Is Rock A Misunderstood Genre?
As a result of being the last in my family, in my formative
years I looked up to my siblings for guidance when it came to music(and they
did a hell of a job). My one brother – a romantic at heart- exposed me to love songs,
the most prominent being KayCee and JoJo. My other brother was more of a gangster-rap
kind of guy, a 50 Cent stan. He put me on to a couple of other good rap albums
in the many years that followed(I revisited HHP’s YBA 2 NW not too long ago). Then
there’s my sister. Thanks to her I know more Beyonce and Rihanna songs
than I’d like to admit. Not to forget my uncle who gave me a healthy dose of
R.Kelly and Westlife. Lastly, my parents, avid Christians, they hands-down have
good taste in gospel music.
Unbeknownst to my family, they were actually influencing my
taste in music but at the same time I was developing my own. I remember I used to spend evenings with my earphones plugged into the stereo listening to Algoafm
while everyone watched tv. Even when we moved to Bloemfontein, I would listen to Ofm's daily top 6 at 6 religiously. It was during this time that I gained
a liking for alternative rock bands such as Kings of Leon, Green Day, Coldplay
and other such bands. My first real brush with rock was when in 2008 eTV aired
a 3rd Degree episode of a killing in a Krugersdorp high school. The perpetrator
allegedly listened to Slipknot and other “satanic” music.
Now, Slipknot is not like anything you ever saw. They wear
frightening masks and costumes and make even more frightening music. Their music
is a cluster; dominated by tearing electric guitars, hypnotic drums and crashing cymbals topped off with rough, hoarse vocals. The lyrics are nothing to overlook
either. In one of their songs they talk about slitting someone’s throat and fucking the wound. Unsettling
stuff. I was only 11 years old when I watched this mini-doc and you can imagine
just how piss scared I was. My brother had to stay in bed with me until I fell I
asleep that night… and a couple of other nights that followed.
The other day, I came across a mesh-up of Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby’
and Slipknot’s ‘Psychosocial’ and I lol’d at how well they fit together. It also
made me re-realise, something I first realised when listening to Jared Leto of 30
Seconds To Mars, that rockstars, in their own right, have amazing voices. More
especially when they aren’t singing the typical genre voice(listen to 1:08 of
Psychosocial). Even the eerie, scratchy vocals that characterise the genre are
something to admire. Check Kurt Cobain on Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit. If
you were to try sing like that you would hurt your vocal chords, man.
If we’re to have any kind of discourse then we have to have at least
one thing we agree on. To kick it all off, let us define music. According to Oxford
dictionary it is: vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way
as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion. The word that
stood out to me is ‘beauty’. We all know that beauty is subjective, so by this
notion(and the rest of the definition) we can qualify rock music as actual music. Great!
But, what is rock music? This is a difficult one to answer. Since it was first conceived in the 1940's, rock music has been a hybrid of genres, drawing influences from jazz, blues, country music and even gospel. Through the years it has also adopted hip-hop which allowed for the formation of the sub-genre rap-rock popularised by Linkin Park. But, sub-genres had been forming before that. Hard rock/Metal rock and Progressive-rock were formed in the 90's by Led Zepplin and Pink Floyd, respectively. This gives the genre a spectrum from which it can be defined and it is an ever-evolving genre which doesn't do my quest to define it any favours. One definition that fits well, though, is given by Tim Grierson in an article stating: rock music can generally be described as hard-edged music
performed with electric guitars, bass, and drums and usually accompanied by
lyrics sung by a vocalist.
Typically, people assume that rock fans are the depressed, suicidal type. Well, the Krugersdorp murder proves this to be true, but at the same time any other person listening to any other genre could have pulled off that stunt, so, really, that does not prove anything at all. You might also bring up the argument that the genres individuals prefer are in direct relation with their emotions. This is not exactly the case. Whilst we fall back on certain kinds of music based on our current mood, it is actually our personality that determines which genre we listen to when our mood is stagnant. In an article that explores Professor Adrian North's research on personality's relation to music, it was found that classical music listeners are similar in personality to rock music listeners. Both listeners are curious, creative, welcoming of new perspectives—and politically liberal. What sets them apart is age. Rock listeners are younger, aggressive and more outgoing. Classical listeners, being the older ones in the equation, are calmer and prefer being indoors.
We've now established that rock listeners are just like any person who enjoys music. But why do people still look down on it?
Let's take a look at the lyrics. Metal music not withstanding(it makes up about 20%< of rock music; this is a "guesstimate") the lyrics that feature in rock music range over a number of topics; not unlike hip hop. Within the genre you find socially aware songs(Zombie by The Craneberries & Amerika by Rammstein), songs about loneliness and depression(Numb by Linkin Park), about love and heartbreak(November Rain by Guns N' Roses & Beautiful War by Kings of Leon), about sex and many other topics that are explored just as explicitly by other genres.
