Rock

Rock 'n Roll or Rock is a genre of music generally considered heavier or more alternative than pop. There tends to be emphasis on electric guitars and drums, the subject matter is typically darker than in pop, and the vocals tend to be louder.

Some classic rock bands include: (chronologically)

- Elvis Presley. Widely considered the founding father of the genre.

- The Beatles. They made rock and roll popular; though some argue that their style could be classed as pop.

- The Rolling Stones

- Queen

- Nirvana

There are many subgenres of rock, including metal (i.e. Metallica, System of a Down), indie rock (i.e. REM, Mother Mother), progressive rock (i.e. Moody Blues, Muse), garage rock (i.e. The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys), and pop-rock (i.e. Franz Ferdinand, Maneskin). Some information about each genre:

Metal: NB sometimes called Heavy Metal, Heavy Rock or Hard Rock. The heaviest form of rock, metal usually has - how do you say this without offending metal fans?? - screaming vocals and discordant guitars with solos that are very technically advanced. It is characterised by its high volume and fast speed. The genre rose during the early 70s with Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple.

Indie Rock: NB sometimes called Alternative Rock or Alt-Rock. Indie rock tends to be slower and more acoustic-based than other forms of rock. The genre has been around for a while but it only really rose to prominence in the early 1990s, with grunge, a movement headed by Nirvana.

Progressive Rock: NB sometimes called Experimental Rock or Prog Rock. It uses rock instruments but doesn't confine itself to a rock sound. As a result there tends to be heavy influences of electronica or jazz or pop or rap or classical or whatever genre the band chooses to move towards in the music. Songs are often long, with multiple sections, such as in King Crimson's 21st Century Schizoid Man, and they usually have a Marmite effect (love it or hate it) as they are very unusual. Prog rock developed in the 1970s with bands like Emerson, Lake and Palmer and Genesis.

Garage Rock: Garage rock aims for a more natural, local-group-in-the-pub type of sound. There are usually fairly simple lyrics and instrumentation, with catchy melodies and an earthy feel. Think of it as the antithesis of progressive rock. (Sort of - as with everything there's an overlap.)

Pop-Rock: As the name suggests pop-rock contains elements of rock and pop. It's sort of a genre for things that don't fit as it could equally be in the Pop article. Some examples of bands are the Goo Goo Dolls and Bastille.

(Used everynoise.com - a lot!!)