h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've no idea what the *best* American band was, but my favorite was the Pixies.

That shows my age, doesn't it. Ah well.

Lux

I'm not going to go back and read it all again, but I've been following this from the beginning and I don't think anyone has mentioned Led Zeppelin yet. These people were masters of everything they did and Robert Plant is the most mesmerising live act I have seen. I can't remember if I saw him live or on telly, think it was the latter, and quite an important event, like the Nelson Mandela concert or something.

Again the problem with Led Zep is great band they were, they weren't from the US which is where this conversation is supposedly thinking of

LimpBizkit are pretty good.

Sorry boobed there. But they sound it.

After some more research, I discover that was a big boob. So that just about leaves America with not much. There are some things I suppose that are peculiar to American music. Like West coast sound (it's only an example, I'm not saying I like it).

It seems to me that these days, any band that has made its way into the "mainstream" is only trying to make more money. Thus, i prefer some of the lesser known American bands, such as (hed) pe, Godhead, Ultraspank, Disturbed (although, they just got big). There are other bands that continue to put out exceptional music, however, its seems that most of them are not American bands. Take for example Rammstein, or MDFMK, or Portishead (even though they haven't put one out in a while)

I'm suprised no one has mentioned REM (or is that my age showing )

Glenn Miller - no question.
I know a band is not a group, but when is a group a band?
My son knows the answer and told me once, but I forgot the answer.
How about Winder K frog or were they British?

I think the problem with great majority of American bands of late is that they seem to be metal / grunge which I personally think has had its day a long time ago. For the last 30-40 years the world has looked towards britain to break new music. Of course there are exceptions to this eg. velvet underground, Jimi Hendrix. I don't think this view point will be v.popular. But it's the truth. Sorry

I'm sorry to tell you this, but if there is any new and exciting music going on in Britain right now, it's a well-kept secret. The last big thing to escape those shores was Def Leppard, and they had to get away, because they weren't appreciated yet at home. Of course, the Spice Girls escaped too, but the rest of the world would have thanked you to keep them to yourselves. Lots of great British music has been mentioned here, but what new acts have emerged from there in the last 15 years?

Well there is lots of new music being made. A lot of it doesn't escape true. The places where the music scene seems to be doing things is some of the more experimental dance stuff - Jungle, drum and bass or whatever it's called these days. There is some interest in some of the stuff coming from the asian comunity (Talvin Singh, Nitin Sawhney, Asian Dub Foundation).
There is little if no experimentation in the rock and inde genre it seems. A couple if interesting indie acts are the Beta Band and Badly Drawn Boy who are just going out and doing their own stuff and sounding fresh and different to a lot of other things out there.

Still most of the US bands mentioned aren't new to the business either

I think what has happened is that the since the 60's - 70's British and U.S music markets have become very different. Although lately on the dance music front many DJ's from the U.K have been going over and introducing trance, bigbeat, techno etc. People such as Fatboy Slim, Prodigy, chemical brothers I believe have already broken that market. I do admit I don't know what the state of dance music and clubbing in america is

It's being made, of course, but it isn't being exported. Then again, all the good music that has been made in the US lately hasn't been exported, either, because the good musicians eschew major labels, MTV, and the whole mass market. There is excellent experimentation going on here, at least. The industrial sound was developed in the US, pioneered by Trent Reznor, and of course there is the punk, ska, and swing revivals, with enough interaction between them to provide for some interesting variations. The grunge thing came from Seattle. So it seems that all the rock and indie stuff going on is happening in the US, contrary to Niz's "truth."

As for no new bands being mentioned... the true test of greatness is quality and longevity. That's why so many highly influential bands don't get mentioned... Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Pearl Jam... in the case of the former, they weren't around long enough, and in the case of the latter two, they started out great, and then tailed off dramatically. Not that that's a purely American phenomenon, as U2 and Def Leppard have shown. So anyway, a band that gets recognized as one of the greatest has to have been around for quite a while. Anyone want to recommend their favorite up-and-comer for the next great band? I'd give you mine, but I'm already certain that most of you haven't heard of them. Goldfinger already has three terrific cd's behind them, so they get my vote.

Perhaps my vote for best up and coming is a singer / songwriter who has been around awhile but only now breaking into the main stream, David Gray. I have everything he has done and it is perhaps some of the best written stuff I have heard in a long long time. Check it out!

Excuse me for being a bit of an Old Fart in twentysomething's clothing, but if you ask me, the whole nostalgic trend of this thread shows just how bankrupt of ideas the music business is at the moment. Boy Bands, pappy uber-saccharined Britney clones, rather whiny metal bands (or alternately shock schlock metal like Slipknot, Machinehead etc), deeply awful Ibiza anthems ad nauseam, even worst monotonous speed garage etc...

Forgive the rant; I just wish there was something around at the moment that was so radical and eye-opening that, even if it wasn't popular, would at least be fresh.

Personally speaking, I like Anthrax, G'n'R, the Ramones, among others.

Just found this (as far as I can remember!)

What about Jimi Hendrix Experience???

'G'

Ooops, sorry; Colonel Sellers got in there before I could post, and thus rendered much of what I said unnecessary.

Also, although I like them, I find it a bit worrying that the music industry's 'Great White Hopes' have been bands as relatively bland as Travis, and as relatively bland and completely unknown like Coldplay. Good bands, sure, but hailing them as the groups that 'reinvented guitar music' and 'saved the pop biz' at this stage is pinning far too much on bands who've only produced 3 or 4 records between them. I agree with CS; the only true test is time, and how they, or any other music or group are judged by posterity.

*bookmark*

Well the Badly Drawn Boy album, Hour of the Bewilderbeast, won the technics mercury music prize 2000 and a good new album it is too.