| Bands come and go, but the classification and | | | | than producing singles. Kraftwerk was one of the |
| re-classification of their music is an exercise that | | | | pioneers of the Electronic movement. |
| never grows old. There are no hard and fast rules, | | | | Grunge: A sound that grew out of, and became |
| no universally accepted methodology or definitions to | | | | synonymous with, the Seattle music scene in the late |
| fall back on. Music geeks are faced with bands that | | | | 1980's and early 1990's; a heavy punk meets metal |
| change their sound and/or appearance from release | | | | kind of affair. The typical grunge uniform consisted of |
| to release and a classification system that is | | | | jeans and a short-sleeve T-shirt worn over top of a |
| completely open to interpretation. | | | | long-sleeved T-Shirt, sometimes with an ubiquitous |
| As a starting point, how about nailing down some | | | | goatee beard on the chin of male practitioners. Bonus |
| basic definitions and examples of musical genres? It | | | | points were awarded for wearing a red and black |
| sounds straightforward, but even that can be a | | | | check lumber jacket. Examples: Pearl Jam, Nirvana, |
| challenge. There is no set number of agreed upon | | | | Alice in Chains. |
| genres, names for the genres (or what is even | | | | Psychedelic Rock: For those who liked Rock and |
| considered to be a standalone genre) and the | | | | Heavy Metal, but found them too restrictive, |
| definitions themselves are frequently the subject of | | | | Psychedelic Rock added all sorts of guitar fuzz, |
| argument. But with the help of Canadian uber-music | | | | distortion and occasionally disjointed lyrics to create a |
| geek Allan Cross, along with far too many hours of | | | | distinct sound. Classic examples include The Jesus and |
| trolling through music industry publications like Rolling | | | | Mary Chain and The Brian Jonestown Massacre, with |
| Stone and Spin, here's an attempt at some basic | | | | its roots going back to the 1960's with the |
| definitions. By the way, we're sticking to the general | | | | Strawberry Alarm Clock and even The Beatles. |
| rock world for this exercise, so for the purposes of | | | | Rockabilly: When rock got just too damned |
| this article only, country and/or western, jazz, adult | | | | complicated, some bands apparently had a hankering |
| contemporary and all sorts of other music do not | | | | for the old-school, 50's style roots rock pioneered by |
| exist; they're off limits. | | | | Elvis Presley and others. They donned rolled up jeans, |
| Emo: A style of music that's part punk in its sound, | | | | white T-shirts and black leather motorcycle jackets, |
| but leaning heavily toward the emotional, | | | | slicked back their hair, and pumped out the rockabilly. |
| melodramatic and angst-ridden end of that spectrum. | | | | You won't find a better example than The Stray |
| In other words, melodic and moody punks. Jimmy Eat | | | | Cats. |
| World is often lumped under the Emo banner and | | | | Ska: A combination of Jamaican music and rock that |
| many people would consider Panic! At The Disco and | | | | reached the height of its popularity in the late 70's |
| AFI to be current occupants as well. The Smiths are | | | | and early 80's with British bands like Madness, The |
| another possible Emo contender. | | | | English Beat and The Specials. Ska was danceable, |
| Goth: An offshoot of the punk movement, Goth | | | | and the bands tended to be larger than typical rock |
| appealed to the gloomier music fan. Proper attire was | | | | outfits, employing the standard guitar/drum/bass |
| built almost entirely around black and frequently | | | | combo but usually augmenting this with horns, an |
| extended to black-dyed hair, black lipstick, heavy use | | | | organ and keyboards, and sometimes a designated |
| of mascara and black nail polish. In general, the look | | | | stage dancer. |
| was spooky; the music could range from moody to | | | | Next up in the classification of music is a series of |
| sinister. Classic examples: Siouxsie and the Banshees, | | | | more general terms used to encompass a wider |
| Bauhaus and Sisters of Mercy. | | | | swath of music, frequently for the purpose of |
| New Romantics: Appearing as part of the post-punk | | | | describing a radio station's music format. |
| music scene in the early 1980's, New Romantics | | | | Alt-Rock: Starting off simply enough as an alternative |
