DHS Alumni Message Board

When I think of iconic bands, The Beatles, The Who, and The Rolling Stones all come to mind, just to name a few. 50 years later, they're still significant in the music world.

What new bands have/will achieve that kind of status?

New bands...hmmmm. What is classified as 'new'?

I would classify 'new' as bands that have debuted since 2000...and I think I'm being generous.

...and I really can't think of any that will reach that sort of status. There have been a few good bands (Nickelback, Coldplay, System of a Down, The White Stripes, etc...) but none that have really grabbed the ears and the souls of the people like the bands you listed.

That's what I was thinking. I couldn't come up with any bands or singers that seem as though they'll stand the test of time.

What is about the bands from the 60's & 70's that have made them so classic?

Here's a mini list of my answers to that question: (which really aren't answers, but reasons that today's bands don't/can't measure up)

1) Less corporate influence, and more resistance to corporate influence. Record companies back then let the artists be artists, and when they didn't, those artists fought the system (Tom Petty is a good example). American Idol is also part of this - those folks, while undeniably talented, are under the thumb of the AI corporation and sing what they're told to sing. Usually the non-winners who get away from AI and forge their own paths (Daughtry, Kellie Pickler), or the winners who eventually get away from AI (Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson) are the ones who end up making something out of the whole situation.

2) Music genres weren't so fragmented, and it was actually okay for certain groups of people to like a genre that wasn't 'theirs'. It's not cool for a hip-hopper to like metal, or vice versa...back then it was common for hit songs to cross over into other genre charts...now not so much.

3) Better production values - funny how today we have all this great equipment to enhance the sound, but the sound is (in my opinion) worse than it was even 15 years ago. Sgt Pepper was made on an 8-track recorder, cutting and splicing tapes, etc...today 24 tracks is the low end of industry standard, but today's producers (for the most part) don't ENHANCE the sound of a record, they use the 'enhancing' equipment to fix problems or they use it just because it's there.

4) Albums were made to be listened to in their entirety. Today it's the search for that 3 minute hit that will allow that person to live off the royalties - at least that's what it seems like. Attention spans are shortened, which surely doesn't help.

Notice I didn't put down better songwriting. I think there are songs of recent vintage that are as good as those of the past, but there hasn't been a recent group with the consistency in the songwriting that Lennon/McCartney, Townshend, Jagger/Richards, and others had back then.

I have to say, I"m pleased and amazed when I hear Led Zep or Bob Marley coming from Lisa's room.

As Steve says, there are some good bands out there of more recent vintage. But they're missing something. I mean, look at the Guitar Hero game. Who's on there? The newest stuff is GnR and Metallica! Kinda crazy, eh?

Green Day puts out consistently good music. Of course, they're not new either, just newer...

Green Day was the only one I could come up with when Cathy and I were discussing this earlier. They're not exactly "new", but I think they're among the few post 1990 bands that will be remembered in another 20-30 years.

So much of today's music sounds the same. I agree with Steve that the "polishing" that they do to enhance the sound makes it all very generic. Very rarely can I name a band that comes on any more. It could be one of a dozen with that exact same sound. The older music seemed to have depth to it.

A part of me wonders if we're all just biased to the older music though. And in the industry today does it matter if you're a "great band" or just a "great band for the moment". I admit, I rarely buy entire albums any more and even the ones I do have, I don't listen to in one sitting. My iPod is always on shuffle.

I can remember as a kid, my sister & I would put on an album like Foreigner, Billy Joel's The Stranger, The Doors, CSN&Y and we'd play cards for the afternoon. You'd listen to every song, in order, and knew every word & which song came next. I still expect certain songs to come after other ones when I hear them today.