Pop killed the Rock star

Last year I saw a documentary about the band Foo Fighters. Dave Grohl, the lead singer, talked about the last MTV music awards they were invited to play at, saying that they were the only rock band there. That was several years ago, I believe. Now? Where are the rock bands?

Every morning I watch music videos on various channels. I can't remember the last time I heard a song on VH1, MTV, Paladia, etc., that was remotely real. I'll explain what I mean.

I started playing guitar in my mid teens, and my mentors were the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, various blues guitar players, etc. Point being, they were talented. So what happened to all the rock bands with skill? Is Rock 'n' Roll destined to die like disco? Pop has completely drowned out everything else. Bands don't even play real instruments anymore. Everything is digital. Not to sound like an old koot, it's just that skill seems to becoming irrelevant. You just have to push some buttons and you have a song. Where's the soul? Where's the spirit of radio (as Geddy Lee of Rush would say)?

Please tell me someone else has noticed this. :sick:

Streen wrote: Bands don't even play real instruments anymore.:

I'm not sure that's entirely true... I listen to metal and there are always new bands coming up (playing instruments), but you'll rarely see them on the TV. Music on tv channels has never really been a fair representation of what's out there anyway. I'm pretty sure Kerrang is playing the same music that I was listening to as a teenager.

I think what the channels class as 'rock' has changed perhaps, and has a bit of a different sound, but perhaps you might find more of what you're looking for on other music services.

I listen to the radio during the week, and my god is the selection boring, but I go home and listen to stuff on Spotify and there's so much of a selection there you'll always find what you're looking for (except the Beatles for some reason).

I can't talk about American MTV, but in the UK we have a channel called MTV ROCKS which is exclusively guitar bands.

Every generation views the subsequent one as inferior to its own, but the fact is when you move out of MTV's demographic it's bound to seem less relevant. You've changed as much as the channel has. The marketplace is huge these days and MTV can't contain it all. Disco isn't even dead... check out labels like Italians Do It Better.

Given the rise of the internet as the primary source of content for most people, I don't think it's really a big problem. Dave Grohl is a legend and I love him, but his attitude is a product of generation X. What are we now, generation Z? Generation -A? Whatever you call it, it doesn't need MTV.

I remember my grandparents describing The Beatles as "a dreadful racket"... you're getting old, man

So what happened to all the rock bands with skill?

They don't do hard drugs anymore. Gone are the days when roadies had to inject musicians whilst performing. no drugs = no crazy new sound.

I work for CBS Radio, a division of the largest media company in the world. More specifically, I work for CBS Radio in the Los Angeles market that is home to KROQ, one of the most well known rock radio stations in the world. From inside the hallways of KROQ, I can tell you this much. It is all about MONEY.

Record labels and artist management are facing the greatest challenge to their existence in their history in the form of streaming music services. Revenue from album sales has plummeted and they are scrambling to replace it. If they can't find a way to replace the revenue, they cut production and touring budgets.

And guess which artists have the highest production and touring costs versus revenue? You guessed it. Rock bands. The personnel, equipment, back line, and production of rock is much more intricate than that of pop. The profit margin for a label promoting a rock band is much lower than that of a hip-hop or pop artist. The result? More pop, less rock.

That is not to say that great rock musicians are not still out there. Dave Grohl is one of them, but how many Dave Grohls do we see in any given generation? And of those, how many have gone unnoticed until they gave up trying?They are just not being supported or promoted by record labels any longer. Without the support of labels, they do not make it onto radio or TV as easily. Sadly, as a result, KROQ plays very little "rock" anymore.

Gotta love capitalism...

ren wrote:

So what happened to all the rock bands with skill?

They don't do hard drugs anymore. Gone are the days when roadies had to inject musicians whilst performing. no drugs = no crazy new sound.

I highly object, may I play loudly Queens of the Stone Age for your listening pleasure?

Eew no thanks. They can stay on the soundtracks of US highschool-themed cable TV shows.

You know you like Queens...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJVfmTdP4dg

And some Jack White on the side...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI-95cTMeLM

The Industry of Cool (contains swearing)

http://youtu.be/Mai36wCbjSw

I listen to music throughout 99% of my day (if at all possible) and buy a fair amount of music, and good rock bands are definitely still out there and abundant (in fact, I have a number of friends in relatively successful local rock bands).

In many ways, the music industry has moved from the television and radio model (which is quickly becoming antiquated) to the internet model of music distribution. A large percentage of bands and musicians are now on labels of their own creation because they want to skip the greedy middlemen.

Sadly, pop culture has always been about what they want you to listen to (as Senan well knows). I worked at a Top 40 radio station throughout high school and they really did have 40 songs they played each day (with few exceptions).

Rock will never die. There will always be people, like yourself, with a love for the classic rock sound. Rock will probably continue to evolve in some ways, and at this point in pop culture that means integrating electronic sounds.

I love electronic music, so I initially came at this from a slightly different point of view... where electronic musicians introduced me to rock. I now listen to hybrid bands (rock and electronic) and bands that only use instruments (along with the necessary amplification equipment when they perform). Personally, I think there's room in the world for all of them.

It sucks that the TV stations you like have changed their focus so dramatically. For better or worse, you may have to change your focus to find what you're looking for online or at live performances.