campus radio stations, these bands combined the experimentation of post-punk and New Wave with a more melodic pop...
, and
indie popIndie pop is a genre of alternative rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the mid 1980s, with its roots in the Scottish post-punk bands on the Postcard Records label in the early '80s such as Orange Juice and Josef K and the dominant UK independent band of the mid eighties, The Smiths...
. The next decade would see the success of
grungeGrunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
in the United States and Britpop in the United Kingdom, bringing alternative rock into the mainstream.
Grunge
By the early 1990s, rock was dominated by commercialized and highly produced pop, rock, and "hair metal" artists.
MTVMTV is a cable television network based in New York City and launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs...
had arrived and promoted excessive focus on image and style. Disaffected by this trend, in the mid-1980s, bands in
Washington stateWashington is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute. It was admitted to the Union as the...
(particularly in the Seattle area) formed a new style of rock music which sharply contrasted the mainstream rock of the time. The developing genre came to be known as "grunge", a term meaning "dirt" or "filth". The term was seen as appropriate due to the dirty sound of the music and the unkempt appearance of most musicians, who actively rebelled against the over-groomed images of popular artists. Grunge fused elements of
hardcore punkHardcore punk, often just called hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated primarily in North America in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock...
and
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
into a single sound, and made heavy use of guitar
distortionDistortion is an effect often applied to electric guitars, though it is not limited to any one musical instrument. It can be accomplished by electronically altering the dynamic range compression or clipping the input signal, this effect adds additional harmonics and overtones to the signal,...
,
fuzzA fuzzbox is a type of effects pedal comprising an amplifier and a clipping circuit, which generates a distorted version of the input signal. As opposed to other distortion guitar effects pedals, a fuzzbox boosts and clips the signal sufficiently to turn a standard sine wave input into a waveform...
and
feedbackAudio feedback is a special kind of feedback which occurs when a sound loop exists between an audio input and an audio output...
. The lyrics were typically apathetic and angst-filled, and often concerned themes such as social alienation and entrapment, although it was also known for its dark humor and parodies of commercial rock.
Bands such as
Green RiverGreen River is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984. The band was active from 1984 to 1988. Although the band had little commercial impact outside of its native Seattle, Green River proved to have significant influence on the genre later known as grunge, both with its...
,
SoundgardenSoundgarden was a Grammy Award winning American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by lead singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
, the Pixies, the Melvins and
Skin YardSkin Yard was a grunge band from Seattle, Washington, who were active from 1985 to 1992. The group never gained any mainstream audience, but were an influence on their contemporaries – most notably Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, The Melvins, and Green River – alongside whom they are considered the...
pioneered the genre, with
MudhoneyMudhoney is an American grunge band. Formed in Seattle, Washington in 1988 following the demise of Green River, Mudhoney's members are vocalist and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Matt Lukin and drummer Dan Peters...
becoming the most successful by the end of the decade. However grunge remained largely a local phenomenon until 1991, when
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
‘s
NevermindNevermind is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991. Produced by Butch Vig, Nevermind was the group's first release on DGC Records...
became a huge success thanks to the lead single "
Smells Like Teen Spirit"Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's 1991 breakthrough album Nevermind...
". Nevermind was more melodic than its predecessors, but the band refused to employ traditional corporate promotion and marketing mechanisms. During 1991 and 1992, other grunge albums such as Pearl Jam's
TenTen is the debut studio album by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, released on August 27, 1991 through Epic Records. Following the disbanding of bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard's previous group Mother Love Bone, the two recruited vocalist Eddie Vedder, guitarist Mike...
, Soundgarden's
BadmotorfingerBadmotorfinger is the third studio album by the American alternative rock band Soundgarden, released on October 8, 1991 through A&M Records. After touring in support of its previous album, Louder Than Love , Soundgarden began the recording sessions for its next album with new bassist Ben Shepherd...
and Alice in Chains'
DirtDirt is the second studio album by the American rock band Alice in Chains and was released on September 29, 1992 through Columbia Records. Peaking at number six on the Billboard 200, the album was well received by music critics and has since been certified four-times platinum by the RIAA, making...
, along with the
Temple of the DogTemple of the Dog was an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. It was conceived by vocalist Chris Cornell of Soundgarden as a tribute to his friend, the late Andrew Wood, lead singer of Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone...
album featuring members of
Pearl JamPearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
and
SoundgardenSoundgarden was a Grammy Award winning American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by lead singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
, became among the 100 top selling albums of 1992. The popular breakthrough of these grunge bands prompted
Rolling Stone to nickname Seattle "the new
LiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
." Major record labels signed most of the remaining major grunge bands in Seattle, while a second influx of bands moved to the city in hopes of success.
Britpop
While the American mainstream was focused on grunge, post-grunge, and hip hop, numerous British groups launched a 1960s revival in the mid-1990s, often called
BritpopBritpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
, with bands such as
OasisOasis were an English rock band that formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul Arthurs , Paul McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
,
SuedeSuede were an English alternative rock band of the 1990s and the early 2000s that helped start the Britpop musical movement. Through their several incarnations, they were able to consistently put out albums that charted well, while still holding the respect of critics...
,
The AuteursThe Auteurs were a vehicle for the songwriting talents of Luke Haines .-Career:Formerly of the band The Servants, Haines created the Auteurs with his then-girlfriend Alice Readman on bass guitar, former classmate Glenn Collins on drums, and James Banbury on cello...
,
SupergrassSupergrass are an English alternative rock band from Oxford. The band consists of brothers Gaz and Rob Coombes , Danny Goffey , and Mick Quinn ....
,
Manic Street PreachersManic Street Preachers are an alternative rock band from Blackwood, Wales, formed in 1986. They are James Dean Bradfield , Nicky Wire and Sean Moore...
,
PulpPulp were an English alternative rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978. Upon their split in 2002, their lineup consisted of Jarvis Cocker , Candida Doyle , Mark Webber , Steve Mackey and Nick Banks ....
and
BlurBlur are an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...
among the front-runners. These bands drew on myriad styles from the 80s British rock underground, including twee pop,
shoegazingShoegazing is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged from the United Kingdom in the late 1980s. It lasted until the mid 1990s with a critical zenith reached in 1990 and 1991...
and
space rockSpace rock is a subgenre of rock music; the term originally referred to a group of early mostly British 1970s progressive rock and psychedelic bands such as Hawkwind and Pink Floyd, characterised by slow, lengthy instrumental passages dominated by synthesizers, experimental guitar work and science...
as well as traditional British guitar influences like the Beatles and glam rock. For a time, the Oasis-Blur rivalry was similar to the Beatles-Rolling Stones rivalry, or the Nirvana-Pearl Jam rivalry in America. While bands like Blur tended to follow on from the Small Faces and
The KinksThe Kinks are an English rock group categorised in the US as a British Invasion band. The Kinks have been cited as one of the most important and influential rock bands of the British Invasion era....
, Oasis mixed the attitude of the Rolling Stones with the melody of the Beatles. The Verve and Radiohead, though not Britpop but at the forefront of the British revival of the rock, took inspiration from performers like
Elvis CostelloElvis Costello is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s, and later became associated with the punk rock and New Wave musical genres...
,
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
and
R.E.M.R.E.M. is an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Michael Stipe , Peter Buck , Mike Mills , and Bill Berry . R.E.M. was one of the first popular alternative rock bands, and gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's unclear vocals. R.E.M...
with their progressive rock music, manifested in
RadioheadRadiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their first single, "Creep", in 1992...
's most heralded album,
OK ComputerOK Computer is the third album by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, released on 16 June 1997. Radiohead recorded the album in rural Oxfordshire and Bath, during 1996 and early 1997, with producer Nigel Godrich...
.
