We had the thread about Todd Rundgren’s opinion that U2 is comparable to the Beatles when I asked him if there was a current group which came close to equaling the Beatles in importance. Then we had a spin-off thread from that one, about musicians or bands which have “no equals.” But neither thread, nor even Rundgren’s original answer, really touched on what I really meant with the question, which was: who are the musical acts that are influencing the next generation of musicians? Who are the people that are inspiring kids to pick up guitars and form bands?
So that’s what this thread is for, basically. Who are the rock groups or artists of the past twenty years who have really made an impact musically (just not in terms of records sold or fashions started?) I am talking about rock here - no rap, no R&B, no electronica.
The following would be my list of “heavy hitters” - groups or individuals with a distinct sound, whose music has influenced other musicians. I’m trying to keep this as mainstream as possible and not introduce obscure groups that many people will be unfamiliar with. In no particular order:
Nirvana
Soundgarden
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Smashing Pumpkins
Sublime
Phish, Widespread Panic and the other big “jam” bands
My Bloody Valentine
Pavement
Built To Spill (immeasurable impact on indie rock vocals.)
The Hold Steady
Weezer (hopeless romantics, my generation’s Elvis Costello)
The Shins
Andrew Bird (I don’t love him, but he’s been encouraging experimentation with unconventional sounds and Todd Rundgren-style multi-instrumental production.)
Dave Matthews Band
Bear in mind these are only the ones I can think of right at this moment. Others will come to me later and I will add.
Yes, I had meant to put Pearl Jam on that list…they were on the list I had made up in my head before I sat down to write the thread. I just forgot them. Pearl Jam and Stone Temple Pilots were hugely influential in terms of their vocals, less so with instrumental playing.
I know the list seems skewed towards the early 90s alt-rock of Lollapalooza - that’s because those were, for better or worse (I think for better), the acts which made the most impact during the 90s.
Sheryl Crow, Sarah McLachlan, Natalie Merchant, Suzanne Vega, Ani DiFranco, all extremely influential for the female singer/songwriter scene.
It would be helpful to clarify “influence.” Green Day may have inspired kids to pick up guitars, but I don’t think there’s much of a case for them having been sonic innovators the way My Bloody Valentine were. (Are MBV really mainstream now?)
Radiohead, without question. To the guy who said, “Everything sounds like Coldplay now,” Coldplay themselves have made a career of aping Radiohead’s “The Bends.”
Green Day and Weezer have a huge influence on modern radio rock. They aren’t pioneers in a music production sense, but they popularized the simultaneously heart-on-sleeve/ ironic style of crunchy melodic alt rock that rule today’s rock charts.
A little but closer than whimsical speculation . . .
All of my closest friends are L.A. musicians. Pretty much every social gathering that we take part in, revolves around the current L.A. music scene.
Who the “kids today” will be influenced by may be a different story, but the young adults beginning their careers in music in Los Angeles today . . . here’s who they really respect and consider influences:
(Note: these are this influences from the last twenty years, these same musicians count older artists among their influences as well)
(Note 2: I am limiting this list to artists that are widely respected among the L.A. Musicians that I know, beyond the list that everybody agrees upon individuals all have their standout favorites as well)
Beck
Radiohead
Jon Brion
Aimee Mann*
Eels
OK Go
Wilco
Elliot Smith
Jill Sobule
Jeff Buckley
Ani DiFranco
Linda Perry
Beck
Beck
Beck
Beck
Beck
*Yes, Aimee Mann started her career in the 80’s but her solo career starting in the 90s was arguably a rebirth.
I guess it depends on what you mean by rock, but in terms of popular music that isn’t country music, you’re missing a lot of hip hop, soul and rap in that OP.
I guess some might object to me pointing out the importance of Public Enemy in a thread that said “rock,” but you can’t throw up walls quite that easily; the influence of rap and hip hop is being felt throughout the music industry.
The rock era ended in the 90s. Mainstream pop music shifted by 2002 to R&B and HipHop and rap. Just like in the mid 50s, mainstream pop shifted from “Tin Pan Alley.”
So some groups can be very influencial in rock but not main stream pop.
In terms of the charts
(Source: Billboard Magazine)
Of course chart success has little to do with influence. Bob Dylan influenced people as did Joni Mitchell but both had very limited chart success. But it gives you an idea of the scope of the OP’s question.
Porcupine Tree, along with many of the bands mentioned in the OP, started in the 80s. I’m struggling to think of any rock bands that formed after 1990 that are truly influential. Metal bands would be a different story, but that’s not what was asked for.
If you’re going to mention Lollapalooza, then you have to list Perry Farrell (and Jane’s Addiction) as being among the more “influential” acts in this time period. Without Lollapalooza, some of the acts listed would not have reached the audiences they have for the most part.
And many of the “influential” acts of the 90s were formed in the 80s or earlier, so they can’t be dismissed from inclusion on the list. The influence does not generally happen overnight, and takes years and longevity to earn.
The two artists I would consider most influential are Nirvana, which really kicked off alternative rock, and Tori Amos, who kicked off the female singer/songwriter genre. I realize that neither of them invented the genres they were in but they were the ones who got them noticed by a wide audience.
White Stripes - redefined the garage-rock and basic blues roots of rock band. Jack even ended up in a rockumentary “It Might Get Loud” with Page and Edge. Any band he puts together is called “supergroup”. But the simplicity and production quality of the first 3 WS albums is great achievement. Any kid interested in playing guitar knows who Jack White is.
Arctic Monkeys – an icon of indie rock in UK and around the world. Their first album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - Wikipedia is considered one of the best albums of the decade. One of the notable things is that this band grew out of a small fan base via Internet (MySpace) and even today, people, upon hearing first album go “how come I haven’t heard of this”. It is a gem and anyone starting out indie band knows about AM.