Now we're getting somewhere. Not only is rock listened to by people similar to those that listen to the oh-so-sophisticated classical music, it also has lyrics that are relatable to other genres.
But, wait! Here's a counter argument for all this. A research on metal music in relation to anxiety and depression was conducted. What the research says is that the listeners, more especially teenagers, listen and use the music in a negative way; as a means to isolate themselves from whatever they are feeling(paraphrasing). This is believable to be honest. What's more is that when listening to heavy metal songs you are likely to come across songs that have explicit satanic references and, dare I say, praises(think freedom of religion). But, if this is the case then the same goes for many other genres but to a lesser extent: They can also be used in a negative way, and who doesn't like licking their wounds whilst listening to sad music during stints of depression?
Individuals also follow what is preached in rap songs, but not many seem to look down on it. Rap music is built on the premise of drugs, sex and violence. This isn't exactly satanic but these are the devil's vices, depending on who you are. 'Making love'(aka premarital sex) that all the RnB songs refer to can also be counted as a vice. Maybe this is the reason why rock music has this stigma. Because a small portion of the genre is explicit on a universally taboo topic that other genres scarcely touch on.
In actuality, rock music is like other genres. It explores all kinds of human emotion and speaks explicitly on a topic that still makes many uncomfortable(myself included) even though the same topics are being conveyed right in front of us.
It's always best to end a paper with a quote. Someone else has already said it best. So if you can't top it, steal them and go out strong: "If rock and roll had rural origins, the rock audience was from the start urban, an anonymous crowd seeking an idealized sense of community and sociability in dance halls and clubs, on radio stations, and in headphones."
Typically, people assume that rock fans are the depressed, suicidal type. Well, the Krugersdorp murder proves this to be true, but at the same time any other person listening to any other genre could have pulled off that stunt, so, really, that does not prove anything at all. You might also bring up the argument that the genres individuals prefer are in direct relation with their emotions. This is not exactly the case. Whilst we fall back on certain kinds of music based on our current mood, it is actually our personality that determines which genre we listen to when our mood is stagnant. In an article that explores Professor Adrian North's research on personality's relation to music, it was found that classical music listeners are similar in personality to rock music listeners. Both listeners are curious, creative, welcoming of new perspectives—and politically liberal. What sets them apart is age. Rock listeners are younger, aggressive and more outgoing. Classical listeners, being the older ones in the equation, are calmer and prefer being indoors.
We've now established that rock listeners are just like any person who enjoys music. But why do people still look down on it?
Let's take a look at the lyrics. Metal music not withstanding(it makes up about 20%< of rock music; this is a "guesstimate") the lyrics that feature in rock music range over a number of topics; not unlike hip hop. Within the genre you find socially aware songs(Zombie by The Craneberries & Amerika by Rammstein), songs about loneliness and depression(Numb by Linkin Park), about love and heartbreak(November Rain by Guns N' Roses & Beautiful War by Kings of Leon), about sex and many other topics that are explored just as explicitly by other genres.
Now we're getting somewhere. Not only is rock listened to by people similar to those that listen to the oh-so-sophisticated classical music, it also has lyrics that are relatable to other genres.
But, wait! Here's a counter argument for all this. A research on metal music in relation to anxiety and depression was conducted. What the research says is that the listeners, more especially teenagers, listen and use the music in a negative way; as a means to isolate themselves from whatever they are feeling(paraphrasing). This is believable to be honest. What's more is that when listening to heavy metal songs you are likely to come across songs that have explicit satanic references and, dare I say, praises(think freedom of religion). But, if this is the case then the same goes for many other genres but to a lesser extent: They can also be used in a negative way, and who doesn't like licking their wounds whilst listening to sad music during stints of depression?
Individuals also follow what is preached in rap songs, but not many seem to look down on it. Rap music is built on the premise of drugs, sex and violence. This isn't exactly satanic but these are the devil's vices, depending on who you are. 'Making love'(aka premarital sex) that all the RnB songs refer to can also be counted as a vice. Maybe this is the reason why rock music has this stigma. Because a small portion of the genre is explicit on a universally taboo topic that other genres scarcely touch on.
In actuality, rock music is like other genres. It explores all kinds of human emotion and speaks explicitly on a topic that still makes many uncomfortable(myself included) even though the same topics are being conveyed right in front of us.
It's always best to end a paper with a quote. Someone else has already said it best. So if you can't top it, steal them and go out strong: "If rock and roll had rural origins, the rock audience was from the start urban, an anonymous crowd seeking an idealized sense of community and sociability in dance halls and clubs, on radio stations, and in headphones."
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