Britpop's popularity in America was short, with the exception of Oasis, whose
second album Morning Glory? is the second album by English rock band Oasis. It was released in October 1995. The album was Oasis' most enduring commercial success, charting at number one in the UK and number four in the U.S. The album sold 346,000 copies in its first week in the UK and has sold 23 million...
sold 19 million copies worldwide, but the movement slowed down after numerous band breakups and publicity disasters weakened popular support in the US.
The VerveThe Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan, Greater Manchester in 1990, by vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bassist Simon Jones, and drummer Peter Salisbury. The members had met at Winstanley Sixth Form College. Simon Tong later became a member...
disbanded after on-going turmoil in the band between singer Richard Ashcroft and guitarist Nick McCabe, and Radiohead has since gone in a more experimental, less radio-friendly direction.
Indie rock
By the mid-1990s, the term "alternative music" had lost much of its original meaning as rock radio and record buyers embraced increasingly slick, commercialized, and highly marketed forms of the genre. At the end of the decade,
hip hop musicHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
had pushed much of alternative rock out of the mainstream, and most of what was left played
pop punkPop punk is a fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. It is typically referred to as a strand of alternative rock that combines power-pop melodies and chord changes with speedy punk tempos and loud guitars...
and highly polished versions of a grunge/rock mishmash. Many acts that, by choice or fate, remained outside the commercial mainstream became part of the
indie rockIndie rock is a genre of rock music that originated in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1980s. The term is often used to describe the means of production and distribution of independent underground music, as well as the style of music that was first associated with this means of...
movement. Indie rock acts placed a premium on maintaining complete control of their music and careers, often releasing albums on their own independent record labels and relying on touring, word-of-mouth, and airplay on independent or college radio stations for promotion. Linked by an ethos more than a musical approach, the indie rock movement encompasses a wide range of styles, from hard-edged, grunge influenced bands like
The CranberriesThe Cranberries are an Irish rock band formed in Limerick in 1989 under the name The Cranberry Saw Us, later changed by vocalist Dolores O'Riordan...
and
SuperchunkSuperchunk is an American indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer/guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Jon Wurster.-History:...
to do-it-yourself experimental bands like
PavementPavement is an American indie/alternative rock band. Although they experienced only moderate commercial success, they achieved a significant cult following and were one of the most popular and influential lo-fi rock bands of the 1990s. The group remained signed to an independent label throughout...
to punk-folk singers such as
Ani DiFrancoAni DiFranco is an American Grammy Award-winning singer, guitarist, and songwriter...
. Currently, many countries have an extensive local
indieIn popular music, independent music, often generally abbreviated as "indie", is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
scene, flourishing with bands with much less popularity than commercial bands, just enough of it to survive inside the respective country, but virtually unknown outside them.
Pop punk
One result of the 1970s punk explosion was pop punk. Championed by bands such as The Buzzcocks and
The RamonesThe Ramones were an American rock band often regarded as the first punk rock group. Formed in Forest Hills, Queens, New York in 1974, all of the band members adopted pseudonyms ending with the surname 'Ramone', though none of them were actually related. They performed 2,263 concerts, touring...
, the genre was never as commercially successful as the name may have suggested, but its influence can be still be heard in many artists today; the fusion of pop melodies, rapid-fire playing of instruments, and the raw and visceral lyrics and sound of punk rock is apparent in everyone from
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
to
OasisOasis were an English rock band that formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul Arthurs , Paul McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
. In the 2000s, pop punk is used to describe modern rock bands with a heavy pop influence such as
Green DayGreen Day is an American rock trio formed in 1987. The band has consisted of Billie Joe Armstrong , Mike Dirnt , and Tré Cool for the majority of its existence....
and
The OffspringThe Offspring is an American rock band formed in Huntington Beach, California in 1984. Since its formation, the band's line-up had included Dexter Holland , Noodles , Greg K. , and Ron Welty , who left in 2003...
are common examples of the sub-genre, while
Blink-182Blink-182 is an American punk rock band from Poway, California that predominantly plays pop punk music. The band was formed in 1992 as "Blink" with members Tom DeLonge , Mark Hoppus and Scott Raynor . In 1998, midway through a U.S. tour, drummer Travis Barker replaced Raynor...
brought the sub-genre to new commercial heights in the late nineties to early 2000s.
Post-grunge
In the wake of
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
singer
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American musician, best known as the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter of the rock band Nirvana....
's death, a new style of music called
post-grunge evolved. Similar to the relationship between pop punk and punk rock, post-grunge differed from grunge in its more radio-friendly pop-oriented sound. After Australia's
SilverchairSilverchair is an Australian alternative rock band. The band formed as Innocent Criminals in Newcastle, New South Wales, in 1992, with their current lineup of vocalist and guitarist Daniel Johns, bass guitarist Chris Joannou, and drummer Ben Gillies...
achieved international success with their debut album
FrogstompFrogstomp is the debut album of Australian rock band Silverchair. It was first released in Australia in early 1995, when the members were only 15 years of age, by a subsidiary of Sony Records and hit number one on the album charts. On 20 June 1995, Frogstomp was released by Epic Records in the U.S...
record labels began to actively search for the "next Nirvana". Former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl's new band the
Foo FightersFoo Fighters is an American rock band formed by singer/guitarist/drummer Dave Grohl in 1995. Grohl formed the group as a one-man project after the dissolution of his previous band, Nirvana, in 1994. Prior to the release of Foo Fighters in 1995, Grohl drafted Nate Mendel , William Goldsmith , and...
helped further popularize the genre, and other bands such as
BushBush was the name of a British alternative rock band formed in London in 1992 by singer/guitarist Gavin Rossdale and guitarist Nigel Pulsford. Their debut album was Sixteen Stone . They have sold well over 10 million records in the United States...
,
CreedA creed is a statement of belief—usually religious belief—or faith often recited as part of a religious service. The word derives from the for I believe...
,
AudioslaveAudioslave was an American hard rock supergroup that was formed in Los Angeles, California in 2001. It consisted of ex-Soundgarden frontman, rhythm guitarist, and drummer Chris Cornell and the former instrumentalists of Rage Against the Machine: Tom Morello , Tim Commerford and Brad Wilk...
,
CandleboxCandlebox is a Post-Grunge band from Seattle, Washington. Formed in November 1991, the band originally went by the name Uncle Duke; they later changed their name purportedly as a tribute to the Midnight Oil song "Tin Legs and Tin Mines" which contained the line "boxed in like candles".-Rise to...
,
Collective SoulCollective Soul is an American rock band from Stockbridge, Georgia. They have enjoyed popularity on alternative rock, mainstream rock and pop music radio throughout the 1990s and into the new millennium, recording seven #1 mainstream rock hits...
,
Goo Goo DollsThe Goo Goo Dolls is a rock band that formed in 1987 in Buffalo, New York by John Rzeznik and Robby Takac.As of 2009, the band has sold more than nine million records in the United States alone.-Origins and early music :...
,
EverclearEverclear is a rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1992. For most of its existence, Everclear consisted of Art Alexakis , Craig Montoya , and Greg Eklund . Eklund replaced original drummer Scott Cuthbert in 1994...
and
LiveLive is an American alternative rock/post-grunge band from York, Pennsylvania, comprising Ed Kowalczyk , Chad Taylor , Patrick Dahlheimer and Chad Gracey...
helped cement post-grunge as one of the most commercially viable sub-genres of the late 1990s. Female solo artist
Alanis MorissetteAlanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She has won 12 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards. Morissette began her career in Canada, and as a teenager recorded two dance-pop albums, Alanis and Now Is the Time, under MCA Records...
also found success while being labeled under the post-grunge tag. In 1995, her album
Jagged Little PillJagged Little Pill is the third studio album by Canadian singer–songwriter Alanis Morissette. The album made a sharp turn in genre and style for Morissette from her previous dance pop sound. As detailed in the article about the seventh track, "You Learn", the title is a metaphor for lessons of...
became a major hit by featuring blunt, revealing songs such as "
You Oughta Know"You Oughta Know" is a Grammy Award-winning song written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard for Morissette's first album Jagged Little Pill...
