Frankly I don't think Guitar rock is necessarily indie music myself but it's what the Genre is banded around as these days.
Anyway tonight's newsbeat was saying how guitar bands sales suffered in 2009 and only two albums sold well from that genre: Kasabian and Snore Patrol. :o (used as a yawn) They then proclaimed guitar music dead.

As this is my favourite genre of current music, this makes me sad. :(

I'm facebook buddies with a few of the peeps in these bands, I know how frustrated they are that noone is buying their music.

Are you like me and think that buying music has died, apart from the 13 year old basshunter fan and the Asda/Tesco shopper and after the Pixie Lott/Little Boots/La roux lovers go we are just going to be left with Susan Boyle?

Thoughts?

Probably not dead, just downloaded.
I buy today more music than I ever have, I download it & will buy the odd cd/piece of vinyl whenever I spot them.
Wherever you look there is still great music, but with the production of music at the easiest that it's ever been, you really have to cut the wheat from the chaff.

Hurrah!

I love rock/indie/guitar music - whatever (never been big on genres) but have felt that since it became 'popular' around the same time the worl and his wife wanted to come and trash 'my' festivals, thjere has been so much released, and much of it dross but championed as the next best thing, that I haven't actually found that many new bands that I would want to follow, its just too much hard work to sort the vast quantities of bands that are out there.

There was a time when a festival line up would read of mainstage that I knew tracks from almost all of and the names of allw ere well known to me, with the smaller stages with bands I knew, had heard of and some new to me ripe for discovering.

These days I could spend most of the year on myspace trying to work out which of the bands I would like to be going to see.

Here's hoping that the 'popular' crowd will swing off and follow rnb or some such again and leave the festivals to the old school and the new guitar fans who always went and know how to behave.

I also agree that buying physical music formats is much reduced, but with the likes of spotify and myspace and music TV and such like, you don't even need to buy music to listena nd enjoy your favourite bands these days.

I buiy little music now because I simply don't have the time to sort the dross to work out what's worth buying most of the time, let alone listening to it all to decide if I made the right decision.

I must confess to not even buying the music of bands I have liked for ages of late - I think I have become disenchanted with the whole thing. I hope a change in popular focus might reinvigorate me - when I do have to make mroe fo an effort to hear 'my music'.

On a technical note surely indie music is any produced by an independent label - never felt it was a good genre description really!

First of all who cares what Radio 1 says.
They are responsible for the state of awful music choice in the UK .
People should buy what ever they want not from a radio 1 play list .
We need more independant music chanels with a wider choice of
music for all ages . Its getting like the States here if ya not on a play
list that Someone at the BBC choses you don't get in the charts .

Its about time people switched on their brains and not be so easily
influenced .
I think we should get rid of the licence fee and stop the strangle hold
the BBC has and give us more choice . I'm not a child I don't need telling
what to buy and what not whats in and whats out .

Bill Drummond would agree no doubt:

"All recorded music has run its course.

It has all been consumed, traded, downloaded, understood, heard before, sampled, learned, revived, judged and found wanting.

Dispense with all previous forms of music and start again."

I have to agree with Radio 1 here but wonder why it took them so long to notice. Guitar indie has died simply because unlike other genres, it hasn't developed. Current guitar indie bands such as Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian seem to be just recording the same album over and over again without ever developing their musical styles. Furthermore they seem oblivious to modern music technology and sound like they could have been recorded in 1980 rather than 2010.

We used to enjoy black and white TVs, Betamax videos, etc but progress has made them redundant. Perhaps we can now say the same about music made on primitive instruments like guitars?

The Manics album sold fairly well, but I too am saddened that the future seems to be Duffy, Mika and other fluffy pop.

Dead in the mainstream maybe, but I would imagine that there have been 5 or 6 really decent guitar rock/new wave albums each and every year since 1977 (I'm not gonna list them!) and will be for the forseeable future.

Radio 1's finger is on the pulse of teenyboppers anyhow.

First of all who cares what Radio 1 says.
They are responsible for the state of awful music choice in the UK .
People should buy what ever they want not from a radio 1 play list .
We need more independant music chanels with a wider choice of
music for all ages . Its getting like the States here if ya not on a play
list that Someone at the BBC choses you don't get in the charts .

Its about time people switched on their brains and not be so easily
influenced .
I think we should get rid of the licence fee and stop the strangle hold
the BBC has and give us more choice . I'm not a child I don't need telling
what to buy and what not whats in and whats out .

I would say the radio 1 playlist is more varied than just about any other stations. Shows in the evening such as Zane Lowe and Colin Murray certainly don't stick to a chart based agenda.

