Courtney Devores
The Charlotte Observer
Published: Friday, April 11, 2003Popular music is primed for change. Rap-metal stands on its last leg - that leg being Linkin Park's second album, "Meteora," which debuted at No. 1 last week. Teen pop fizzles as graduates Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera move toward a more adult hip-hop and R&B sound.
Looking at Billboard's top-selling albums and the playlists of MTV and 106.5 The End, it's easy to recognize the next pop trend - guitar bands are stepping back into the spotlight.
Who better to reintroduce the power of guitars to crowds around the country this summer than veteran Seattle rockers Pearl Jam, who play Verizon Amphitheater Wednesday with opening act Sleater-Kinney.
"Rock bands never really go out of style as long as they keep writing good songs, and Pearl Jam seem to be good at that," said Phil Strickland, a sound man at Tremont Music Hall.
Guitar rock has never completely disappeared, not since Elvis Presley strapped on an acoustic guitar in 1956 and took "Heartbreak Hotel" to the top of the charts. Even during down times - such as the recent surges of teen-pop, hip-hop and nu-metal - artists including the Foo Fighters and Lenny Kravitz have maintained their popularity.
Pearl Jam, who along with fellow Seattle band Nirvana was instrumental in the rise of the gritty guitar-rock sound that pop critics dubbed "grunge" in the early '90s, may not sell 11 million albums as they did with their debut "Ten," but they can be counted on to clear the platinum mark.
"Pearl Jam were never really bound by grunge," said Strickland. "They were just a good rock band who happened to be from Seattle."
Take a look at this week's Billboard Hot 200 chart and you'll find a growing number of rock amidst the bevy of hip-hop albums. The female-fronted metal band Evanescence is in the top 10, while Audioslave, a collaboration between former Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell and ex-Rage Against the Machine members, sits at No. 21. A.F.I, a band that was virtually unknown until 2003, saw its 6th album, "Sing the Sorrow," peak at No. 18 by its second week on the chart.
Some of the popularity of guitar-based bands can be traced to last year's garage-rock boom. Bands such as the Strokes and the Vines benefited from MTV's support. The most popular of the lot, the White Stripes, released "Elephant" last week. The follow-up to the group's 2002 breakthrough "White Blood Cells," "Elephant" got a rare five stars in Rolling Stone.
Tony McCullough, an area musician who works at Manifest Discs and Tapes, said the Stripes have been one of the week's big sellers at the Charlotte store.
"I've seen a resurgence in people buying albums by musicians who are playing instruments and writing their own songs," said McCullough.
Guitar-based pop-punk acts have captured more attention from teen audiences, too. Justin Timberlake remains on TRL's top 10, but he's joined by Sum 41 (No. 2), Good Charlotte (No. 3), and Simple Plan (No. 9).
"The teen market seems to be moving toward guitar-based bands," said Strickland. "Last week's Sum 41 show sold out, as did Good Charlotte."
Each generation can claim the emergence of a different style or genre of guitar-based rock. And the cycle continues, with new groups riding the next trend of loud music fueled by screaming guitars and a meaty distortion pedal.