Is rock music stagnating or fading? Well, this was the question asked till a couple of years ago, when most youngsters were taking to hip-hop and electronic dance music (EDM). While people did go in for older rock acts, there was hardly any good new material. No Metallica or Linkin Park or Radiohead.
Making waves
All that changed last year when American band Greta Van Fleet sold piles of records, topped streaming charts and filled stadiums wherever they played. Never mind if they were too similar to Led Zeppelin. The fact was that they were a new band making waves in a genre only being linked to ancient glory.
This column discussed the success of Greta Van Fleet in the edition dated January 17, 2019. Thereafter, the group won the Grammy for Best Rock Album for From The Fires. Suddenly, the international media talked of the great rock revival.
Obviously, one band isn’t enough to spearhead such resurgence. But the truth is there are other new-ish acts that are making waves, at least in the West. And most of them are hugely influenced by legends from the past. In India, not many are aware of them. Most listeners are tuned in to retro stuff, or to hip-hop and EDM, and have a mind-block experimenting with recent rock releases. There is no music television to boast of, and radio promotion is limited. The only ways of accessing such music is through word of mouth, where one follows suggestions from others, and trial and error, where one randomly streams online platforms and chooses.
Listening recommendations
Keeping that in mind, I am recommending five acts, besides Greta Van Fleet, that may please your palette, mentioning three songs in each case. On top of the list is California band, Rival Sons. It has clear influences of Bad Company, Aerosmith and Joe Cocker. Check out vocalist Jay Buchanan and guitarist Scott Holiday on ‘Pressure & Time’, ‘Jordan’ and ‘Feral Roots’.
Next comes British group, The Struts. Singer Luke Spiller has strong doses of Freddie Mercury and Mick Jagger, besides 1970s glam rock influences. Listen to ‘Bulletproof Baby’, ‘Kiss This’ and ‘Body Talks’ (with pop singer Kesha). At number 3 is The Revivalists. This American group is rooted in 1990s alternative rock, and besides the regular rock instruments, uses the pedal steel guitar, saxophone and trumpet. Starting suggestions are, ‘Wish I Knew You’, ‘All My Friends’ and ‘Change’.
Then we have Los Angeles outfit Dorothy, featuring the fantastic vocalist Dorothy Martin, who shows signs of Grace Slick from Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin and Patti Smith. The songs ‘Wicked Ones’, ‘After Midnight’ and ‘Flawless’ are good to begin with.
Finally, there is Pablo Dylan, grandson of the Nobel laureate. Interestingly, he started as a rapper but has now switched to folk-rock clearly inspired by (though still far from) the great Bob. ‘Eye Of The Storm’, ‘The Final Somersault’ and ‘When We’re All Free’ are worth a listen. Clearly, there’s a lot more going on in the nu-rock space. The more you search, the more you discover. Rock is still around. We hope so.