Making Waves: Where the Hell Is Rock Music Going?
There is a question that has been asked so many times that it has practically become a rock cliché:
Is rock music dead?
Apparently not.
It may have changed its clothes. It may have moved house. It may have stopped caring quite so much about what the neighbours think. But somewhere between punk clubs, sweaty basements, festival stages, bedroom studios and increasingly strange corners of the internet, a new generation of rock bands is making an awful lot of noise.
And here's the interesting part.
They don't necessarily sound like the rock bands we grew up with.
They aren't all trying to be the next Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, Oasis or Foo Fighters. Some don't seem particularly interested in sounding like anyone. They're pulling from punk, metal, hardcore, shoegaze, pop, electronic music, funk, folk, garage rock and whatever else happens to be lying around.
Spotify's 2026 Artists to Watch list describes its emerging artists as musicians pushing genres into new territory. Meanwhile, bands such as Geese are increasingly being discussed as evidence of a renewed interest in adventurous guitar music.
So perhaps the better question isn't whether rock is dying.
Perhaps we should ask:
Where the hell is it going?
Let's go looking.
Theatrical Rock
Rock has always had a taste for theatre.
David Bowie knew it. Queen knew it. Alice Cooper knew it. Even the most denim-clad guitar hero understands that sometimes a little drama goes a very long way.
The Last Dinner Party have taken that idea and thrown the curtains wide open.
Their music is extravagant, dramatic and unapologetically theatrical. There are huge vocals, ornate arrangements and a sense that every song might be leading somewhere slightly dangerous.
And that's refreshing.
At a time when so much music can feel carefully designed for an algorithm, The Last Dinner Party sound like they actually want to put on a show.
Try “Gjuha” and listen for yourself.
The lesson here isn't that rock needs to become theatrical again.
It's that rock can still be larger than life.
Punk's New Blood
Punk was never supposed to be comfortable.
That hasn't changed.
What has changed is what today's punk bands are willing to put inside the box.
Mannequin Pussy can go from ferocious noise to something heartbreakingly melodic without apologising for either side. The Linda Lindas bring youthful energy, hooks and a sense of fun that reminds us that punk doesn't always have to look permanently pissed off.
That's important.
Because one of punk's greatest strengths has always been its ability to belong to whoever picks up the guitar next.
The new generation isn't asking permission.
They're just plugging in.
And turning it up.
Hardcore Gets Catchy
Hardcore has traditionally been about intensity.
Fast guitars. Furious vocals. Short songs. Very little messing about.
But what happens when hardcore discovers a really good pop hook?
Enter Militarie Gun.
Their music retains the aggression and urgency of hardcore but isn't afraid of melody. “Do It Faster” is practically a demonstration of the concept: take the energy, keep the guitars, make the chorus impossible to forget.
It's part of a broader trend where the boundaries between punk, hardcore, alternative rock and indie are becoming increasingly irrelevant.
And frankly, that's a good thing.
Genres are useful for record shops.
They're less useful for musicians.
The Weird Gets Wonderful
Now we're getting somewhere.
Because if you want to know where rock might be heading, look at the bands who seem least interested in deciding what they're supposed to sound like.
Geese are a perfect example.
The Brooklyn band have been described as everything from post-punk to experimental rock, but labels don't really explain what makes them interesting. Their music can be jagged, funky, noisy, theatrical and downright strange.
After their third album Getting Killed, the band suddenly found themselves at the centre of a much bigger conversation about guitar music. NPR even noted the growing claims that Geese were helping to “save” guitar rock — although the more interesting point is how unlike traditional guitar rock they can sound.
Then there are bands such as Model/Actriz, where industrial, electronic and noise influences collide with rock's physicality.
This is perhaps the most exciting part of the new wave.
Nobody seems particularly worried about staying in their lane.
Australia Keeps Making Trouble
Australia has never really needed an excuse to make rock music.
From AC/DC and Midnight Oil to Silverchair, The Drones, Tame Impala and King Gizzard, the country has produced an absurd number of bands willing to make guitars sound louder, stranger or simply more interesting.
Royel Otis are part of the newer generation.
Their dreamy, melodic guitar music can be deceptively simple. Then there's The Gnomes, a young Melbourne band digging into garage rock, power pop and '60s influences while giving them a distinctly modern punch.
Their 2026 material has been picked up by triple j, and the band's current sound draws openly from influences such as The Kinks and The Easybeats.
That's an interesting trick.
They're not pretending the past didn't happen.
They're simply refusing to leave it there.
Ireland Has Something to Say
Ireland's relationship with guitar music has always been fascinating.
And there's a new generation arriving behind Fontaines D.C., The Murder Capital and the other bands that helped put Irish guitar music back into the international spotlight.
Florence Road are one of the young acts worth watching, while The Cardinals are another name appearing in conversations about the next wave.
What's interesting isn't whether they'll become the next big Irish rock band.
It's that the infrastructure is there.
The clubs are there.
The audiences are there.
And young musicians are picking up guitars and discovering that they still have something to say.
The World Gets Louder
This is where the future becomes really interesting.
Because the future of rock isn't going to be decided solely in London, New York or Los Angeles.
