<\/p>\n
(Editor\u2019s note:\u00a0 New Music That Doesn\u2019t Suck is an occasional commentary on the current state of rock music by music industry veteran David Hersrud.)<\/em><\/p>\n Over the past 10 years or so I have read numerous articles bemoaning the lack of good, even decent rock \u2018n\u2019 roll music.<\/p>\n And if that wasn\u2019t bad enough there is a new survey of Gen Alpha (those born after 2010)<\/span><\/a> that profiles a generation that apparently has little or no interest in rock or any of its many permutations. In addition the survey indicates that hip hop also has less of a following. Pop and K-Pop (Korean pop music) lead the way at 56% of those surveyed.<\/p>\n \u00a0Personally I would have been surprised if rock music was a favorite of Gen Alpha or the TikTok generation, as I call them. TikTok hits generally follow the 2 \u00bd to 3 minute rule while rock songs are typically in the 3 minute to 5 minute range. What\u2019s more, rock songs often have a slow build which doesn\u2019t appeal to listeners whose initial impression usually happens in the first 5 seconds.<\/p>\n The survey acknowledges that tastes can change and there is also what I refer to as the parental effect. I once asked one of my daughter\u2019s high school friends why she listened to rap music. \u201cBecause it drives my parents crazy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n So let\u2019s hope that as we discovered Mozart, Bach, Leadbelly, Robert Johnson, Jelly Roll Morton, Bessie Smith, Jimmie Rodgers and Bob Wills that Gen Alpha will\u00a0 learn to love The Stones, Hendrix, The Doors, The Beatles and Chuck Berry.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s NMTDS \u2026 enjoy<\/p>\n Billie Marten: \u201cPlanets\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to believe that a 26-year-old British singer-songwriter can be called a music industry \u201cveteran.\u201d But when you learn that she made her first YouTube video at 12, released her first EP at age 15, and debuted her fifth album in July, \u201cveteran\u201d seems almost understated. \u201cDog Eared\u201d will make a lot of \u201cbest of\u201d lists and for good reason as she continues to grow as an artist.<\/p>\n Laufey: \u201cSnow White\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n This from the Icelandic singer-songwriter\u2019s third album \u201cA Matter of Time\u201d which debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. She is probably one of the most talked about and profiled artists on the music scene today. She won a Grammy last year for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album and was just named one of Time Magazine\u2019s Women Of The Year for 2025.<\/span><\/a> Her musical interests range from jazz to pop to classical (she gave a cello performance with the Iceland Symphony at 15).<\/p>\n Go Go Penguin: \u201cLuminous Giants\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n One of my top 10 favorite jazz groups is the Esbjorn Svensson Trio. Unfortunately pianist Esbjorn Svensson died tragically in 2008. The band was to jazz what Radiohead is to rock \u2014 genre-bending.<\/p>\n Go Go Penguin inhabits that same musical universe. The Manchester, England, trio have released six studio albums over the years and have just released \u201cNecessary Fictions,\u201d an album that is already on my list of the best albums of the year.<\/p>\n Madison McFerrin: \u201cRun It Back\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Madison\u2019s musical pedigree is impressive. Her grandfather was the first African-American to sing at the Metropolitan Opera. Her father is the jazz vocalist and classical conductor Bobby McFerrin. And like her family, her instrument is her voice. \u201cScorpio\u201d is her second album and it\u2019s excellent.<\/p>\n Steve Riley and The Rolling Stones: \u201cZydeco Sont Pas Sales\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n The song comes from a tribute album to Clifton Chenier, the musician they called \u201cThe King of Zydeco\u201d and the man who took traditional zydeco and electrified it. The album features Taj Mahal, Steve Earle, Charley Crockett,\u00a0 Lucinda Williams and Mick Jagger singing in French.<\/p>\n Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band: \u201cBetter If You Make Me\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Based on everything I\u2019ve seen and heard so far, I think I can say without fear of contradiction that Ryan\u2019s second album, \u201cNew Threats From The Soul,\u201d will make a lot of \u201cbest of\u201d lists at the end of the year. This from an artist called \u201cthe best lyricist who\u2019s not a rapper.\u201d<\/p>\n The music fits the indie-rock\/ Americana description perfectly though with a few subtle enhancements. And the songs aren\u2019t exactly Tik Tok friendly with run-times almost 6 minutes on the short end and almost 12 minutes on the other.<\/p>\n Ndlovu Youth Choir: \u201cBohemian Rhapsody\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n It might be a bit hard to imagine an African Youth Choir singing Queen\u2019s \u201cBohemian Rhapsody\u201d in Zulu \u2014 until you hear it. This is the first time Queen has authorized any use of the song and it is fitting that this is the song\u2019s 50th anniversary. As a footnote Freddy Mercury (real name Farrokh Bulsara), was born on the African island of Zanzibar.<\/p>\n