Oh no! Rock is dead! Rock doesn't chart anymore! Rock does not sell anymore! Panic is spreading over the internet faster than the Mexican Flu. At first I read with a slight feeling that vaguely resembles interest but over the past days this has changed into, if I take the time to read the panic bulletins, something that resembles annoyance. So, rock is dead you say? I'm not even going to investigate whether this is true or not. Does it even matter whether rock is dead or not? Does it really?
Rock is predicted dead since the 1950's. Music doesn't need to chart to be alive. Does Jazz chart (Jamie Cullum and Katie Melua do not count)? North Sea Jazz pulls thousands and thousands of people to an arena every year. So, is it dead? Of course not. The fast-media-generation who is the most interesting for commercial purposes might not care, but there's a lot of (different) people outside that group.
As long as there is one band who makes music I thoughoutly and shamelessly enjoy, as long as I can listen to that band, to their music, enjoy their sounds, it's not dead. It's very much alive, maybe just for that band and me, but it's alive. The band is alive. I am alive. Rock is alive. So think again when you read ROCK IS DEAD over a lengthly article. If you still like it and enjoy it, it's not dead.