". Combining the confessional, female-centered lyrics of artists such as
Tori AmosTori Amos is a pianist and singer-songwriter of American citizenship. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
with a post-grunge, guitar-based sound created by producer
Glen BallardGlen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as the producer of Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill, which went platinum sixteen times in the U.S. and 30 million sold worldwide. He started playing the piano from a very young age and later learned the guitar...
, it succeeded in moving the introspection that had become so common in grunge to the mainstream. The success of
Jagged Little Pill influenced successful more pop-oriented female artists during the late 90s including
Fiona AppleFiona Apple is a Grammy-winning American singer-songwriter. She gained popularity through her 1996 album Tidal, especially with the single "Criminal" and its music video. Her music is influenced by everything from early jazz, pop, to alt-rock...
,
JewelJewel Kilcher , professionally known as Jewel, is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actress, and poet. She has received three Grammy Award nominations and has sold twenty-seven million albums worldwide, and almost twenty million in the United States alone.Kilcher debuted on February 28,...
and
Liz PhairElizabeth Clark "Liz" Phair is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Phair began her career in the early 1990s by self-releasing lo-fi audio cassettes under the moniker Girly Sound, before signing with Matador Records and becoming one of the leading artists of the 1990s DIY indie rock...
.
In the beginning of the 21'st century more post-grunge bands began to emerge including
Breaking BenjaminBreaking Benjamin is an American rock band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, currently consisting of Benjamin Burnley, Aaron Fink, Mark Klepaski and Chad Szeliga. They have released four albums to date.-Formation:...
,
SeetherSeether is a South-African rock band from Johannesburg, formed in 1999. The band is currently signed to Wind-up Records. Originally named Saron Gas and signed to Musketeer Records in South Africa, they changed their name in 2002, coinciding with the release of their second album and major label...
,
3 Doors Down3 Doors Down is an American rock band from , formed in 1996. Founded by Brad Arnold , Matt Roberts , and Todd Harrell . The band signed to Universal Records after the success of their song "Kryptonite". The band has since sold well over 16 million records worldwide since their debut album, The...
.
Nu metal and rap rock
Hip hopHip hop as a cultural movement "manifest in B-boying , graffiti writing, DJing and eMCeeing/rapping – is an artistic commitment to seize freedom from oppressive social conditions...
and rap gained attention from rock acts in the early 80's. The Clash ("The Magnificent Seven") and Blondie ("Rapture") were the first two rock acts to merge their sounds with hip hop. Early crossover acts include Run DMC and the
Beastie BoysBeastie Boys is an American hip hop group from New York City. The group comprises Michael "Mike D" Diamond, Adam "MCA" Yauch, and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz...
. In 1990,
Faith No MoreFaith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, frontman Mike Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Wade Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
broke into the mainstream with their success of the single 'Epic', which combined heavy metal with rap. This paved ways for bands like
Rage Against the MachineRage Against the Machine , is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1991...
and later
Limp BizkitLimp Bizkit is an American nu metal band from Jacksonville, Florida. The band achieved success with over 30 million albums sold worldwide. The members of the band include vocalist Fred Durst, guitarist Wes Borland, bassist Sam Rivers, drummer John Otto and DJ Lethal...
,
KornKorn is an American rock band from Bakersfield, California, which formed in 1993. The band's catalogue consists of nine consecutive debuts in the top ten of the Billboard 200. To date, Korn has sold over 30 million albums worldwide while earning six Grammy nominations—two of which they have won...
and
SlipknotSlipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa, formed in 1995. Slipknot consists of nine members, the current band members are Sid Wilson, Joey Jordison, Paul Gray, Chris Fehn, Jim Root, Craig Jones, Shawn Crahan, Mick Thomson, and Corey Taylor...
. This brought a fresh sound by combining the turntable scratching of rap and with the distorted guitars of metal-oriented rock. Later in the decade this style, which contained a mix of grunge, metal, and hip-hop, became known as
rap rockRap rock is a music genre fusing vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock is often confused with rap metal and rapcore, subgenres that include heavy metal-oriented and hardcore punk-oriented bands, respectively...
and spawned a wave of successful bands like
Linkin ParkLinkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California, formed in 1996. Since their formation, the band has sold more than 50 million albums and won two Grammy Awards. It achieved mainstream success with its debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005...
and
P.O.D.P.O.D. is an American rock band formed in 1992. The band's line-up consists of vocalist Sonny Sandoval, drummer Wuv Bernardo, guitarist Marcos Curiel, and bassist Traa Daniels. They have released seven studio albums and have sold over ten million records worldwide...
. Many of these bands also considered themselves a part of the similar genre
nu metal.
Through the turn of the century, more bands broke out like
Papa RoachPapa Roach is a four-piece hard rock band from Vacaville, California. They broke into the mainstream with their triple-platinum major-label debut Infest . The group's success continued with later releases Lovehatetragedy , Getting Away with Murder and The Paramour Sessions . Their latest album,...
whose major label debut
InfestInfest is the debut major-label album by the Californian hard rock band Papa Roach. It was released on April 25, 2000, and became the 20th highest selling album of 2000 in the United States. It was certified triple Platinum in the U.S. on July 18, 2001. It peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200 chart...
became a platinum hit. Other bands like P.O.D and
DisturbedDisturbed is a Grammy Award-nominated American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1996 when musicians Dan Donegan, Steve "Fuzz" Kmak, and Mike Wengren hired singer David Draiman. Since the band's formation, they have sold over 11 million albums worldwide, making them one of the most...
also had mainstream success. By 2001 nu metal reached its peak as record labels signed many nu metal bands. Though new bands were breaking out, established bands who started the genre had massive successful hit albums like
StaindStaind is an American rock band from Springfield, Massachusetts, including lead singer/guitarist Aaron Lewis, lead guitarist Mike Mushok, bassist/vocalist Johnny April and drummer Jon Wysocki...
(
Break the CycleBreak the Cycle is Staind's third studio album from 2001 . It is Staind's most successful album to date, and was the album that broke them into the mainstream. It was a huge international success for the band, as it spent 3 weeks at number 1 position in the U.S...
), P.O.D (
SatelliteIn the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavor. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
),
SlipknotSlipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa, formed in 1995. Slipknot consists of nine members, the current band members are Sid Wilson, Joey Jordison, Paul Gray, Chris Fehn, Jim Root, Craig Jones, Shawn Crahan, Mick Thomson, and Corey Taylor...
(
IowaIowa is the second album by American nu metal band Slipknot. Released by Roadrunner Records on August 28, 2001, it was produced by Ross Robinson and Slipknot...
) and
Linkin ParkLinkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California, formed in 1996. Since their formation, the band has sold more than 50 million albums and won two Grammy Awards. It achieved mainstream success with its debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005...
(
Hybrid TheoryHybrid Theory is the debut album by American rock band Linkin Park, released on October 24, 2000 through Warner Bros. Records. The album was a huge commercial success, selling over 10 million units in the United States alone and peaking at number two on the Billboard 200 while also reaching high...
).
By 2002, signs that nu metal's mainstream popularity was weakening were apparent. Korn's long awaited fifth album
UntouchablesUntouchables is the fifth album by American nu metal band Korn. The album was officially released on June 11, 2002 and featured the Grammy-winning single "Here to Stay", as well as "Thoughtless" and "Alone I Break." The album marks their second to use alternative metal but whereas Issues shifted...
and Papa Roach's second album
LovehatetragedyLovehatetragedy is the second major-label album by the Californian hard rock band Papa Roach. It was released on June 18, 2002, and did not sell as well as its predecessor, Infest. Notable was the absence of rapping, with the exception of "She Loves Me Not". It still sold approximately 700,000...
didn't sell as well as their previous albums. Nu metal bands became less played on rock radio stations and
MTVMTV is a cable television network based in New York City and launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs...
began focusing less on these bands and more on
pop punkPop punk is a fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. It is typically referred to as a strand of alternative rock that combines power-pop melodies and chord changes with speedy punk tempos and loud guitars...
