The Strokes. The Killers. Wilco. Arcade Fire. The Shins. Counting Crows. Arctic Monkeys. Franz Ferdinand. Modest Mouse. Death Cab For Cutie. Radiohead. The White Stripes. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The Decemberists.
These are the bands and artists that came onto the scene in the late 90s/early 2000s when I was in college. For a brief moment, what I liked and what was cool to everyone intersected. By 2010, it was already over. Post-rock, they called it. Electronic music had announced itself uninvited, and somehow emo pop has made its way back around on the conveyor belt. For years I’ve bemoaned the fact that Music Today Is Not What It Used To Be. “When I was young,” music was actually good. Now it’s all drum machines, auto-tuners, and other heartless noises. People keep talking about Dua Lipa. Who? I’m just not into it.
I want a melody with meaning. I want to rock out and feel something. Guitar, drums, bass, vocals. When did these fundamentals become passé?
But, aha. The isolation of the past two years was very good to my favorite musicians, and hallelujah I say to that. The Killers put out two incredible albums. At their best on Imploding The Mirage and cutting new teeth on Pressure Machine. The Strokes released one of their best albums since Is This It? Seriously. Arcade Fire’s new album, WE, is pretty much a revelation. Jack White is still the weird crowned prince of 21st century rock and roll. With Fear Of The Dawn, he has served his people. Even LCD Soundsystem is somehow back together.
They are all touring now. All of them. It’s amazing. If you, unlike me, can go places, go see live music! Two years locked down has showed them all how good they had it on the road, grueling though it may have been. The lockdown forced them back into their garages where the rock and roll renaissance of the 2000s was born, and we are the better for it. Granted, most of those garages can now house collections of custom sports cars as opposed to their moms’ hand-me-down Geos.
I thought they were all gone. I thought The Strokes had broken up. The Killers were down to two. The Shins is a solo project now. Colin Meloy writes more books than songs these days. I’d given up on good music, but now I’m paying attention. They may not be on the radio, but they are still here, and they’re making incredible music. In fact, they’re making their best music yet.
I want to write a rock and roll romance novel, and so I opened a fake IG account for the sole purpose of following musicians, music journalists, and Las Vegas (where the book will take place) tourism accounts. It’s been a great research tool, and a helluva lot of fun to discover that, to paraphrase another great band, Dawes, all my favorite bands have stayed together.
There is a light from these dark times.
Unfortunately concerts are getting canceled every day thanks to this latest COVID surge. Everyday I go on my fake Insta, there’s a new announcement. The Strokes got COVID. Haim got COVID. Bleachers got COVID. I’m seeing The Killers in August and I am very nervous about that. But I don’t think entire tours will shut down. We’re not going back into the garage. There’s too much good music to share.
Stay safe everyone. And long live rock and roll.
The Strokes
Arctic Monkeys
The Killers
Jack White
That rock and roll, eh?