OT: Name a good band where all the members are under 40
By “good,” I mean you would pay to see them live.
How many are left? I like Florence + the Machine, but I have no idea how old the members aside from Florence Welch (33) are.
I remember when Jeff Ament (57) of Pearl Jam turned 40 and my first thought was “Geez, maybe they have to break up now!” But now I’m hard-pressed to find younger bands that are worth the price of admission!
Any “newer” bands I should be a fan of, or is rock really on death’s door?
OK I know with no Michigan sports going on and probably None for a long have we been reduced to these type of topics?
This is pretty standard off-season content most years. Relax.
The topic was pretty clearly identified. You weren't forced to click.
Gang of youths is pretty amazing
Obscura only has one member over 40 so that's close.
(Not too many metal fans here but if you enjoy technical stuff give a listen to their album Diluvium)
I didn't verify all these, but they're all either under 40...or, very close.
Bands:
Parquet Courts
Khruangbin
First Aid Kit
Car Seat Headrest
Marcus King Band
Big Thief
Sheer Mag
Durand Jones & the Indications
Hurray for the Riff Raff
White Denim
Nathaiel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
Strand of Oaks
Woods
Individuals:
Tre Burt
Waxahatchee
Blake Mills
John Moreland
Kurt Vile (40)
Robert Ellis
Sturgill Simpson (42)
Tyler Childress
Colter Wall
Leon Bridges
Absolutely second Sturgill, Leon Bridges and Nathaniel Rateliff. I would add, without verifying ages, Drew Holcombe and the Neighbors, Brandi Carlile, and St. Paul and the Broken Bones.
We're flying in the same circle it seems. I'm really digging Nathaniel Rateliff, St Paul and the Broken Bones a lot lately. I was introduced to Leon Bridges and Rateliff through the Spotify algorithm after playing Black Pumas.
I thought Rateliff was older, but he took a huge step up on the last band album produced by Richard Swift, as well as the solo album. They are also a tight live band and just great guys. I interviewed Nathaniel and his keyboard player out in Denver 3-4 years ago and I have nothing but good things to say about them.
In a simar vein, White Reaper absolutely rocks and fits the first few you have there.
I will also add Twin Peaks, Ohmme, Fontaines D.C., and Palace. All young and very good.
Ohmme opening for Twin Peaks was the last concert I saw before all concerts were cancelled. What a great show to go out on.
Same actually. At Webster Hall in NYC. Had Post Animal and White Reaper in the first few weeks of lockdown that got cancelled.
Caught Twin Peaks at the Blind Pig around 2017. Good set, played a cover of Dead Flowers too
Gaslight Anthem. Lead singer Brian Fallon's solo work is excellent as well. He just turned 40 this year, so listen to the earlier stuff.
My favorite band but they are on hiatus unfortunately. I think they are done.
Brian's first two solo records were positively banging though colonel.
Same, but they have such a great catalog (along with some solid B sides/live stuff), so there can be a good rotation. The live blend of Have Mercy and Chelsea Hotel #2 (Leonard Cohen cover) is unreal and I just found it a few weeks back.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=monCFQJNBWI
Brian's recent solo record took a few passes for me to appreciate, but I actually like it more than his second album now.
A band I've enjoyed over the last year or so is BRKN LOVE. A new, young band with only one album so far. Saw them open for Skillet last year in GR and really enjoyed their music and energy live.
Fontaines D C
Father John Misty is 39 so just makes the cut.
Ty Segall.
(Kurt Vile is too old for this list)
Ask again in 20 years when the fans of current young bands will reminisce about how there are no more good young bands and the ones from 20 years ago were better years ago.
Jokes aside, rock as a genre is going the way of the wishbone - nobody’s fault, just how music has evolved away from traditional rock, which itself is an adaptation of older genres.
Music is largely evolving away from the concept of a band. The concept itself (as currently envisioned) was largely an industrial creation, that instead of visiting your local orchestra to hear a popular composition, or maybe hearing a troupe play your favorites, the "authentic" experience was for an exclusive band with exclusive rights to be the exclusive performers of exclusive songs to go on tour, and fans see them live in whatever venue offered the most seats that were certain to get filled to capacity (as opposed to completely unimportant factors such as acoustics).
That's all still there, and it's still a cash cow, but being a fan of music is on longer bound to that, if it ever was. Streaming services have both blown up and fragmented the indie music scene to the point that there's more music than anyone can listen to in a hundred lifetimes, but if all you've listened to are four-piece bands, a lot of this stuff is going to be weird.
