3 minute read
Music
18
By tom manning
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Music
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Music 19
life: “We’re starting off in Bristol! Bella and I are from Somerset so it’ll be a weird kind of homecoming show. It’s our first tour in quite a while although we’ve done the odd festival since lockdown so we’re feeling super excited. I don’t think we can believe it’s finally happening as it’s been rescheduled so many times! I think it will be quite euphoric playing songs from the second record live and some for the first time. We’re revisiting quite a few places so it will feel like meeting quite a few old friends.” At this point, Alice turned the camera around to show me that she was sitting in the band’s practise room preparing for their first pre-production set ready for their tour. Given how Alice had mentioned the band were working on their third album, I asked if we could expect any teasers in the track list at any of their sets to which I received a playful laugh. “Maybe…it’s like what we were saying earlier, it’s super important to explore and understand what the tracks are like live so finally going on tour feels like the perfect place to maybe test a few of them out and see what the reactions are.”
Sex, drugs, rock n roll: Rockstars through the ages
by Tabi fielding
Ever since Ian Dury released his single Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll in 1977, sex and drugs have been associated with the production of rock music. However, is the term still relevant to the rock industry in 2022?
The “King of Rock and Roll”, Elvis Presley entered the music scene just as tv’s were becoming more common across America and England. Elvis received an immense amount of publicity and interest, being cited as the first person to add overt sex to music, and be enjoyed by teens and adults alike. Although he still maintained a cleancut appearance like most 1950’s singers, his provocative presence perhaps was the real reason he was labelled a rockstar. Nicknamed Elvis-the-Pelvis, his captivating, sexual dance moves carried a new sense of revolt and rebellion against previous generations and musicians. Unconsciously, he was becoming a rockstar, enticing an emotional response from his audience.
The 1960’s ushered in liberalised attitudes about sex, bands such as the Rolling Stones prioritised femininity within their music to target a market of young girls. Then came the 1970’s and 80’s where the rocker style blurred genders with men wearing their hair long and embracing their sexuality. Towards the end of the 20th century, heavy drug use became more associated with the genre of music following the drug related deaths of many rock musicians. The result of this was both creative and destructive. Cocaine was frequently taken by rockstars such as David bowie, who’s addiction reached a new high when he released station to station. Though in a paranoid state whilst recording most of the album, critics argue that it sent Bowie’s work down exciting, new paths.
Rock music as a genre is still very much a thing in 2022, however the term “rockstar” may not be so relevant anymore. Over time the excitement around sex and drugs has faded as musicians have become increasingly at risk of public scrutiny because of social media. There may be benefits of drug taking however, as singer Harry styles announced that he took mushrooms at Shangri-La studios in Malibu, founded by The Band back in the 1970’s. Could the hallucinogenic effect of drugs lead musicians to create more inventive rock music sounds/styles? Or perhaps the industry has become bland and market focused, leaving real creativity and self-expression in the past?