/
Emo- Businesses :* Emo , an Irish oil company and filling station chain* Emo Speedway, a racetrack in Emo, Ontario* Emo's, a nightclub in Austin, Texas* An Educational Management Organization, or for-profit school- Music :...
bands. Since then, many bands have changed their sound to more conventional Rock music/
Heavy metal musicHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
.
Rock music in the new millenium (2000s)
In the early 2000s the entire music industry was shaken by claims of massive
piracyCopyright infringement is the unauthorized use of material that is covered by copyright law, in a manner that violates one of the copyright owner's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.For electronic and audio-visual media,...
using online music file-sharing software such as
NapsterNapster was an online music file sharing service created by Shawn Fanning while he was attending Northeastern University in Boston. The service operated between June 1999 and July 2001...
, resulting in lawsuits against private file-sharers by the recording industry group the
RIAAThe Recording Industry Association of America is a group which represents the recording industry distributors in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors, which the RIAA say "create, manufacture and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legitimate sound recordings...
. During much of the 2000s, rock has not featured as prominently in album sales in the US as in other countries such as the UK and Australia. Another reason for the decline in album sales is the rise in popularity of
Hip HopHip hop as a cultural movement "manifest in B-boying , graffiti writing, DJing and eMCeeing/rapping – is an artistic commitment to seize freedom from oppressive social conditions...
on many music charts.
The biggest factor that affected the production and distribution of rock music was the rise of paid digital downloads in the 2000s. During the 1990s, the importance of the buyable music single faded when
Billboard allowed singles without buyable, album-separate versions to enter its
Hot 100 chartThe Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
(charting only with radio airplay). The vast majority of songs bought on paid download sites are singles bought from their albums; songs that are bought on a song-by-song basis off artist's albums are considered sales of singles, even though they have no official buyable single.
Emo
In the mid-1980s, the term
emo described a subgenre of
hardcore punkHardcore punk, often just called hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated primarily in North America in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock...
which stemmed from the
Washington, D.C. music sceneWashington, D.C. has been home to many prominent musicians and is particularly known for the musical genres of hardcore punk, bluegrass, and a local hip hop-dance music hybrid called "go go". The first major musical figure from D.C. was John Phillip Sousa, a military brass band composer...
. In later years, the term
emocore, short for "emotional hardcore", was also used to describe the emotional performances of bands in the
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
scene and some of the offshoot regional scenes such as
Rites of SpringRites of Spring was an American post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C. in the mid-1980s, known for their energetic live performances. A part of the D.C. hardcore punk scene, Rites of Spring increased the frenetic violence and visceral passion of hardcore while simultaneously experimenting with...
,
EmbraceEmbrace was a short-lived post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C., which lasted from the summer of 1985 to the spring of 1986 and was one of the first bands to be dubbed in the press as emotional hardcore, though the members had rejected the term since its creation...
or
Moss IconMoss Icon was an Annapolis, Maryland emocore band from 1986 to 1991. Its original members were singer Jonathan Vance, guitarist Tonie Joy, bassist Monica DiGialleonardo, and drummer Mark Laurence...
. In the mid-1990s, the term
emo began to refer to the indie scene that followed the influences of Fugazi, which itself was an offshoot of the first wave of emo. Bands including
Sunny Day Real EstateSunny Day Real Estate is an American emo band from Seattle, Washington. While not the first band to be classified as emo, they were instrumental in establishing the genre. In 1994, the band released their debut album Diary on Sub Pop Records to critical acclaim...
,
Jimmy Eat WorldJimmy Eat World is an American alternative rock band from Mesa, Arizona, formed in 1993. The band is comprised of lead vocalist and guitarist Jim Adkins, guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch and drummer Zach Lind....
, and
Texas Is the ReasonTexas Is the Reason was an American emo band. The group was founded by former Shelter guitarist Norm Arenas and 108 drummer Chris Daly in 1994...
had a more
indie rockIndie rock is a genre of rock music that originated in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1980s. The term is often used to describe the means of production and distribution of independent underground music, as well as the style of music that was first associated with this means of...
style of emo, more melodic and less chaotic.
While Jimmy Eat World had played emocore-style music early in their career, by the time of the release of their 2001 album
Bleed AmericanBleed American is the fourth studio album by American alternative rock band Jimmy Eat World. The album was released on July 18, 2001, and became self-titled following the September 11 attacks, before reverting to its original name for a deluxe edition released in 2008...
, the band had downplayed its emo influences, releasing more pop-oriented singles such as "
The Middle"The Middle" is a single from Jimmy Eat World. It is the second single and third track from Jimmy Eat World's album Bleed American. It was a top 5 Billboard Hot 100 hit in 2002...
" and "
Sweetness"Sweetness" is a single by Jimmy Eat World. It appeared on the 2001 album Bleed American. The song was featured on the soundtrack for the EA Sports video game NHL 2003.It was originally written to appear on the album Clarity...
". Newer bands that sounded like Jimmy Eat World (and, in some cases, like the more melodic emo bands of the late 90s) were soon included in the genre.
2003 saw the success of
Chris CarrabbaChristopher Andrew "Ender" Carrabba is the lead singer and guitarist of the acoustic-emo band Dashboard Confessional, and previously was the original vocalist for the American emo/indie rock band Further Seems Forever. He was born in West Hartford, Connecticut, and then moved with his family to...
, the former singer of emo band
Further Seems ForeverFurther Seems Forever was an American rock band formed in 1998 in Pompano Beach, Florida and disbanded in 2006. Over the course of their career the band experienced several lineup changes, resulting in a different lead vocalist performing on each of their three studio albums...
, and his project
Dashboard ConfessionalDashboard Confessional is an American band from Boca Raton, Florida, led by singer-songwriter Chris Carrabba. The band started out as Carrabba playing intimately personal acoustic songs by himself, but eventually the outfit became a full band ensemble....
. Carraba found himself part of the emerging "popular" emo scene. Carrabba's music featured lyrics founded in deep diary-like outpourings of emotion. While certainly emotional, the new "emo" had a far greater appeal amongst adolescents than its earlier incarnations.
At the same time, use of the term "emo" expanded beyond the musical genre, which added to the confusion surrounding the term. The word "emo" became associated with open displays of strong emotion. Common fashion styles and attitudes that were becoming idiomatic of fans of similar "emo" bands also began to be referred to as "emo." As a result, bands that were loosely associated with "emo" trends or simply demonstrated emotion began to be referred to as
emo.
In a strange twist,
screamoScreamo is a genre of music which predominantly evolved from hardcore punk, among other genres, in the early 1990s. The term "screamo" was initially applied to a more aggressive offshoot of emo that developed in San Diego in 1991, which used short, chaotically executed songs which grafted "spastic...
, a more aggressive sub-genre of emo that began in the early 1990s, also had a reformulation of sound and has found greater popularity in recent years through bands such as
GlassjawGlassjaw is a four-piece post-hardcore band from Long Island, New York. The band is fronted by vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck, and have undergone numerous line-up changes since their inception...
. The difficulty in defining "emo" as a genre may have started at the very beginning.
Garage rock revival
In the early 2000s, a garage rock revival gained mainstream appeal and commercial airplay, something that had eluded garage rock bands of the past. This was led by four bands,
The HivesThe Hives are a Swedish rock band that first garnered attention in the early 2000s as a prominent group of the garage rock revival, playing garage punk. Their mainstream success came with the release of the "greatest hits" album Your New Favourite Band, featuring their most well-known song "Hate to...