| favoured frilly shirts, skinny ties and make-up. Classic | | | | to the rock music being played on mainstream radio, |
| bands in this vein included Duran Duran, Visage, Japan | | | | this used to be a somewhat rare classification, |
| and Roxy Music. | | | | dominated by bands that could be heard on |
| Synthpop: A sound that became popular in the late | | | | alternative or college radio stations: R.E.M., for |
| 1970's and early 80's, Synthpop was, as the name | | | | example. But by the 1990's, "rock" as it had been |
| suggests, pop-oriented music that relied heavily on | | | | known was being left behind on radio and what was |
| the use of keyboards, drum machines and | | | | known as Alt-Rock actually began to dominate the |
| synthesisers, and tended to avoid guitars or at least | | | | play lists. |
| relegate them to supporting instruments. Classic | | | | Rock: Once upon a time this used to be |
| examples: Depeche Mode, Human League and OMD. | | | | straightforward. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and |
| Heavy Metal: Gaining prominence in the late 60's and | | | | other bands like them, were considered Rock bands. |
| 70's, Heavy Metal was a "heavy" blend of rock and | | | | As time passed though, these bands tended to be |
| blues with an emphasis on guitar and drums. Bands | | | | lumped under Classic Rock. Today there are Rock |
| tended to adopt a look that included long hair, | | | | bands - Foo Fighters being a good example - but |
| T-shirts, tight jeans and leather - you'd never mistake | | | | they are frequently referred to as Alt-Rock. In other |
| them for New Romantics. Classic Heavy Metal bands | | | | words, Alt-Rock has, for a large part, usurped Rock |
| include Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, and Metallica. | | | | as "rock" these days. Confused? You and me both... |
| Spinal Tap is the definitive Heavy Metal spoof band. | | | | Indie: Bands that are not directly affiliated with any |
| Heavy Metal spawned all sorts of offspring genres, | | | | of the major record labels, typically giving the artists |
| of which some were, or are, popular enough to | | | | greater artistic control over their music, at the cost |
| deserve their own definitions. | | | | of personally shouldering a greater percentage of the |
| Hair Metal: Heavy Metal with more of a Pop or Rock | | | | production, promotion and distribution costs of their |
| flair; nothing too deep but trying to appeal to a wider | | | | music. College radio stations are big proponents of |
| audience. Hair Metal is all about appearance; a | | | | Indie bands, but some, like Arcade Fire, have made |
| variation on the 70's glam look featuring lipstick, tight | | | | the jump to mainstream. |
| leather, frills, bandanas, and long, spiked, teased, or | | | | Pop: The least frightening (at least on the surface), |
| tinted hair. The look tended to undermine their | | | | most melodic and radio-friendly of them all, Pop |
| credibility among their more serious metal peers. | | | | artists aim to sell vast quantities of records and do |
| Poison, Ratt and Cinderella all went for this niche. Hair | | | | so by appealing to the widest audience possible. Pop |
| Metal bands tend to suffer on the reunion circuit | | | | music itself changes over time, but pop stations are |
| because, although they can maybe still play, all too | | | | where you'll hear the likes of Michael Jackson, Britney |
| often their hair has failed over the years and without | | | | Spears, Spice Girls and Girls Aloud. |
| that... | | | | Classic Rock: Now that Alt-Rock is known as Rock, |
| Nu Metal: An attempt to update Heavy Metal for the | | | | and former Rock bands are sounding a little quaint to |
| 90's. Elements of other genres were blended in, | | | | many listeners, where does that leave the 60's, 70's |
| sometimes with Rap, sometimes Grunge, perhaps a | | | | and 80's Rock bands? They are now conveniently |
| bit of Industrial or even Goth. It still relies heavily on | | | | packed under the term Classic Rock, a massive |
| guitar and drums, but bands veered from the classic | | | | category that can include anything from The Beatles |
| Heavy Metal look and fancied themselves up a bit. | | | | to Van Halen. |
| Classic examples: Korn, Orgy and Linkin Park. | | | | New Wave: A marketing-derived term originally used |
| Speed Metal: Think Heavy Metal, but faster. Because | | | | by record companies to describe many of the |
| Heavy Metal became too ponderous and lumbering | | | | Synthpop and New Romantic post-punk British bands |
