Torch Bearers: The Bands Keeping Rock’s Fire Burning
There’s a whisper among the record shelves, a flicker behind the static of a late-night stream.
“Rock is dead,” they say. But the real ones know — that flame never dies. It just hides in new skin, burns in strange tongues, and sometimes? It howls from the B-side.
This isn’t about chart-toppers or slicked-back industry darlings. This is about the misfits, the heirs to distortion and defiance — bands who didn’t just inherit the flame, they set the rulebook on fire. Welcome to the modern underground, where the torch bearers roam.
Genre-Blenders: Carving Chaos with Style
The 70s had Zeppelin. The 90s had Nirvana. Now? Rock’s shape is molten — shifting, mutating.
Royal Blood – “Where Are You Now?”
It never made the main stage. It didn’t need to. Like a midnight jam session in a dirty Brighton basement, it’s raw, fuzzy, and utterly alive.
IDLES – “The Lover”
Part poetry, part riot. This B-side-style burner isn’t polished — it’s primal. It sounds like it was spat onto tape in one take and left to ferment.
Fontaines D.C. – “I Don’t Belong”
If the Dublin rain could write music, it might sound like this. Detached but intense. A back-alley hymn for the disaffected.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – “Crying”
They don’t just break genres. They crush them into cosmic dust. This track — tucked far from the spotlight — sounds like a lo-fi séance.
The New-Age Storytellers: Old Soul, New Tongue
They’ve read the old songbooks but scribbled in the margins. These are rock’s new narrators — and their best stories? They're buried like treasure.
Greta Van Fleet – “Anthem”
Drenched in echo and wide-eyed wonder, “Anthem” doesn’t scream for attention. It waits. It stirs. And when it hits — it stays.
Ghost – “Life Eternal”
Gothic grandeur in whispers and bells. It’s not a moshpit anthem — it’s a cathedral dirge with theatrical teeth.
Inhaler – “Totally”
There’s youth here, but also restraint — like hearing a band thinking as they play. It’s a slow burn, perfect for long drives and longer thoughts.
Reignwolf – “Over & Over”
Grit under the nails. Dust in the lungs. This is bluesy rock that lives and dies on stage, where every note bleeds honesty.
Women Wielding the Flame
The future wears black eyeliner and a leather jacket. She screams louder, writes sharper, and doesn’t ask permission.
The Warning – “Copper Bullets”
Three sisters from Mexico, armed with riffs and rage. This track hits like a barbed wire love letter to classic metal.
Nova Twins – “Taxi”
Pure chaos on wheels. The Nova Twins twist genres like bottle caps — this song sounds like the walls are sweating.
Dorothy – “Gun in My Hand”
A bluesy stomp through smoky danger. This isn’t a song. It’s a warning.
Larkin Poe – “Back Down South”
Raw slide guitars, Southern heat, and harmonies sharp enough to draw blood. This is rock with roots and bite.
The Underground That Shouldn’t Be Underground
Here lie the anthems that never got their parade. Yet they buzz in headphones, rattle basement floors, and speak in secret tongues to those who still listen.
Cleopatrick – “Youth”
Loud, reckless, unapologetically Gen Z. But buried in the fuzz is fear, anger, and longing — a B-side masterpiece.
Demob Happy – “Dead Dreamers”
This is what happens when garage rock reads too much philosophy. Fuzzy existentialism you can headbang to.
Nothing But Thieves – “Number 13”
A hidden track from the deep cut dimension. Dark, orchestral, ghostlike — a secret spell on vinyl.
Rock Reimagined, Not Replaced
There’s no gate anymore. No leather-clad gatekeeper with a gold record key. Rock today is borderless, reckless, and defiantly alive. It’s scratched into limited pressings. It lives in Discord threads. It roars on indie playlists.
And it doesn’t care if you call it dead.
Because B-sides never begged for attention — they demanded curiosity. And these modern torch bearers? They’re lighting the path one strange, beautiful track at a time.
Your next move:
“Rock’s New Torch Bearers – The B-side Edition”
join us again next week. We've a full lineup, from Rock’s evolution, another iconic Queens of Rock Face off, and we highlight some of Europe's lesser known gems. Subscribe, and follow on social for regular updates and sneak peeks into rock’s untold stories and hidden gems.
Comments
Post a Comment