(from Sweden),
The VinesThe Vines are an Australian garage rock band noted for producing a musical hybrid of '60s rock and '90s alternative music. Since 2006 their line-up has consisted of vocalist and lead guitarist Craig Nicholls, rhythm guitarist Ryan Griffiths, bassist Brad Heald and drummer Hamish Rosser.They...
(from Australia),
The StrokesThe Strokes is an American rock band formed in 1999 in New York City. They rose to fame in the early 2000s as leaders in the garage rock revival. The band's members are Julian Casablancas , Nick Valensi , Albert Hammond, Jr...
(from New York), and
The White StripesThe White Stripes is an American rock duo, formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. The group consists of songwriter Jack White and Meg White ....
(From Detroit), christened by the media as the "The" bands, or "The saviours of rock 'n' roll". Other products of the Detroit rock scene included;
The Von BondiesThe Von Bondies are an American alternative rock band. The current members are Jason Stollsteimer on vocals and lead guitar, Christy Hunt on rhythm guitar, Leann Banks on bass guitar and Don Blum on drums....
, Electric 6,
The DirtbombsThe Dirtbombs are an American garage rock band based in Detroit, Michigan, notable for blending diverse influences such as punk rock and soul while featuring a dual bass guitar, dual drum and guitar lineup...
and
The Detroit CobrasThe Detroit Cobras are an American garage rock band from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 1994. Their material is non-original and consists of material chosen from their personal record collections that they rearrange and perform.-History:...
Elsewhere, other lesser-known acts such as
Billy ChildishBilly Childish is an English artist, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist...
and The Buff Medways from Britain,
The (International) Noise ConspiracyThe Noise Conspiracy is a rock band formed in Sweden in the late months of 1998. The line-up consists of Dennis Lyxzén , Inge Johansson , Lars Strömberg , and Ludwig Dahlberg . Up until 2004-05 guitarist/organist/keyboardist Sara Almgren was also a member of the band...
from Sweden,
The 5.6.7.8'sThe 5.6.7.8's are an all-female Japanese garage rock trio, whose music is reminiscent of American surf music, rockabilly and garage rock. Each member is from Tokyo, Japan. The group have so named themselves because they play music reminiscent of 1950s, '60s, '70s, and '80s rock...
from Japan, and the
ObliviansThe Oblivians were an American rock & roll trio from 1993 to 1998. In the 1990s, their blues-infused brand of unpolished, bravado, crudely-recorded punk rock made them one of the most popular and prominent bands within the underground garage punk scene....
from Memphis enjoyed moderate
undergroundUnderground music refers to a variety of music subgenres that usually develop a subcultural cult following despite their lack of mainstream appeal, visibility, or commercial promotion...
success and appeal. Other notable bands that enjoyed commercial success, were
The LibertinesThe Libertines were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1997 by frontmen Carl Barât and Pete Doherty , the band also included John Hassall and Gary Powell for most of its recording career...
,
Black Rebel Motorcycle ClubBlack Rebel Motorcycle Club is an American alternative rock band from San Francisco, California, now based in Los Angeles. BRMC is known for its brand of garage rock, blues, folk revival, neo-psychedelia, and often religiously inspired lyrics, and its influences are groups and musicians such as...
,
The DatsunsThe Datsuns are a hard rock band from Cambridge, New Zealand, formed in 2000.-History:In 1997, while still at school, Dolf de Borst , Phil Buscke , and Matt Osment formed a band under the name Trinket. Christian Livingstone joined the band in 1997 as a second guitarist...
and the
Kings of LeonKings of Leon is an American rock band, that formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999, consisting of brothers Anthony "Caleb" Followill , Ivan "Nathan" Followill and Michael "Jared" Followill , with their cousin Cameron "Matthew" Followill...
.
Post-punk revival
Additionally, the retro trend has led to a
post-punk revivalThe post-punk revival is a development in alternative rock of the late 20th and early 21st centuries in which bands take inspiration from the original sounds and aesthetics of post-punk of the late 1970s....
with bands like
The HivesThe Hives are a Swedish rock band that first garnered attention in the early 2000s as a prominent group of the garage rock revival, playing garage punk. Their mainstream success came with the release of the "greatest hits" album Your New Favourite Band, featuring their most well-known song "Hate to...
,
The LibertinesThe Libertines were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1997 by frontmen Carl Barât and Pete Doherty , the band also included John Hassall and Gary Powell for most of its recording career...
, The Killers,
Arctic MonkeysArctic Monkeys are an English alternative rock band from High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. Formed in 2002, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders .Arctic Monkeys achieved chart success with their second single, "I Bet You Look Good on the...
,
Bloc PartyBloc Party are an English indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke , Russell Lissack , Gordon Moakes , and Matt Tong...
,
Franz FerdinandFranz Ferdinand are a Scottish rock band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single "Take Me Out" reached #3 in the...
,
InterpolInterpol is an American indie rock band formed in 1998 in New York City. The band's line-up is Paul Banks , Daniel Kessler , Carlos Dengler and Sam Fogarino ....
, and
EditorsEditors are a British indie rock band based in Birmingham, who formed in 2002. Previously known as Pilot, The Pride and Snowfield, the band consists of Tom Smith , Chris Urbanowicz , Russell Leetch and Ed Lay .Editors...
, which were often heavily influenced by 1990s bands such as
RadioheadRadiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their first single, "Creep", in 1992...
and
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, as well as the punk genre, and post-punk bands such as
Joy DivisionJoy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences,...
.
Originally, the term "post-punk" was coined to describe those groups which in the late seventies and early eighties took
punkPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and started to experiment with more challenging musical structures, lyrical themes, and a self-consciously art-based image, while retaining punk's initial
iconoclasticIconoclasm, Greek for "image-breaking", is the deliberate destruction within a culture of the culture's own religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually for religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major domestic political or religious changes...
stance, such as
Public Image Ltd.Public Image Ltd. are an English musical group formed in 1978 by vocalist John Lydon, guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble....
,
Gang of FourGang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
, and
Joy DivisionJoy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences,...
. At the turn of the century, the term "post-punk" began to appear in the music press again, with a number of critics reviving the label to describe a new set of bands that shared some of the aesthetics of the original post-punk era. The Rapture,
InterpolInterpol is an American indie rock band formed in 1998 in New York City. The band's line-up is Paul Banks , Daniel Kessler , Carlos Dengler and Sam Fogarino ....
, The Killers,
Arctic MonkeysArctic Monkeys are an English alternative rock band from High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. Formed in 2002, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders .Arctic Monkeys achieved chart success with their second single, "I Bet You Look Good on the...
, and
Franz FerdinandFranz Ferdinand are a Scottish rock band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single "Take Me Out" reached #3 in the...
were the first commercially successful projects to revive media interest in the movement. This second wave of post-punk incorporates elements of dance music and genres that are part of the dance punk movement in much the same way that the original post-punk movement was influenced by the
KrautrockKrautrock is a generic name for the experimental music scene that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s, especially in Britain...
,
DubDub is an instrumental subgenre of reggae music, that involves revisions of existing songs. The dub sound consists predominantly of instrumental remixes of existing recordings and is achieved by significantly manipulating and reshaping the recordings, usually by removing the vocals from an existing...
, and
DiscoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
music of the 1970s. Music critic
Simon ReynoldsSimon Reynolds is an English music critic who is well-known for his writings on electronic dance music and for coining the term "post-rock". Besides electronic dance music, Reynolds has written about a wide range of artists and musical genres, and has written books on post-punk and rock...
notes that these bands generally draw influence from the more angular strain of post-punk bands such as Wire and Gang of Four.
Metalcore and contemporary heavy metal
MetalcoreMetalcore is a fusion genre incorporating elements of hardcore punk and extreme metal. The name is a portmanteau of hardcore punk and heavy metal. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands like Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity. The earliest of these groups,...