To be honest the Guitar bands I love have never been popular, actually I doubt if Radio 1 has ever heard of them, never mind played them. While I feel very sorry for the musicians not receiving the plaudits that they deserve, I don`t give a hoot whether I am the only person in the world that likes them. I check myspace.com and CD Baby and give the music a listen, if its good I buy the CD, so I don`t need Radio 1 or any other station. Judging by the number of bands in the US still self-releasing this material, it appears there are people still wanting to hear what I refer to as Power Pop.

I think I pretty much grew out if Indie in about 1998, but I have always loved 'guitar bands' and it is the kind of music I buy the most. I mostly buy music by American artists, though, as I tend to find them better quality, generally... especially when it comes to production and lyrically.

As for the genre being dead because of fewer record sales...? I'm not sure about that, I think that bands tend to make their money touring these days and I don't think that there is the same rush to buy albums and singles as there used to be with the advent of MP3s as the main format.

But the "kids" who pop music is supposed to be about, are influenced by what they see on the telly, internet and radio?

I dunno, I like Guitar music. I know it's not everyone's cup of tea. And at the end of the day, being a pop/rock/musical artiste star has to pay a wage.

It's a bit like Britpop I suppose, there were some underground bands, then it became mainstream and all and sundry loved it for eighteen months, then that market became saturated and Blur killed any kudos with Country House.... and the bands that were great from that continued quietly. (I do include Blur in that, I like Think Tank!)

There is very little of that ilk coming through that I feel inspired to listen to and those that I do, don't seem to be getting any breaks apart from on the live circuit.

The album chart prior to Christmas actually made me cry real tears .... yes I was in Asda... I don't think there was one unmanufactured band in the top thirty.

Becoming a rocker/mod/punk/casual/raver/clubber/emo/goth/whatever has always been part of teen life. What are we going to look back at in later years - the Cowellies?

Great comments so far btw.

The album chart prior to Christmas actually made me cry real tears .... yes I was in Asda... I don't think there was one unmanufactured band in the top thirty.

I wouldn't worry too much, Christmas is a time when people will buy complete crap for their mum/dad/granny/nephew, etc... I also think chart music is becoming worse and worse.

People no longer go out there and find bands that they really like, they are told what to like and the public are become more like sheep every year. This doesn't only work with the x-factor type albums, either. Look at Arctic Monkeys... They were almost as bad for being a manufactured band, not for putting the band together, but because they were a project for the music media to see if they could create a 'super group' without them having released a single or people having heard their music. They were never going to fail because people had been convinced to buy the album whether they wanted to or not. I bet a good deal of their albums are now gathering dust (I actually like them, and i'm not having a go at their music here).

Becoming a rocker/mod/punk/casual/raver/clubber/emo/goth/whatever has always been part of teen life. What are we going to look back at in later years - the Cowellies?


I think teens will always rebel and you still see plenty of rockers, emo, and goth kids out there and I suspect that will always be the same even if the trends change.

You have to remember its different today and everyday is different.
In the mid 90s you still bought albums (cds) but in 1995ish everything changed and the download revolution began (well it did for me even though I had a modem).
Most kids born then or in early 90's don't do albums, this is the general kids not the music obsessives.
Compilations people buy, yes but with iTunes etc why buy an album. Listen to clips and buy what you like the sound of.
I miss the days of vinyl sleeves and everything associated with it but times move on. Would you still prefer 3 TV channel's 2 of which started at 9am showing schools information programmes then close at 12pm until 4pm and then no TV after 12pm?(god I'm old :hihi:)
I really wish we didn't have Cowellitus with todays music but that's what we've allowed to happen.
Sad to think of a world with no original muso's, just think what an computer tuned Sex Pistols would be like or Beatles for that matter, very sad.

As for the kid's, I'd like to see my 2 trying to shock me hahaha.

Always remember SC gave us Robson&Gerome!!

I rest my case.

who follows "fashions" anyway?
you like a band, you dont? doesnt have to be the new best thing, thats just for the likes of the NME to jump on the bandwagon, to champion bands then smash them down

Members of various bands were saying that they won't release new material until any slump in sales is over. e.g. Tom Clarke from the Enemy was saying how their first album sold extremely well and how their second album hasn't, and with the exception of Kasabian and SP, that's been the same for everyone.

xdbx - don't get me started on that. I refused to buy CDs until 1993 as I wouldn't accept the demise of vinyl. :rolleyes:
I don't feel like I own music on download. It's temporary and I don't have any artwork or sleeve notes.. But that's a different thread.
And actually I do think there is too much choice on TV but not neccesarily the quality. It forced you to go and do something less boring instead when i was a nipper but you always had something to play at school the next day as everyone had watched the same programs as you... But that's a different thread too. ... and so children don't have the same opportunties for imaginative play.... But again that's another thread.

