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For the past few years, the music media has been awash with prophecies of the death of rock music. The slow descent of rock and roll from the mainstream airwaves has led to proclaiming it a dying form of art. Even genre legends like Flea from theRed Hot Chilli Peppers and Courtney Love from Hole contend it is dying or already dead.

I have an issue with those statements. It feels arrogant to dismiss the current group of rock bands as not up to the challenge of keeping the flame alive. I’m more inclined to side with Green Day front-man Billie Joe Armstrong, who recently contended statements about the death of are like “'saying air is dead', or 'wateris dead'”.

Whilst it is true rock music is not “in” right now, as pop and indie music dominate the mainstream landscape, genres do not die. Look at jazz music. Sure, it’s nowhere near as popular as it was in the Roaring 20’s, but it is still alive today. The same is true of rock. While it’s not as omniscient or frequently available as it was in the mid 90’s or even early 2000’s, it is not dying. You just have to look a little harder to find it.

For me, this is why ‘the scene’ is so interesting. It’s a vibrant ecosystem of rock and roll bands who (at least on the surface) aren’t in it for the money and enjoy passionate support from their fans. The scene possesses such a wide variety of genres who at the heart of it are all rock bands. Sure, there may be metal, post-hardcore, electronicore, pop-punk and djentcore bands within this scene and they may be either heavier or more pop-orientated than most rock bands we know of, but at the end of the day, they all have some sonic-link to rock and roll.

And they are surviving, despite this supposedly barren landscape for rock bands. They may be off to the side and outside of the public’s gaze, but they are surviving. Vans’ Warped Tour, the travelling festival synonymous with the scene, continues to thrive, having just completed a 41-date run around theUnited States. It may not boast the popularity it once did, but in some way, shape or form, the scene proves the heartbeat of rock and roll is still very much beating.