, an originally American hybrid of thrash metal and
hardcore punkHardcore punk, often just called hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated primarily in North America in the late 1970s. The new sound was generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock...
, emerged as a commercial force in the mid-2000s. It is rooted in the
crossover thrash__FORCETOC__Crossover thrash, often abbreviated to crossover, is a form of thrash metal that contains more hardcore punk elements than standard thrash. It is sometimes referred to as punk metal, though this is generally incorrect due to the existence of other music genres that combine forms of punk...
style developed two decades earlier by bands such as
Suicidal TendenciesSuicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash and hardcore punk band. They were formed in Venice, Los Angeles, California, in 1981 by the leader and only permanent member, singer Mike Muir. The band is credited as one of the "the fathers of crossover thrash"...
,
Dirty Rotten ImbecilesDirty Rotten Imbeciles are a crossover thrash band that formed in 1982.The band never gained any mainstream audience, but were an influence on their contemporaries — most notably Suicidal Tendencies, Corrosion of Conformity, and S.O.D. — alongside whom they are considered the early pioneers of the...
, and
Stormtroopers of DeathStormtroopers of Death, more commonly known as S.O.D., formed in New York in 1985. They are commonly credited as being among the first bands to fuse hardcore punk with thrash metal into a style sometimes called "crossover thrash". They have also been a subject of controversy due to their...
. Through the 1990s, metalcore was mostly an underground phenomenon. By 2004, melodic metalcore—influenced as well by
melodic death metalMelodic death metal is a subgenre of death metal which combines the melody of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with the intensity of death metal. The genre is also known as Gothenburg metal, a reference to the city in Sweden where it originated...
—was popular enough that
Killswitch EngageKillswitch Engage is an American melodic metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999. Formed following the disbandment of the bands Overcast and Aftershock in 1999, Killswitch Engage's lineup consists of vocalist Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and...
's
The End of HeartacheThe End of Heartache is the third album by metalcore band Killswitch Engage. The album is the first to feature vocalist Howard Jones, of the band Blood Has Been Shed, who joined in 2002, replacing Jesse Leach...
and
Shadows FallShadows Fall is an American heavy metal band from Springfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1995. They are one of the few bands who take their lyrical influence from Eastern philosophy...
's
The War WithinThis article is about the album. For other uses, see 'The War Within .The War Within is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band Shadows Fall. The album is notable for the songs such as "What Drives the Weak," "Inspiration on Demand," "The Power of I and I" and "The Light That Blinds"...
debuted at numbers 21 and 20, respectively, on the
Billboard album chart.
Bullet for My ValentineBullet for My Valentine are a Welsh metalcore band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is composed of Matt Tuck , Michael Paget , Jason James , and Michael Thomas . They were formed under the name Jeff Killed John and started their music career by covering songs by Metallica and Nirvana...
, from Wales, broke into the top 5 in both the U.S. and British charts with
Scream Aim FireScream Aim Fire is the second studio album by Welsh metalcore band Bullet for My Valentine, released worldwide January 28, 2008 and January 29, 2008 in the US. The band supported the release of the album with the Scream Aim Fire Tour.-Background:...
(2008). In recent years, metalcore bands have received prominent slots at Ozzfest and the
Download FestivalThe Download Festival is a three day music download festival held annually at Donington Park, England...
.
Lamb of GodLamb of God is an American heavy metal band from Richmond, Virginia, formed in 1994. The band was originally known as Burn the Priest, but changed their name shortly after the release of their self-titled debut album in 1998...
, with a related blend of metal styles, hit the #2 spot on the
Billboard charts in 2009 with
WrathWrath is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Lamb of God. It was released on February 23, 2009. It achieved #2 on Billboard 200, with sales exceeding 68,000 in its first week...
. The success of these bands and others such as
TriviumTrivium is a heavy metal band from Orlando, Florida, formed in 1999. The band has released four studio albums, eleven singles, and twelve music videos...
, which has released both metalcore and straight-ahead thrash albums, and
MastodonMastodon is a Grammy Award-nominated heavy metal band from Atlanta, Georgia. They are one of the most notable bands in the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. They were formed in 1999 by Troy Sanders, Brent Hinds, Bill Kelliher, Brann Dailor and original vocalist Eric Saner...
, which plays in a progressive/sludge style, has inspired claims of a metal revival in the United States, dubbed by some critics the "
New Wave of American Heavy MetalThe New Wave of American Heavy Metal is a movement in heavy metal music that originated in the United States during the mid to late 1990s. The term NWOAHM is a reference to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement of the 1980s...
."
The term "retro-metal" has been applied to such bands as England's The Darkness and Australia's
WolfmotherWolfmother are an Australian hard rock band that formed in Erskineville, Sydney in 2000. Originally a trio comprising vocalist and guitarist Andrew Stockdale, bassist and keyboardist Chris Ross and drummer Myles Heskett, the band released their debut self-titled album in October 2005, which reached...
. The Darkness's
Permission to LandPermission to Land is the debut studio album by English hard rock band The Darkness, released in the United Kingdom on 7 July 2003 and in the United States on 5 August 2003. The album topped the UK Albums Chart and reached number thirty-six on the American Billboard 200 chart...
(2003), described as an "eerily realistic simulation of '80s metal and '70s glam," topped the UK charts, going quintuple platinum.
One Way Ticket to Hell... and Back (2005) reached number 11. Wolfmother's
self-titled 2005 debut albumWolfmother is the debut studio album by Australian hard rock band Wolfmother, originally released on 31 October 2005 in Australia. The album was later released internationally at various dates in 2006, with the addition of "Love Train" and a rearranged track listing...
had "Deep Purple-ish organs," "Jimmy Page-worthy chordal riffing," and lead singer
Andrew StockdaleAndrew James Stockdale is an Australian musician best known as the singer and guitarist of Wolfmother. Stockdale was educated in Brisbane, Australia, at Ashgrove State School, Wimbeldon Middle School, The Gap State High School and Kelvin Grove State High School, and lived in Ashgrove and...
howling "notes that Robert Plant can't reach anymore." "
Woman"Woman" is a song by Australian hard rock band Wolfmother, featured on their 2005 debut studio album Wolfmother. It was released as the band's fourth single in Australia on 17 June 2006, and later in the United Kingdom on 17 July...
," a track from the album, won for
Best Hard Rock PerformanceThe Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance has been awarded since 1990. In 1989 it was presented as Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance until the following year, when the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance category was formed. From 1992 to 1994 the award was presented as the...
at the 2007 Grammy Awards.
In continental Europe, especially Germany and Scandinavia, metal continues to be broadly popular. Well-established British acts such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden continue to have chart success on the continent, as do a range of local groups. In Germany, Western Europe's largest music market, several continental metal bands placed multiple albums in the top 20 of the charts between 2003 and 2008, including Finnish band
Children of BodomChildren of Bodom is a Finnish heavy metal band from Espoo, formed in 1993. The band consists of guitarist and vocalist Alexi Laiho , Roope Latvala , Janne Wirman , Henkka Seppälä , and Jaska Raatikainen...
, Norwegian act
Dimmu BorgirDimmu Borgir is a Norwegian black metal band from Oslo, Norway, formed in 1993. Dimmu borgir means "dark cities" or "dark fortresses" in Icelandic and Old Norse. The name is derived from a volcanic formation in Iceland, Dimmuborgir...
, and Germany's
Blind GuardianBlind Guardian is a German heavy metal band formed in the mid-1980s in Krefeld, West Germany. The band is often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres, Blind Guardian was a part of the German heavy metal scene that emerged in the...
and Sweden's
HammerFallHammerFall is a heavy metal/power metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden. The band was formed in 1993 by ex-Ceremonial Oath's guitarist Oscar Dronjak.- Early days :...
