[Album] The Rock thread

I'm unsure if this has been done before, but after seeing some other genre threads, I had an urge to make one. I'm sure many of us are closet rock listeners, or some of us proudly wear this hobby on our sleeve (t-shirts, messenger bags, etc). So rock listeners just need a discussion thread for this uber-vast genre.

Bands you currently are listening to? Love? Hate? Don't understand why people love (Band X) so much? So and so are overrated? Are (Band X) really rock? The list can go on.

Maybe to start off, I am currently obsessed with The Moody Blues and in the process of getting their core seven albums. I really dig their stuff in the late 60s-early 70s. Oh yes, the mellotron.

Also, I don't understand why people love Bruce Springsteen. I think all of his stuff sound the same. If anyone would care to enlighten me on his greatness, that would be a starter.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Well, there's VGM rock, which is probably what I listen to most, but thanks to my recent 80's kick, I actually have names 99% of the world's population might actually recognize.

Ones I generally listen to:

VGM - Guilty Gear series, Dynasty Warriors series, the Konami Perfect Selections, Jun Senoue (the recent Sonic composer), SSH, Falcom/Sound Team JDK/JDK Band, Motoi Sakuraba and many doujin acts (Akineko, Mintjam, Ymaru, Toshinori Hiramatsu, Lukar).

Mainstream - Iron Maiden, Guns'N'Roses (though reading about their history and instability is more interesting than their actual music), Bryan Adams, The Go-Go's, The Bangles, Pat Benetar, Aerosmith, Journey, Twisted Sister, Van Halen (Roth-era...I'm half-and-half on the Hager stuff so far), Cacophony (Speed Metal Symphony), some Pink Floyd (the Wall) and David Lee Roth's solo acts.

Current: DLR's Skyscraper/A Little Ain't Enough and Essential Journey (literally just got this one).
Ones I don't get: I tend to like the more upbeat, melodic and flashy rock, so a lot of alternative rock that touches on more "emo" themes annoy the hell out of me. Never liked overly-distorted vocals (death metal, etc) or too much thrash (Slayer, Metallica) either.

And I guess for a question...Would New Wave be considered rock, whether or not it used guitars. The Go-Go's are generally split between both genres, despite being primarily a rock band.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

In my opinion, new wave is under rock. I just looked it up on wikipedia and it sort of confirmed it. The definition there is wishy washy. As for the usage of guitars, I wouldn't think that all rock should require the typical guitar, bass, and drum set up. Having keyboards exclusively brings a little variety to rock, like Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Elton John, Billy Joel, Ben Folds, or something. I'm a huge proponent of piano because I think it's potential is not unlocked yet in rock whereas the guitar has been the everlasting staple. I currently see a lot of it in some modern bands like Coldplay, Keane, The Fray, Daniel Powter, Aqualung, etc. And not to mention I hear a ton of "untuned piano" sound in indie songs.

Oh man, bringing up Essential Journey I used to listen to Journey exclusively last year, along with Foreigner, Boston, Chicago, and Asia. My playlist looked pretty sad during that month. But the old Chicago classics brought it up, I hope. Stuff like "Wheel in the Sky", "Separate Ways", and the always awesome "Don't Stop Believin'" were great, but my personal favorite of theirs would have to be "Faithfully" because I'm a sucker for great ballads.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

So you were a foreigner who took a journey to Boston, Chicage and Asia?

I agree...I'm very much for the use of keyboards/piano to complement the standard lead/bass/drums set-up. I've seen the consensus is that adding keyboards automatically equals "sellout" or too much of a "pop" sound for a lot of people (I'm amazed how many people I talk to who absolutely hate VH's "Jump" compared to their earlier works), but I don't really buy into that. Then again, I wholeheartedly support chiptunes, so of course I would.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Ha, talk about groups that use place names as their band name.

I think people who hate on the keyboard are just jealous. Besides, look at all the bands that use synth in the 70s and 80s. That's keyboard. Journey itself had some of the best damn keyboard riffs I've heard (Don't Stop Believin', Separate Ways), not to mention "Open Arms". Pure awesomeness. And a ton of classic rock artists have used keyboard for some great sounds (Beatles - Hey Jude, Hello Goodbye for example, Rolling Stones - She's A Rainbow, David Bowie - Oh you pretty things...). I dunno, I'm just a big piano in rock fan. =\

How ya doing, buddy?

