I don't know that rock is dead. But a lot of the bands I listen to aren't putting out quality stuff anymore. The only "newer" band I've really gotten into is The Black Keys. But I am eagerly awaiting the new Foo Fighters album. It's kinda sad to see a lot of the bands reduced to the state fair/casino circuit. But apparently it pays very well.
lol shutup XD I'm just sayin there's some rock bands out there still! It' not like Kiss is any good either
thread won. after reading the article though, what simmons was saying is the industry that was able to take rock stars and make them rock gods is gone. and if that is your definition of what rock is, then yeah, he's right. if however you aren't concerned with the money or the push the artists get, well, I'm sorry gene, but there's more talent in the water today making music that is just as enjoyable as the 60's, 70's, 80's, and 90's rock. probably even more so because of the variety and diversity the indie and garage rock scenes bring to the music. and that doesn't necessarily mean that because a band is indie, garage or just doing something different with rock that they wont get backing from record labels. look at bands like mumford and sons and what they've been able to accomplish playing folk rock...they blew the fuck up in the US solely because people enjoyed them and they brought a new sound. radios were way way behind the curve there, they were already getting sold out shows at most venues they were playing. rock - the music, is far from dead when people keep innovating and progressing the ways it can be enjoyed. gene simmons ideal of "rock" may be dead, but the music itself is far from it.
It's always frustrated me when people try to put music into some kind of genre it's music it's all different sorting it's subjective to each listener.
I disagree, bands like Green Day have an impact on american popular conceptions of issues through things like American Idiot. Granted, they're no Dylan, but they're far from the only occurrence either, when even someone like Kanye West can make a gaffe on the air that can become a touchstone moment for a historical event. One could argue mainstream "rock" doesn't have the same impact it used to, due to the splintering of the rock genre into like a million successor-genres, but that doesn't mean rock is dead either, maybe CLASSIC rock doesn't have the same social influence it used to (but then again, were people saying "jazz is dead" or "blues is dead" in the 70s?).
Pfft. Up until I had read that article a few days ago, I was almost positive that HE was dead. Someone's conflating his career with a whole genre.
Artists today may not get the same industry "push" that groups got like 20 years ago, but they have superior equipment and recording technologies available. So they shouldn't need so much of a push as was needed before. EDIT I don't think KISS was a talented act; musically, speaking. As others have said, they were better at putting on an extravaganza/spectacle than they were at making music. But they were also dealing with prehistoric technologies that limited them even more. Even on the listening end, I can remember listening to their stuff on freaking vinyl.
Classic is defined as being judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind. Seeing as Beiber has never been high quality or outstanding (popularity is not a sign of quality mind you) nor is he even a "rock" musician, rest assured none of his work will ever be considered "classic rock". He's a teeny bopper, his brand of music has been around for ages, and has always been wildly popular for the few years they're new, but once their audience grows past it's teenage girl stage, they're more or less forgotten. Kiss was never in any way a musically impressive group, but their live shows were always energetic, entertaining and spectacular. Which to be perfectly frank has always been a large part of what makes rock so appealing. If a band is great musically, but fails to actually entertain people at their shows, they won't last. But put on a show people remember and you don't need any real talent when it comes to your songs, as long as they're catchy people will love them. As for the state of Rock music as a whole, it's no where near dead, it's just not as "mainstream" as it used to be. Between record labels looking for more and more ways to milk bands for money and the greatly increased means for rising bands to put their music out there for their fans directly, Rock bands just don't see the same kinds of public pushes as they used to. And to be honest, it's better this way. Record labels don't like signing rock bands because they're far more expensive and difficult to market and control then committee made pop bands, while actual musicians don't have to crawl through the muck and slime of corporate music companies to get their art out to millions of fans. The biggest downside to this whole situation however is the fact that actually *good* music has to be actively searched out while some of the worst dreck to ever be passed through an autotuner is shoved down the mainstream's throat constantly. Now while having absolutely terrible music be played on every radio station constantly 24/7 is nothing new (every decade of music had some *horrendous* music be popular with the masses), it seems worse then before since all the "good" stuff has to be found through other sources. Be it streaming media services (Pandora/spotify/youtube), word of mouth or whatever else bands do to promote themselves nowadays. tl;dr - Rock is no where near dead, it's just not on the radio. If you want to hear good music you'll have to go out and find it.
"Y'see, the kids, they listen to the Rap music which gives them the brain damage. With the hippin' and the hoppin' and the bippin' and the boppin', so they don't know what the Jazz is all about!"
It's already been said but KISS has to be the most phoned in rock band ever. Just to be fair, years ago I bought a KISS greatest hits CD and listened to it for the 2 hours it took me to get to the beach... It was "meh" AT BEST... It's sub-par music covered in black and white make-up and stuffed in a pleather costume... So Gene Simmons telling me that rock is dead hold NO meaning to me... Like, who the fuck is this guy to tell me anything? Who made him the Ambassador of Rock? Yes Gene Simmons' version of rock is dead, I'll agree with that... Tastes change. Genres change. New technologies have made the music industry a whole new ball game and taken a lot of power away for big music corporations and made it easier for quality music to get in the hands of the masses... Which is good. I don't need some fat asshole, in a 3 piece suit, sitting behind a desk TELLING me what to like... I check out YouTube mainly, and found very talented acts and musicians that I follow and subscribe to. The music is out there to be found.
