The Golden Age of Rock and Roll
Whiny baby boomers say all the good times are gone. But there’s never been a better time to find new music—and lots of it, too
There’s Never Been A Better Time to Find New Music— And Lots of It, Too
IT’S A FRIDAY NIGHT IN BUSHWICK, Brooklyn, and I’m here to see a show by the El Paso-based rock band Le Butcherettes. I’m not sure if I belong—I have no hair left to speak of, none of it dyed a bright color. And I’m pretty sure I’m the only guy here who fondly remembers catching Jethro Tull in Boston in 1970 on one of the band’s first U.S. tours.
But I do know that seeing a young band on the way up is just as cool now as seeing Tull, Roxy Music, Patti Smith or Elvis Costello before they were wellknown. Because if you’re a rock music fan—or any kind of music fan for that matter—there’s nothing like the thrill of discovery.
And rediscovery, it turns out, is a pretty good thing too. A few years back, thanks to an “I wonder what ever happened to them?” web search, I took a chance on a ticket to see the Zombies in a New York club. Though well into their 60s by then, they were better than ever.
To be sure, it has always kind of been this way. New music arrived while old music got rediscovered. But now, thanks in large part to technology, fans of both old and new are living in a golden age.
There are a few reasons why.
One: There’s a lot of inventory on the tour circuit. Bands from the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s are still active and still getting it done. The Cure, Fleetwood Mac, The Who, Deep Purple and the Rolling Stones (with Mick fresh from heart surgery) are all on tour now or have plans.
But technology is the real reason there’s so much terrific music easily available now. When I discovered Roxy Music in 1972 it was through a weekly alternative newspaper. Then I had to go out and buy an LP to actually hear them. Today I would check them out first on YouTube or Spotify and then download or stream their music. According to Nielsen, about 900 billion songs were streamed in the U.S. in 2018.
Finding music online has obliterated not only distance—you don’t have to leave your sofa to buy or hear any kind of music—it has also obliterated time. (And the record business, too, but that’s another story). There’s no yesterday anymore. It’s all just now. Old music doesn’t go out of print and get forgotten. There are still hits and pop charts of course, but you can find anything you want online going back to the earliest recordings ever made. Young people can dig old music, old people can dig new music.
Now I can sit in my car with my kid and discover all sorts of great acts via Spotify. Death Grips, Aphex Twin, Australia’s King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard and jazzer Kamasi Washington were all introduced to me by my now 19-year-old daughter Linda. (Me: “Who’s that?” Her: “You actually want to know?” Me: “Actually, yes…”)
The old/new thing played out for me recently when I saw two acts: Le Butcherettes, who I discovered on YouTube; and Ian Hunter, an old favorite who I rediscovered kind of the same way.
I love le Butcherettes.
They check all the boxes. A charismatic lead singer? Yes. Great songwriting? Yes again. Powerhouse rhythm section? Yup. Multi-instrumentalists? Got that. Do they look and play great? Sure thing.
They’ve also got the attention of a lot of namebrands in the business. Their terrific new album, “bi/MENTAL,” was produced by Jerry Harrison, formerly of Talking Heads and the Modern Lovers. Jello Biafra—yes, the guy from the Dead Kennedys—performs on the record.
Lead singer-songwriter Teresa Suárez Cosío (AKA Teri Gender Bender) has collaborated with Iggy Pop and John Frusciante, formerly of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The band has opened for, among others, Jack White of White Stripes fame and will open for hard rockers Incubus and other bands, this year on a long tour of the U.S. and Europe. They’re not big yet, but based on their great new album it feels to me like they will be.
You can’t really appreciate the band, though, until you see them live. Teri is a dynamic performer and her bandmates—drummer Alejandra Robles Luna; Marfred Rodríguez-López, bass; and Riko Rodríguez-López on practically everything else—are skilled and tight.