My main problem is there should be more music shows on TV
That are not controled or Backed by Simon Cowell , Brit School , or Radio 1and that caters for other than 13 year olds . There was Jools Holland but he's had some dire artists on recently . Real Talent not produced production line
talent . Choice and let artists develope .

Members of various bands were saying that they won't release new material until any slump in sales is over. e.g. Tom Clarke from the Enemy was saying how their first album sold extremely well and how their second album hasn't.

But who knows if that is because of a slump or because of the album?

Members of various bands were saying that they won't release new material until any slump in sales is over. e.g. Tom Clarke from the Enemy was saying how their first album sold extremely well and how their second album hasn't.

But who knows if that is because of a slump or because of the album?

True. Most likely a combo of all factors mentioned.
1) The Arctic Monkey scenesters well gone onto electro and then beyond plus they are all now in their twenties and starting to spend their monkey in Ikea.
2) Saturation of the market, good and bad.
3) Demise of payfor music.
4) Domination of the Cowell.
5) Spotify... Last FM.
6) Second albums tend to be a bit more bobbins.

Still makes me sad though.

No way is it dead....Just because its not bought by the masses doesn't mean its dying on its arse.

Some great albums were released last year...Doves, Wild Beasts, White Lies spring to mind.

There are loads of new upcoming bands on the horizon making brilliant music; granted they probably won't sell as many records as Susan Boyle and Cheryl Cole but not everyone wants to listen to that type of music (I certainly don't)

Radio 1 should just stick to playing R'n'B if they think Guitar Music is dead. I don't listen to Radio 1 anyway. 6 Music, XFM and NME radio all the way for me.

No way is it dead....Just because its not bought by the masses doesn't mean its dying on its arse.

Some great albums were released last year...Doves, Wild Beasts, White Lies spring to mind.

There are loads of new upcoming bands on the horizon making brilliant music; granted they probably won't sell as many records as Susan Boyle and Cheryl Cole but not everyone wants to listen to that type of music (I certainly don't)

Radio 1 should just stick to playing R'n'B if they think Guitar Music is dead. I don't listen to Radio 1 anyway. 6 Music, XFM and NME radio all the way for me.

I'm totally with you in choice but all the above albums are now in HMV on the 2 for a tenner sale. These people make a living from this and we need to support them rather than downloading it.

I'm totally with you in choice but all the above albums are now in HMV on the 2 for a tenner sale. These people make a living from this and we need to support them rather than downloading it.

I 'm doing my bit for CD album sales. I don't download because I like to listen to music on CD (sounds better in my opinion) despite owning an iPod.

I 'm doing my bit for CD album sales. I don't download because I like to listen to music on CD (sounds better in my opinion) despite owning an iPod.
:D
I had a year not buying albums in 2008 as I was going a bit mental and owning too many and not even getting to listen to them. This failed on Dec 28th when Woolies shut and I bought fifteen in a day! :o
I admit I've become more discerning myself and listen to something on Spotify first to see if it deserves a place in my collection rather than buying something on one hearing of a single so didn't buy that many for me last year. This year I'm trying to stay that way but still believe in buying and owning.

try
the white stripes
black stone cherry
the black keys
thescorpions- humanity hour 1

I have to agree with Radio 1 here but wonder why it took them so long to notice. Guitar indie has died simply because unlike other genres, it hasn't developed. Current guitar indie bands such as Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian seem to be just recording the same album over and over again without ever developing their musical styles. Furthermore they seem oblivious to modern music technology and sound like they could have been recorded in 1980 rather than 2010.

We used to enjoy black and white TVs, Betamax videos, etc but progress has made them redundant. Perhaps we can now say the same about music made on primitive instruments like guitars?

So because a couple of overhyped bands have stagnated and failed to progress their musical direction, that means Indie is dead.

Maybe the Indie scene has actually progressed leaving a lot of the mainstream behind in a cloud of Dust. Yeah, it's probably true that Indi CD sales have plummeted and probably because most indies are downloading music and have been for some time.

Try telling me that Muse have stagnated. Try saying they haven't progressed their sound and the indi-music scene. Radiohead spurred the way for the future with their Free to download album In Rainbows and giving fans an opportunity to send as much money to the band as you thought the album was worth.

Made them a fortune and CD sales will have been nothing like they were in the past.

Guitar music will always be popular.

And even if it's not, who cares, none of my favorite bands are particularly popular, but they're all easily popular enough to be able to keep making music, and that's all that matters.

tbh its not the price / downloading thats the problem, its about genre, dont all types of music get sold cheap / get downloaded?

its cos for the past few years indie has been BIG, really big, but its shrank again, it happens, there will still be indie bands plugging along just like the late 90s / early 00s