Debate That radio is smothering rock and roll.

That radio is smothering rock and roll.

Debate

 

topic's kinda vague, but i'll weigh in.

i think radio's just the lap dog of video. the weekend video hit programms over here basically control the 'top 10', and radio just tags along behind. video's killing rock, and radio's finishing the job. i watched one of those video shows for the first time in about 5? years and i was amazed. i didn't think it possible to sink lower than 80's trash.

 

Okay, firstly, the 80's were and still are the best era for music, of any kind. Rock today though, well it's not really rock. More like hard pop music. The radio isn't the only one trashing it though, they all are.

 

With the internet, more than just what is "mainstream" and "popular" can be found. I think that there is still rock and roll, and if it doesn't sound exactly the same from generation to generation, it's a sign of creativity. Who wants to hear the same strains repeatedly ad infinity? That would surely kill rock and roll.

I listen to bands like The Clash, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Queen, David Bowie and a variety of other "classic rock/punk" bands, but I am not afraid to say that there are bands that I enjoy very much from today, such as Rancid, Gob, Bad Religion, Wolf Parade and others.

To say that radio is smothering rock and roll is to say that a godmother is smothering a child.

Let's face it - if radio had never been invented, rock and roll would not have made it to the world. Personally, I think it's more likely that music videos are killing music. "Video killed the radio star", anyone? I mean, if bands could only play live, hardly anyone would hear them. If records had been invented, but radio had still not given these artists the extra boost, who would have bought the records? It's simple to say that there would have been other solutions, but radio allows people to find music by accident.

Radio allows people to just be flipping around with a dial and all of a sudden hear something that they want to hear more of. That is why radio is not smothering rock and roll. Certainly, some stations are not the best (for their charts and etc.), but here in Montreal, we have a station called CHOM FM that's all about rock, and it certainly has my support. They have music for all sorts.

 

What's funny is how hard people try and argue that rock is being covered up by other genres. I mean, if you know where to look for the music, you'll find it. And the radio might not be the best place to look..I'd try Fuse, the TV station. It's got a pretty good selection of stuff, the majority of which is rock.