22MusicWeek 13.07.12 SECTORPROFILEROCK ROCK SOLID?
Rockmusic’s star-power is still firmly in the hands of
veterans and themainstream is obsessedwith the genre popping its clogs. But those in
the knowhave every reason to keep on cranking it up to 11
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GENRE BY TOM PAKINKIS
A
quick glance at this year’s festival headliners will tell you that success in the rock genre comes with
patience.The likes of Bruce
Springsteen,Black Sabbath andMetallica have grabbed the top slots with ease in 2012 – in some cases more than once. It’s clear that field-going punters still want big guitar music - and they want the legends of the trade. And ‘legend’ is a significant term here. It’s one
synonymous with rock music that paints a picture of battle-worn fathers of the
genre.Rock rests on icons, and icons aren’t built overnight. While the pop genre fills stadiums with teen
sensations, rock drags in capacity crowds with
veterans.By definition, then, creating a world- beating rock act takes time and the virtue of patience is one that crops up time and time again when canvassing key players in the genre. Spinefarm Records’Dante Bonutto flags up some
of these key rock characteristics succinctly. “For pop music, nailing it from single one has long been a standard concept, but that’s not the case for rock,” he tellsMusicWeek. “Rock is a medium built on the strength of the live circuit, the devotion of the fans and the development of an international identity
ABOVE / RIGHT Pastmasters and young guns: Metallica and Bruce Springsteen easily snap up festival slots – but the likes of Enter Shikari and Young Guns are waiting in the wings
over a period of years. “Like a fine wine, rock music needs time to
mature, to develop at a natural pace – hence why the likes of Bon Jovi,Metallica and Def Leppard effectively broke through on album number three. “It’s much harder for the modern rocker to be
afforded such luxury but, quite simply, great rock institutions can’t be built in a day,”he adds. “The message is: pick a great young band and then stick with them.” Universal’s VP of strategic marketing Andrew
Daw adds, “On the label side people have to understand you need to be patient and stick with these type of bands and be in it for the long haul. “If you’re not prepared or willing to do that don’t
sign them, let someone else and then regret it afterwards because you were looking too short term and not prepared to put the effort in.” Having recently signed classic rock revivalistsThe
Darkness,who join the likes of Enter Shikari, Young Guns and Arcane Roots,PIAS now has what UKMD PeterThompson calls “a considered rock roster, rather than a large one”.Thompson shares the view that patience is both the key to success in the genre and one of the main challenges. “It doesn’t happen overnight with rock music,”he
concurs. “Rock happens over a long period of time by doing great live shows, keeping in touch with
fans, releasing records,working hard and trying to make inroads into America. It’s a long and hard but interesting slog. “The Darkness is slightly different,”he admits.
“They play a more accessible style of rock and the radio supported them so they became very big. But the majority of rock is harder and heavier meaning it’s less likely that you’ll get that wide spread appeal.” Therein lies the
rub.The need for patience in
the world of rock was not simply written in the stars, it comes from the in-your-face outsider rebellion that characterises the rock lifestyle, the same trait that will typically keep it at arm’s length from primetime exposure. “We’re breaking down barriers slowly,”
Thompson adds, “but I don’t think we’re ever going to be on commercial radio with Young Guns or Enter Shikari.We’ve just got to keep picking away at it.” Planet Rock’sMalcolm Bluemel is at the centre
of a drive to give rock music more space on the airwaves but agrees that the genre is poorly represented on UK radio. “That’s because it’s not cool,”he explains. “But then it never has been. It’s always been poorly represented and always will be.” JulieWeir, head of indie label Visible Noise
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