. The Swedish act
In FlamesIn Flames is a Swedish band from Gothenburg, formed in 1990. The band is considered to be a pioneer and major influence to the melodic death metal music genre. Since the band's conception in 1990, they have received numerous awards and released nine studio albums and one live DVD. The band has...
took both
Come ClarityCome Clarity is the eighth studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band In Flames. The album was released on February 3, 2006 in Europe through Nuclear Blast Records and February 7 in the U.S. through Ferret Records....
(2006) and
A Sense of PurposeA Sense of Purpose is the ninth studio album by melodic death metal band In Flames. The album was released in Europe on April 4, 2008 through Nuclear Blast and through Koch Records in North America on April 1. The album was also released in a limited edition boxset version of which only 1500 copies...
(2008) to number 6 in Germany; each album topped the Swedish charts.
Electronic rock
As computer technology has become more accessible and music software had advanced, interacting with music production technology became possible using means that bear no relationship to traditional
musical performanceA performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which one group of people behave in a particular way for another group of people . Sometimes the dividing line between performer and the audience may become blurred, as in the example of "participatory theatre" where audience...
practices: for instance, laptop performance (
laptronicaLaptronica is neologism from "laptop computer" and "electronica". The term gained a certain degree of currency in the 1990s and is of significance due to the use of highly powerful computation being made available to musicians in highly portable form, and therefore in live performance...
) and live coding.
In the last decade a number of software-based virtual studio environments have emerged, with products such as Propellerhead's Reason and
Ableton LiveAbleton Live is a professional loop-based software music sequencer for Mac OS and Windows by Ableton. The latest major release of Live, Version 8, was released in April 2009. Unlike other software sequencers, Live is designed around the notion of being as much an instrument for live performances as...
finding popular appeal.
Such tools provide viable and cost-effective alternatives to typical hardware-based production studios, and thanks to advances in
microprocessorA microprocessor incorporates most or all of the functions of a central processing unit on a single integrated circuit . The first microprocessors emerged in the early 1970s and were used for electronic calculators, using binary-coded decimal arithmetic on 4-bit words...
technology, it became possible to create high quality music using little more than a single laptop computer. Such advances have led to a massive increase in the amount of home-produced electronic music available to the general public via the internet. Bands such as
The ProdigyThe Prodigy are an English electronic music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree, Essex, England. Along with Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers and The Crystal Method, as well as other acts they are pioneers of the big beat electronic dance genre which achieved mainstream popularity in...
,
PendulumA pendulum is a weight suspended from a pivot so it can swing freely.When a pendulum is displaced from its resting equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the equilibrium position. When released, the restoring force will cause it...
,
RatatatRatatat is a New York City electronic music duo consisting of guitarist Mike Stroud and synthesizer player and producer Evan Mast.-History:Mike Stroud and Evan Mast first met as Skidmore College students, but they did not work together until they recorded several songs under the name "Cherry" in 2001...
, and
Nine Inch NailsNine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
are a few of the most popular electronic rock bands.
The industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails' album
Year ZeroYear Zero is the fifth studio album by American industrial rock act Nine Inch Nails, released on April 16, 2007, by Interscope Records. Frontman Trent Reznor wrote the album's music and lyrics while touring in support of the group's previous release, With Teeth...
utilized a heavily edited and distorted guitar sound modified via laptop computer. Allmusic's review described the album's laptop-mixed sound: "guitars squall against glitches, beeps, pops, and blotches of blurry sonic attacks. Percussion looms large, distorted, organic, looped, screwed, spindled and broken." The French electronic duo
JusticeJustice is a French electronic music duo consisting of Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay . The duo is one of the most successful groups on Ed Banger Records and is managed by the label's head, Pedro Winter...
's album
††, alternatively known as Cross, is the debut album of the French electro house duo Justice, released on June 11, 2007.-Recording history:...
incorporates a strong rock and metal influence into their music and image. Canadian band
Crystal CastlesCrystal Castles is an experimental electronic music band from the province of Ontario consisting of producer Ethan Kath and vocalist Alice Glass. Crystal Castles are known for their chaotic live shows and their low-fi melancholic home productions. To listen to Crystal Castles "is to be cast adrift...
incorporates elements of
chiptuneA chiptune, or chip music, is music written in sound formats where all the sounds are synthesized in real time by a computer or video game console sound chip, instead of using sample-based synthesis. The "golden age" of chiptunes was the mid-1980s to early 1990s, when such sound chips were the most...
and
punk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
vocals. Icelandic singer
BjorkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir is a critically acclaimed Icelandic avant-garde singer-songwriter, composer, actress and music producer, whose work includes seven solo albums and two film soundtracks....
's song "
Declare Independence"Declare Independence" is a song written and recorded by Icelandic singer Björk. The track was released as the third single from her sixth full-length studio album, Volta. The single was released on January 1, 2008...
" from her album
VoltaVolta is the Grammy-nominated seventh full-length studio album from Icelandic singer Björk, a follow-up to 2004's Medúlla and comprises ten new tracks....
featured a heavily modified synth bass guitar sound and strong rock feel. Canadian artist
PeachesMerrill Beth Nisker , better known as Peaches, is an electronic musician whose songs are noted for their use of explicit, sexual lyrics.-History:...
and various aspects of the
ElectroclashElectroclash, sometimes alternatively spelled as Elektroklash, is a style of music that fuses New Wave and electronic dance music. Larry Tee coined the term, but DJ Hell from Gigolo Records is also often regarded as one of the pioneers of the genre....
genre often reflect a strong Rock sensibility. New York's
RatatatRatatat is a New York City electronic music duo consisting of guitarist Mike Stroud and synthesizer player and producer Evan Mast.-History:Mike Stroud and Evan Mast first met as Skidmore College students, but they did not work together until they recorded several songs under the name "Cherry" in 2001...
is often cited as achieving an "electronic rock" sound.
Dance-punk
Many groups in the post-punk era adopted a more rhythmic tempo, conducive to dancing. These bands were influenced by
discoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
,
funkFunk is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, and other
dance musicThis article is about dance music in general. You may also be looking for electronic dance music or dance-pop.Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
s popular at the time, as well as being anticipated by some of the 1970s work of
David BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. Active in five decades of popular music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
,
Brian EnoBrian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as simply Brian Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, music theorist and singer, who, as a solo artist, is best known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at art school, taking...
, and
Iggy PopIggy Pop is a songwriter, and occasional actor. Although he has had only limited mainstream commercial success, Iggy Pop is considered an influential innovator of punk rock, hard rock, and other related styles...
, and some recordings by the German groups referred to as
KrautrockKrautrock is a generic name for the experimental music scene that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s, especially in Britain...
.
The music style re-emerged under the name dance-punk at the beginning of the 21st century. The style was championed by rock- and punk-oriented bands such as
LiarsLiars is a three-piece American band consisting of Australian-born Angus Andrew , Aaron Hemphill and Julian Gross...
, The Rapture and
Radio 4Radio 4 is a band from Brooklyn who formed in 1999. They claim that their sound, which has been described as "danceable punk," is "made in New York, is about New York, and sounds like New York"....
, as well as dance-oriented acts such as
Out HudOut Hud was an electronic band formed in 1996 in the Bay Area of California and later based in New York City. The band consisted of guitarist Nic Offer, bassist Tyler Pope, cellist Molly Schnick, vocalist/drummer Phyllis Forbes and mixer Justin Van Der Volgen. Pope, Offer, and Van Der Volgen are...
. Other groups, such as
!!!!!! is a dance-punk band that formed in Sacramento, California in 1996. Members of !!! came from other local bands such as The Yah Mos, Black Liquorice and Popesmashers...
and
The FaintThe Faint is an American indie rock band. Formed in Omaha, Nebraska, the band consists of Todd Fink, Jacob Thiele, Dapose, Joel Petersen and Clark Baechle. The Faint was originally known as Norman Bailer and included Conor Oberst...
fell somewhere in the middle. There has since been a crystallization of musical forms within dance-punk, with bands such as
Death from Above 1979Death from Above 1979 was a Toronto based Canadian dance-punk duo in the 2000s. The members were Jesse F. Keeler on bass, synths, backing vocals and Sebastien Grainger on vocals, drums. Without the help of a lead guitarist they played loud, heavy metal influenced, dance-punk on a bass and drums...
