There is a ton of pop music out there right now still being made with a lead guitar.
Case in point a recent song by Paramore. I’m linking the live version so you can see they have both a lead and bass guitar going.
Really like Ghost, who I’ve seen 3 times, and Nightwish.
The question should be why does today’s ‘pop’ music suck compared to the pop music of previous generations?
There are countless hours of great music being produced now that are not meant for the pop charts. In fact, more than ever due to the changes in the songwriting and technology markets.
My opinion: pop music of today is inferior in terms of tunesmithing than the great pop composers from Cole Porter to the Beatles.
I agree that a lot of what passes for pop is little more than focus grouped pablum. But hey, it’s got a good beat and you can dance to it. 
Thread needs more REAL music.
Nightwish has slowly grown into my favorite group of all time. I first became aware of them somewhere around 2004-2005ish. I saw the Ben Affleck movie Daredevil in the theaters and utterly loved the Evanescence songs and their album became the main thing I listened to for a long while. Eventually I started looking for similar music on the internet which led to me to Within Temptation (whom I also love) and Nightwish. I didn’t like Nightwish then though because I cannot stand Tarja’s voice or overly operatic singing. But when they fired Tarja and hired Annette I really started liking them. My three favorite NW songs are Poet and the Pendulum, Song of Myself, and Last Ride of the Day (all Annette songs). I was sort of distressed when they then fired Annette but Floor has blown me away. She is better than Annette in all facets and she can do the old Tarja stuff without making it overly operatic like Tarja did which makes the songs great.
I’ve seen NW in concert now twice, both with Floor, and they were amazing live.
Its so odd seeing them here though in the US because here they play clubs that hold maybe 1000 people whereas in Europe they play Wembley.
She has some chops, sure, but if she was male, she’d be playing to her furniture. That’s how things are, though. A male guitar player posts a video of amazing playing and it gets ten views. A hot girl with a nice rack posts a video of questionable skills and it gets a million views. That’s basically Nita. She’s technically proficient but there are a million better players.
Thats how its always been. I’m sure Nancy Wilson is probably a good guitar player (I don’t play so I’m not qualified to truly judge) but being the skinny hot blonde member of Heart, as compared to Ann Wilson who is fat, got her a lot of attention in videos and concert while they tried to hide Ann behind baggy clothes. If Nancy had been a guy I’m not sure Heart ever makes their 80’s comeback given how in the video age you had to be hot and attractive in your videos. Seriously, if you got back and watch a Heart video from the 80’s you’ll notice massive amounts of shots of Nancy and her cleavage and distant shots of Ann who will be fully clothed and positioned in ways to not show her weight.
Yep. Lita Ford is another one. She always had a male guitar player for the flashy stuff. It why beer is colder and better at Hooters, no?
That’s why so many hard rock bands don’t tour the US as much as they used to. That style of music isn’t nearly as popular here as it is in Europe.
Yep. Finally going to get to see Within Temptation in March during their first US tour in 5 years. Playing a club that again holds maybe 1000 people whereas they sell out huge concert halls in Europe. Though its good in some ways. First time I saw Nightwish I was sitting on a ledge on the upper level of the club but was still only about 40 yards from the stage so I had a great view. I’d never get that close in Europe.
My neighbor was the long time drummer of Kamelot. He was always touring Europe. Here, he played in a rock bar band to help pay the bills. A majority of Americans seemingly like simple music.
I’m 29 and I greatly prefer older music. Specifically Classic Rock, 70s prog rock, 80s thrash metal, early grunge, and golden and silver age hip-hop/gangsta rap.
With that said, musical tastes are subjective. My girlfriend mostly listens to new age mumble rap and country music and I hate it but that is her taste. By comparison she finds my love of bands like Testament and In Flames to be stupid.
It just is what it is.
There are some new bands that I’m getting into. For example give The Last in Line a try. It’s made up of the former members of Dio’s live band from the mid 2000s. It sounds like classic 80s Dio, Black Sabbath, and Ozzy solo career.
Americans like rap and country music.
Rock music has declined significantly since the hip hop revolution, despite several genres adopting hip hop elements. Namely post-grunge and NWOAHM bands.
There are still a ton of good rock bands but American musical tastes have changed since the 1990s. One could argue that Grunge, outlaw Metal, and blues rock revivalists were the last big hurrahs of the rock world here.
Hip-Hop and the pop music it inspired have destroyed everything else on the charts with the exception of some country music.
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Ghost is my favorite band at the moment. I love everything they do.
I’ve listened to Nightwish for years but I’ve never heard of Ghost. I’ve got an hour and half ride tonight back home so I’m going to give it a listen.
29 and you like Testament? You, sir are my friend from here on out. Alex Skolnick was the best guitarist of that '80s thrash era, in my opinion.
That’s the music that sucks.
They kind of have an 80’s Scorpions feel to me. One of their newer songs, its off a concept album about plague in the middle ages or something like that in case you wonder about the odd lyrics:
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I haven’t even read the rest of the thread because I know you are absolutely correct. It’s not just lead guitar though, it’s guitar heroes that are missing.
There are still some out there of course but they don’t get the big air play that they used to.
Who was the last guitar hero?
Stevie Ray maybe?
Not that they viewed themselves as such, but they certainly got put on a pedestal. And just as certain is that they had that indescribable something that music producers so brilliantly called “it”.
There are unbelievable guitar players out there playing electric blues rock, but they are only making it on the blues circuit. A good living to be sure for the lucky few, but not the wide appreciation they probably deserve.
RACKIN FRACKIN REFRESH!! GAH!!
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