| for some, Speed Metal developed. The Heavy Metal | | | | of the late 1970's and early 1980's. This is a very |
| guitar solo became more dominant within the songs | | | | broad label and was eventually used to describe |
| and the tempos were greatly increased. Early | | | | anything from Depeche Mode to A-Ha. |
| practitioners of the style included Judas Priest and | | | | So it turns out that genres and classifications are |
| more contemporary bands such as Primal Fear have | | | | constantly evolving, bands are moving between |
| kept the tradition alive. | | | | genres and even the definitions themselves are |
| Progressive Rock (also known as Prog-Rock): This is | | | | subject to interpretation. |
| what happens when a Rock band decides to get | | | | An artist like Neil Young is a good example of the |
| intellectual and explore concepts and musical | | | | way in which musicians vex the music geeks. At the |
| virtuosity rather than aiming for the classic three | | | | beginning of his career, Young played with Buffalo |
| minute pop single. Synthesizers and string instruments | | | | Springfield and Crosby, Still, Nash and Young. He |
| were often employed to fill out the sound and make | | | | would have been typically classified as a Rock |
| things more elaborate. Drummers abandoned their | | | | musician, with a leaning toward Folk. |
| drum kits for complex percussion stands. Rush, Pink | | | | Then Neil went through a phase where he moved |
| Floyd and Genesis (at least early Genesis) are among | | | | toward a Country sound, again with a touch of Folk. |
| the better known Prog-Rock bands. | | | | Harvest is pretty representative of this period, but |
| Industrial: Just as the name suggests, Industrial music | | | | then came Rock again with songs such as Like A |
| sounds big, noisy and mechanical. Not known for | | | | Hurricane. From out of nowhere, he veered into |
| being particularly radio-friendly because of the unusual | | | | Electronic with an album that was so unexpected, he |
| sounds, aggressiveness and frequent use of | | | | ended up in a fight with his record label over whether |
| uncomfortable or socially-risqué subject | | | | the release satisfied his contractual obligation - they |
| material. Classic examples include: Nine Inch Nails, | | | | basically argued that Re-Ac-Tor was so out there, it |
| Skinny Puppy and Ministry. | | | | "shouldn't count as a Neil Young record." |
| Hip Hop: Employing elements of a strong beat, | | | | Young went through a bit of a Rockabilly phase, then |
| sampling, rap and often the use of a turntable, Hip | | | | eventually sashayed into Grunge, with his Rockin' In |
| Hop rose from the inner cities to commercial success | | | | The Free World single being adopted by Grunge |
| through the 80's. Run DMC, Beastie Boys and | | | | converts as an anthem. From there, Harvest Moon |
| OutKast are just a few examples of the vast | | | | swayed dangerously close to Adult Contemporary, |
| catalogue of successful Hip Hop groups. | | | | and now he appears to be back to his Folk roots. |
| Punk: A style of music that became prominent in the | | | | So how on earth do you classify Neil Young? Well, |
| mid to late 70's, punk was built around the premise | | | | you could choose to break his career into phases and |
| that anyone could and should make music, regardless | | | | classify each of those individually, or do the safe |
| of their musical skill. Punk became a sounding board | | | | thing and file him under Classic Rock. There's a good |
| for a generation of angry youth whose songs were | | | | weekend worth of arguing over this one, and don't |
| about social statements with musical accompaniment | | | | think it won't happen. |
| tending toward the loud, fast and simple. Classic | | | | And of course, you can combine any of the |
| examples: Sex Pistols, The Clash, Stiff Little Fingers | | | | categories and classifications in an attempt to define |
| and The Ramones. | | | | a band. The Police, for example, defy a |
| Electronic: A distinctive sound that developed in the | | | | straightforward definition and so become a |
| mid to late 70's as synthesiser technology became | | | | compound categorization: reggae-influenced, new |
| more widely available. Unlike Synthpop, Electronic | | | | wave, post-punk, power-pop trio. |
| artists seemed more interested in exploring | | | | Simple, isn't it? |
| soundscapes and stringing together interesting noises | | | | |