Forever, I've been a massive nut for Roxy Music. They are probably my favorite band ever; they perfectly mix elements of pop with a major artsy leaning. Just awesome.

Besides Roxy Music, I'm really into David Bowie. Like Roxy Music, David Bowie walked the lines of pop and more artsy rock(at least with his berlin stuff). His earlier stuff is rockin' and awesome. Hunky Dory is a great album.

Can is another favorite of mine. Future Days and Tago Mago are two of the greatest albums to have ever been made. Just perfection.


Right now though I'm into Blonde Redhead and The Sea And Cake. They're on two different spectrums, the former being more experimental while the latter being more Post-rock. However each have sounds like no other.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

So is this thread going to bring in a broad definition of rock by including metal as well? Iron Maiden and Twisted Sister are metal.

As far as rock goes I really enjoy Porcupine Tree, Radiohead, Tool, Coheed and Cambria, and virtually all the mainstream classic rock bands.

FELIPE NO

True, we could incorporate metal because it is classified under rock. But there is already a metal thread, so I thought perhaps we should talk more about non-metal rock and leave the metalheads in the metal thread. =)

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Finally, a thread accepting of The Mars Volta.

I love pretty much all rock. Hard rock, stoner rock, prog rock, fusion, funk rock, surf rock, southern rock, indie rock, math rock, art rock, etc.

I recently discovered The Parlor Mob (formerly What About Frank?)--these guys are going to be big. Think everything Wolfmother wants to be featuring the vocals of Robert Plant reincarnate.

Lately I've been listening to some older stuff like Allman Brothers Band, Kansas, some Journey (including the atmospheric Dream after Dream), Grand Funk Railroad and Jefferson Airplane/Starship. I love the 70's.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

The word rock is a bit too all-encompassing, as it applies to practically piece of music featuring an electric guitar.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Hmm, bit of a revival...

What do people think of the whole grunge/alternative rock movement in the early 90's? I've heard some Nirvana and while I think they were talented and made some good music (yeah, I gotta admit "Teen Spirit" is damn catchy), I don't really see them as good enough for any kind of movement. I don't really hate them (since they always kind of did what they did and just happened to get "discovered"), but I don't really see the whole movement away from the so-called hair metal bands as a good thing either. It kind of took away from the hedonistic feel of a lot of rock. I just remember that whole period being sort of uneventful, even though I wasn't paying much attention to the charts (I still got to listen to stuff at people's houses, radio, etc) and even now, most of the 90's rock bands I look up are primarily grunge/post-grunge. So the only recent mainstream stuff I really like are the groups that have gotten back together since the 80's/early 90's (Iron Maiden included...The Blaze years weren't kind to them) and stuff like Velvet Revolver (Slash = God).

And just curious: Any Van Halen III fans? I've heard nothing but hate for this CD, but I really liked a lot of it. Cherone's no DLR, but I liked him more than Sammy at least.

@Will: Don't forget "Geek Rock", wiki's classification for "They Might Be Giants". I about fell out of my chair when I saw that.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Sure, some of those instruments have been used in famous rock bands, but the piano/keyboard is one of those overlooked ones that have and still have a strong presence in a lot of famous rock we hear. Even the synth made its movement in the 70s. (oh yeah, I'll throw in cowbell).

As for grunge, I'm not the biggest fan, but there are those "feel good" alt songs back in the 90s that were awesome. Nice pretty melodies, catchy choruses, good times. I guess grunge can be called a movement; it did inspire the grunge bands today, even if I do dislike most of their music. Nirvana is probably as far as I can go unless someone can suggest other good bands. Other grunge bands maybe Foo Fighters?

I'm not a big follower of Van Halen, but I love their take on the Kink's You've Really Got Me. Isn't III their most recent?

Geek rock? That's interesting. Heard of the classification of math rock, but geek rock that I need to look up. Reading it up on wikipedia makes me tempted to label it as indie pop/rock or college rock.

Anybody stoked about the Austin City Limits Festival lineup?? It looks awesome:

http://www.aclfestival.com/lineup.aspx

Bob Dylan? Haha, if that old rhymer can sing now. I've heard his itunes commercial and his voice is completely shot. Not like it was great in his prime, but alas, seeing aging rockers have always struck a depressing chord in me. Take Eddie Van Halen for example. (I sound like I hate Dylan in that post... on the contrary I like his stuff).