Look towards Brazil and you'll find Papangu.
And calling them simply a “rock band” doesn't really do the job.
The João Pessoa five-piece combine progressive rock and extreme metal with Brazilian musical traditions including bossa nova, ciranda and forró. Their 2026 album Celestial pushes that collision even further, blending prog, MPB, black metal, zeuhl and Brazilian folk influences.
That's not rock music copying America or Britain.
That's Brazilian music becoming rock music on its own terms.
And that distinction matters.
If rock is going to have a future, it shouldn't simply keep exporting the same musical vocabulary around the world.
It should absorb new ones.
Heavy, Dark and Beautiful
Meanwhile, the heavier side of rock is anything but quiet.
Bands such as Mallavora are blurring the lines between alternative metal, modern rock, R&B and other influences. Their 2026 album What If Better Never Comes? was released through Church Road, and the band have already built a reputation as a rising force in heavy music.
Then there is France's Slift, whose psychedelic space-rock has become increasingly adventurous and heavy.
And that's another important piece of the puzzle.
The future of rock isn't necessarily going to be softer, cleaner or more commercially friendly.
Some of it is going to be absolutely fucking enormous.
So... Where Is Rock Going?
Maybe that's the wrong question.
Because we're still looking for the sound.
The next grunge.
The next punk.
The next Britpop.
The next Seattle.
The next Manchester.
But musical revolutions don't always work like that anymore.
There may not be one new movement waiting around the corner.
Instead, there are hundreds of little ones.
A punk band borrowing from pop.
A hardcore band discovering melody.
An indie band discovering distortion.
A metal band discovering folk music.
A Brazilian band smashing prog and local traditions together.
An Australian band rediscovering garage rock.
A theatrical band reminding us that rock can still be gloriously ridiculous.
And somewhere in the middle of all that noise, something new starts to emerge.
Maybe that's the future of rock.
Not a sound.
Not a scene.
Not a movement.
A refusal to stand still.
Making Waves: The 20-Track Playlist
So here's our contribution to the investigation.
Twenty bands. Twenty songs.
Different countries. Different genres. Different levels of weird.
Some you've probably heard. Some you probably haven't.
And hopefully a few that make you stop what you're doing and say:
“Where the hell did this come from?”
1. The Last Dinner Party — Gjuha
Theatrical rock has entered the building.
2. Mannequin Pussy — Control
Punk doesn't have to choose between rage and melody.
3. Militarie Gun — Do It Faster
Hardcore with a hook. Dangerous combination.
4. The Linda Lindas — No Clue
Young, loud and having fun with it.
5. Royel Otis — Heading for the Door
Dreamy guitars for people who still believe guitars are cool.
6. Geese — Getting Killed
Rock music gets weird.
7. Model/Actriz — Mosquito
Industrial, confrontational and impossible to politely ignore.
8. Rocket — Wide Awake
The underground is still very much alive.
9. The Gnomes — Thinking Of Me
'60s garage energy with 2026 attitude. Their current material has already been getting attention from triple j.
10. Florence Road — Break The Girl
The next generation of Irish guitar music.
11. The Cardinals — Down In A Hole
Dark, restless and distinctly Irish.
12. Slift — Lions, Tigers, and Bears
Psychedelic rock goes into orbit.
13. Papangu — Sol Raiar
Brazilian folk meets prog, metal and madness.
14. Mallavora — What If Better Never Comes?
Modern metal refusing to stay inside the metal box.
15. Wednesday — Elderberry Wine
Shoegaze, country, noise and indie rock in the same room.
16. Amyl and the Sniffers — U Should Not Be Doing That
Proof that punk can still kick the door in.
17. Mary in the Junkyard — New Muscles
London's alternative underground gets gloriously strange.
18. Westside Cowboy — You Could Have Died There On The Dance Floor
Young guitars. Big hooks. Something brewing.
19. Man/Woman/Chainsaw — Ode to Clio
A reminder that the next wave doesn't necessarily sound like anything before it.
20. Papangu — Colosso
Because if we're going to end a playlist about the future of rock, we may as well leave the building on fire.
One Last Thought
Every generation eventually gets told that rock is dead.
The '70s had disco.
The '80s had synthesizers.
The '90s had electronic music.
The 2000s supposedly killed the guitar.
And yet here we are.
Guitars are still being plugged into amplifiers. Drummers are still hitting things far harder than strictly necessary. Someone somewhere is still writing a song in their bedroom that sounds absolutely nothing like anything their parents listened to.
That's the beautiful thing about rock.
It has never really survived by staying the same.
It survives by changing.
Maybe the next great rock movement won't come from one city.
Maybe it won't have a name.
Maybe it won't even sound particularly “rock” at first.
Maybe it'll come from Melbourne, Brooklyn, Dublin, João Pessoa, Paris, London or somewhere we've never thought to look.
And maybe, ten years from now, we'll look back at these bands and realise we were listening to the beginning of something.
Or maybe we won't.
That's the fun of it.
Because right now, somewhere in the world, somebody is plugging in.
The amp is humming.
The drummer is counting in.
The future is making a noise.
And it sounds pretty damn good.
Comments
Post a Comment