To provide some context and background to my project I’ve conducted some research into the genre of music I’m producing which is Rock. The genre I produced for my 2 songs is rock with a splash of indie, funk and heavy metal therefore I did some research into the evolution of rock music
THE ROCK ORIGINS (LATE1940S – 1950S)
Rock’s origins can be traced to the late 1940s, when the popular styles of the day, country and blues music, morphed into a new sound aided by electric guitars and a steady drumbeat. Pioneering rock artists of the 1950s such as Chuck Berry leaned heavily on classic blues structures while demonstrating a flair as natural-born entertainers. In contrast to the safe pop music of the era, rock’s aggressive attack suggested a sexual freedom that was shocking during that conservative age.
THE ROCK’S RISE (1960S)
By the 60s, rock’n’roll had already started to expand into a more general genre that was now identify as ‘rock’ As the American rock scene exploded, the rock movement began to spread worldwide. In particular, musicians in Britain pounced on the new art form. Soon bands like The Beatles, Cream, the Jimi Hendrix experience, the beach boys, The Who, the kinks and the doors had found their own niches.
THE ROCK’S EVOLUTION (1970S)
As rock music became the dominant form of popular music, new bands built on their predecessors’ strengths while branching out into new sonic territory. Led Zeppelin gave rock a darker, heavier tone, becoming one of the ’70s’ most popular bands and helping to kick-start a new genre known as hard rock or heavy metal. In the late ’70s, in response to what they perceived as pretentious “hippie” bands such as Pink Floyd, groups including the Sex Pistols and the Ramones simplified rock to its core ingredients: loud guitars, rude attitude, and enraged singing. punk was born.
THE ROCK’S SPLINTERING (1980S)
As the ’80s began, mainstream rock was losing commercial steam, its sound growing stale. In such a creatively stagnant environment, subgenres started to assert their dominance. By the end of the ‘80s Alternative rock cemented its cultural standing when the music magazine Billboard created a new chart in 1988 for alternative rock. For most music fans, terms such as modern rock, alternative, and indie are synonymous ways of describing this popular subgenre.
THE ROCK’S RE-EMERGENCE (1990S)
With the ascension of Nirvana’s Nevermind in 1991. Alternative rock became the dominant popular music along with albums such as Ten, Dirt, and BadMotorfinger. Exacerbated by the suicide of Nirvana’s frontman Kurt Cobain, Alternative rock started to lose its ouster by the middle of the decade, setting the stage for the post-grunge era. One of the first bands to capitalise on mainstream rock’s comeback was Limp Bizkit, which melded hard rock and rap into a hybrid called rap-rock. Groups such as Nickleback and Foo Fighters followed in lips biz kit’s wake, though these bands focused on melodic hard rock rather than integrating rap in the mix.
THE ROCKS 21ST CENTURY ENTRANCE
As rock music entered the 21st century, the most successful acts had the same spirit as their ’60s predecessors, even if they sounded quite different. Linkin park fuses hip-hop and metal, while Slipknot emulates hard-rock traditions of the past while providing a contemporary spin. Undoubtedly, rock music will keep evolving, drawing from its rich history while continuing to keep its ear open for the next sonic reinvention.
The evolution of rock music has overall influenced my 2 songs because it includes a dash of influence from every decade. Starting from the instruments I used morphed from the late 1940s and 1950s. The way British people (like me) pounced on the new art form at the time from the 1960s. Adding the darker and heavier tones as well as loud guitars and enraged singing from the 1970s. Using multiple rock genres in one genre know as alternative rock from the 1980s. The catchy and dramatic messages alternating between self-effacing verses and sing-along choruses from the 90s and also the hard rock traditions while providing a contemporary spin from the 2000s.
References
Grierson, T., 2018. Rock Music’s Origins: A 1940s Blending of Country and Blues. [online] LiveAbout. Available at: <https://www.liveabout.com/what-is-rock-music-2898293> [Accessed 27 May 2022].
SANNEH, K., 2022. MAJOR LABELS. 1st ed. [S.l.]: PENGUIN BOOKS, p.Page 44.