Dude, Crowded House. What's up with old bands reuniting again? Well, not as old as others but I only know like one of their hits.

ACL's got some sweet bands coming, like Arcade Fire and Muse. Nice. Still debating if I should go.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

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As far as rock goes, I'm partial to SOME vgm rock, like as in Guilty Gears, but more so, I like that 70s/80s rock which had emotion, rage, and gratuitous guitar solos. Stuff like Metallica, AC/DC, Motorhead, Led Zeppelin, Starship Jefferson, Iron Maiden, Godsmack, etc., There are some good Modern Rock bands, but its not usually anything you'd likely hear on the radio.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Yeah, Eddie's in rehab for alcoholism right now...Or at least he's supposed to be. Really sad...Either he wants to get himself right again or he REALLY wants to get out of working with Roth again (since DLR is technically a part of Van Halen again). I wonder where Wolfgang (his son and the band's new bass player) fits into all of this..."Hey, everyone! My dad's Eddie Van Halen, the famous guitar player and I'm VH's bass player. But...uh, he's in rehab and we don't know if we're ever going to ever go on tour or release anything...So, uh...Yeah."

Yeah, III was the most recent one they released, but it was way back in...1998. I just started following them a few months ago, so it doesn't exactly feel like it came out 9 years ago, but still.

I've got a way to go yet...I don't recognize any of the names on the ACL page. But I know the feeling about people reuniting. The group Vixen, while technically reunited, has 1 returning member from their original lineup with three all new performers. Or Guns and Roses...The band is roughly 10 members now and Axl is the only original one (and they haven't put out an original album since...1991). Oh well, it's kinda good the memories are being kept alive, since I can't name any modern bands I'm into yet (Velvet Revolver is growing on me...I think Slash is probably my favorite guitar player, but I'm lukewarm on the vocalist).

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I haven't really heard any vgm rock that is memorable. I'll give Guilty Gears a try. The only one that is rock that I know is that Final Fantasy X intro. And it's not even good. As for guitar solos, yeah... I totally dig them. It's gotta have feeling. I used to really love The Eagles - Hotel California's. But once I heard this acoustic version of Hotel California and I nearly cried. Cried in disappointment. It was slower, dumbed down, and meant for wussies. And it lost the solo.

I saw this horrific recent picture of Eddie... don't want to pull it up but I'm sure it has been the butt of all rock jokes when it got out. It's like everywhere if you type his name on google images.

I guess the only reason I can recognize like 1% of the names on the ACL site is because I dj at my college radio station. And even then I have HEARD of a lot, but never actually given them a serious listen on them. Of course they've listed the more famous bands on top. I'm particularly excited about Muse because Matt's got some serious keyboard groove. I wonder if Dylan would perform any of his classic hits because frankly I only listen to his old stuff. I've listened up on Kaiser Chiefs, and in my opinion their first album is better than their sophomore one, although Ruby is catchy as hell. I would recommend Arcade Fire, The White Stripes, The Killers, Spoon, and The Arctic Monkeys. I would just look them up on www.allmusic.com (awesome comprehensive database) and listen to samples before you go straight into downloading (I'm assuming no one just goes out and purchases CDs anymore because... I don't I do buy vinyl, does that count??). I might need to listen up on some of the other names before I decide whether or not to go.

Sometimes a band reunion can seem a little superficial. Like The Police? What the heck, Sting sold out and I'm sure he's just trying to get more money. Or help his friends (like Clapton for Cream).

Haha, talking about kids of rock stars, I feel kind of bad for them, especially since they are forever living in their father's/mother's shadow. I just saw Billy Joel's daughter on a late night talk show (didn't see the resemblance whatsoever) and she just plain SUCKED. I was shocked. And she was interviewed later and admitted she can't play an instrument, and that her dad just hates Piano Man (lol!!). Pretty sad, both situations.

FELIPE NO

Like in the metal thread...

New stuff that I was expecting for quite a while and was not disappointed by:

Rush's Snakes and Arrows
Porcupine Tree's Fear of a Blank Planet

Lovin' both of em.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?