,
Test IciclesTest Icicles were a short-lived dance punk band that formed in England, primarily influenced by indie rock but containing musical elements from a variety of genres . The band was formed in 2004 by Rory Attwell and Sam Mehran, who were later joined by Devonte Hynes...
,
Fake Shark - Real Zombie!Fake Shark - Real Zombie! is a dance punk band whose members hail from Langley, British Columbia and Ashland, Oregon, and combine the styles of IDM and post-hardcore...
, and
Q and Not UQ and Not U was a post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C., signed to Dischord Records. Members John Davis, Harris Klahr, Christopher Richards, and Matt Borlik formed the band in 1998...
exploring aspects of dance-punk, along with
post-hardcorePost-hardcore is a music genre that evolved from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups who emerged from the hardcore punk scene, or took inspiration from hardcore, while concerning themselves...
and other musical styles.
DFA RecordsDFA Records is an independent record label and production team, launched in September 2001 by Mo' Wax co-founder Tim Goldsworthy, musician James Murphy, and manager Jonathan Galkin. The label has an exclusive distribution deal with major record label EMI....
can be seen as the current center of the dance-punk genre. As well as
James MurphyJames Murphy may refer to:Literature and art* James Vincent Murphy , translated Hitler's Mein Kampf into English* Jimmy Murphy , cartoonist of Toots and Casper comic strip...
's
LCD SoundsystemLCD Soundsystem is the musical side project of producer James Murphy, co-founder of dance-punk label DFA Records. The music of LCD Soundsystem is a mix of dance music and punk, along with elements of disco and other styles...
, the label is currently home to
The Juan MacLeanJohn MacLean, better known by the stage name The Juan MacLean, is an American electronic musician.-History:Maclean was guitarist for the indie Dance-punk band Six Finger Satellite, based in Providence, Rhode Island. The band was struck by several tragedies, and Maclean eventually moved into...
,
Hot ChipHot Chip is a Grammy-nominated British electropop band. They have released three studio albums—Coming on Strong, The Warning, and Made in the Dark. The Warning was named Album of the Year by Mixmag and voted the fourth best album of 2006 by NME...
, Hercules & Love Affair, Brinvonda, Shit Robot, Delia Gonzalez & Gavin Russom, Prinzhorn Dance School, Booji Boy High, Shocking Pinks, Holy Ghost!, Still Going, Syclops and YACHT.
New Rave
New RaveNew Rave is a term applied to several types of music that go from fusing elements of electronic, New Wave, rock, indie, to techno, hip house, electro, breakbeat....
is a term applied to several types of music that go from fusing elements of
electronicElectronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, rock, indie, to
technoTechno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan, USA during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988...
,
hip houseHip house, also known as house rap, is a musical genre that mixes elements of house music and hip-hop. The style rose to prominence during the 1980s in New York and Chicago...
, electro,
breakbeatBreakbeat is a term used to describe a collection of sub-genres of electronic music, usually characterized by the use of a non-straightened 4/4 drum pattern...
. In
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
, it is also known as Electrindie.
KlaxonsKlaxons are an indie rock band, based in London. Following the release of numerous 7-inch vinyls on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles "Magick" and "Golden Skans", the band released their debut album, Myths of the Near Future on 29 January 2007. The...
,
Trash FashionTrash Fashion are a 4-piece band made up of brothers Tom Marsh and Ben Marsh joined by Matt Emerson and Jim Ready . Their current UK record label is Propaganda Records and in Japan it is Vinyl Junkie...
,
New Young Pony ClubNew Young Pony Club are a five piece rock band from London, England, containing members from London, Hereford, Cambridge and Bromley. Taking influences from post-punk and New Wave....
,,
Hadouken!Hadouken! is a grindie band based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The band formed after James Smith and Daniel "Pilau" Rice met at Leeds University. It was here they began their own record label, Surface Noise Records. After forming the label, Smith began writing and demoing the first Hadouken! tracks...
,
Late of the PierLate of the Pier are a four-piece band from Castle Donington, England, currently signed to Parlophone Records. Their debut album Fantasy Black Channel was released on 11 August 2008.- History :...
,
Test IciclesTest Icicles were a short-lived dance punk band that formed in England, primarily influenced by indie rock but containing musical elements from a variety of genres . The band was formed in 2004 by Rory Attwell and Sam Mehran, who were later joined by Devonte Hynes...
, Bono Must Die and
SHITDISCOShitdisco, is a Dance-punk band from Glasgow, Scotland. They were formed in 2003 while studying at the Glasgow School of Art. Their first single "Disco Blood"/"I Know Kung Fu" was released in December 2005 and sold out quickly. They are signed to record label Fierce Panda...
are generally accepted as the main exponents of the genre.
The aesthetics of the New Rave scene are largely similar to those of the original
raveRave or rave party is a term first used in the 1980s and 90s to describe dance parties with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties DJs and other performers play Electronic Dance Music...
scene, being mostly centred around
psychedelicThe term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλείν , translating to "mind-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly ordinary fetters...
visual effects. Glowsticks,
neonA neon lamp is a gas discharge lamp containing primarily neon gas at low pressure. The term is sometimes used for similar devices filled with other noble gases, usually to produce different colors.- Description :...
and other lights are common, and followers of the scene often dress in extremely bright and fluorescent colored clothing. Indeed, many consider New Rave to be defined more by the image and aesthetic of its bands and supporters, than by the somewhat vague sonic criteria.
Trash FashionTrash Fashion are a 4-piece band made up of brothers Tom Marsh and Ben Marsh joined by Matt Emerson and Jim Ready . Their current UK record label is Propaganda Records and in Japan it is Vinyl Junkie...
lead singer, Jet Storm has been described as the scenes very own pin up. Nevertheless, the usage of electronic instruments, a musical fusion of rock and dance styles, and a particular
anarchicAnarchy may refer to any of the following:* "No rulership or enforced authority." * "Absence of government; a state of lawlessness due to the absence or inefficiency of the supreme power; political disorder."...
, trashy energy are certainly key elements.
Social impact
The influence of rock music is far-reaching, and has had significant impact worldwide on fashion and film styles. Its impact has been positive as well, with the trend of many rock stars facilitating charity events such as
Live AidLive Aid was a multi-venue rock music concert held on . The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for famine relief in Ethiopia. Billed as the 'global jukebox', the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium, London and JFK Stadium, Philadelphia...
. There are also spiritual aspects tied to rock music. Songwriters like
Pete TownshendPeter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
have explored these in their work. The common usage of the term
rock god acknowledges the religious quality of the adulation some
music celebritiesA celebrity is a person who is famously recognized in a society or culture.Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who gets media attention and most frequently has an extroverted personality. The desire to be notable is implied by some to be a part of Western culture and more specifically the...
and
rock stars-People:* Rajnikanth, actor from Tamil Nadu, commonly referred as Superstar Rajnikanth.* Warhol Superstar, associates of Andy Warhol* List of World Wrestling Entertainment employees, the name given to a wrestler of World Wrestling Entertainment...
receive.
See also
- Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
- Origins of rock and roll
Rock and roll emerged as a defined musical style in America in the 1950s, though elements of rock and roll can be seen in rhythm and blues records as far back as the 1920s...
- Pop music
Pop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
- Popular music pedagogy
Popular music pedagogy — alternatively called Rock music pedagogy, Popular music education, or Rock music education — is a recent development in the field of music education consisting of the application of the systematic teaching and learning of rock music and other forms of popular music both...
External links