For example, one genre that's been quietly bubbling on its own for some decades now is chiptune. To my knowledge, there aren't any chiptune concerts or bands, because there wouldn't be a point. It's more like. . . a challenge. You can probably consider it a sub-genre of techno. Inspired by the creativity in old video game soundtracks like the Mega Man series, chipbeat composers willingly constrain themselves to primitive sound channels ("bleep bloop etc."). The only way to make up for this brutal limitation is varying the composition, so, the pieces can get very complex (link to example -- this one's from 2010, not new, but well after these technical limitations became voluntary).
I mean, it might not be OP's thing, but it's food for thought, maybe.
100% agree - the trend now is for musicians, even those already in bands, to collab with other artists on tracks and albums. Decidedly not a band, but serves a similar purpose
I don't know if collaboration is a trend, but it's definitely a thing. I think rappers popularized it to signal-boost each other, but the industry turned the practice into a marketing gimmick.
Dang! I thought this was an easy one...Black Pumas. Eric Burton is 30, but, Adrian is 43. Fiddlesticks. Regardless, this band is FIRE!
Alt-J
Alabama Shakes
Sylvan Esso
Slow Club (although they've broken up recently)
Hiatus Kaiyote
Charly Bliss
Lianne La Havas (soloist, but her bands are under 40)
Thundercat (same)
(Edit- adding more as I think of them)
Vulfpeck is one of my favorites, and they started out together at SMTD so there's a U of M connection there as well.
The Record Company
I don't know for a fact they're younger than 40, but given they've been around about 10 years seems like a safe bet.
And this one is a bit of a stretch, but I will definitely see Jade Bird the next time she's in town. Check out a few of her live performances on YouTube - go with "I Get No Joy" if you have time for only one. There's a little bit of teen girl angst/experience in her lyrics, which doesn't resonate with me, but the girl can belt out a tune.
It's been awhile, but the guys in Sum41 are right around that cutoff.
I think rock is dead (which is a great tune by Marilyn Manson [51!]). Was listening to the rock station here in Cleveland a few weeks ago and they were playing all the same stuff from 15-20 yrs ago.
The “modern rock” station around here plays Nirvana as much as they do any new band.
Next year, “Nevermind” will turn 30. To put that into perspective, that would be like a “modern rock” station in the 90s playing the Beach Boys.
Cage the Elephant qualifies for a couple more years
X-Ambassadors.
Lead singer went to HS, and is friends with, with my kids, so I have a biased personal connection. And I even like some of their music!
Alabama Shakes
Idk why but I think an Alabama Shakes concert at St. Andrews Hall would be one of those concerts that just stick with you forever.
Russian Cursive, and they're only 19.
My favorite contemporary bands are Foster the People and Portugal the Man, though some of those dudes might be pushing 40.
CarSeat Headrest
DIIV
Deer Hunter
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
Destroyer
of Montreal
Temples
2nd on CarSeat Headrest
Rush, Police, Genesis Wait... you mean it's not 1984 and I'm not in college. Damn this game sux!!
Only bands I know under 40 are Greta Van Fleet, The Accidentals and Billy Strings. Saw Strings in Kzoo at Bell's. Excellent show and venue.
Catfish And The Bottlemen
Middle Kids
My son would say Bring Me The Horizon. I have resisted for years but I am coming around. Heard one of their newer songs a couple of weeks ago and I rather liked it. I was surprised when I noticed they were the artist.
Michigan Marching Band?
Larkin Poe. Georgia-based roots rock/blues some folks call the new Allman Brothers, though it should be the Allman Sisters. They are centered around the Cox sisters, who have phenomenal voices and guitar skills, especially the one who plays the most wicked lap slide since David Lindley. They have several albums of originals out, some of which I like and some of which not so much but the singing and playing are always great. They record and perform with a kick ass bass and drums rhythm section, but are probably best known for the many covers just the sisters do on an iPhone or whatever (they started a couple years before the virus made everybody go that route). Just incredible talents and the joy they get from playing just oozes out. Tons of stuff up at YouTube.
Is their name a reference to Con-Air?!
Hahaha legit question!
Larkin Poe is the name of their grandfather, who is a descendent of Edgar Allen Poe.
Nobody really listens to any of them but there's a few solid bands floating around doing some alternative rock type stuff.
Hot Water Music is a personal favorite.
Propagandhi puts on an awesome live show and their lyrics are food for thought. They're kinda thrashy though, maybe an acquired taste.
The Menzingers are a solid Midwestern/Rust belt type outfit that have some good songwriting that's both easy to relate to and listen to.
Strung Out are getting older but I'm sure with that level of experience comes a great live show.
Direct Hit! (to me) is like the second, more rambunctious version of Blink-182...catchier music, too. Haven't seen 'em live but I'm sure it would be entertaining.
I'll forever love these bands that float under the radar. Catching a show at a small venue that holds less than a few hundred people is so much more entertaining, in my opinion.
+1 for the Menzingers
Parquet Courts
The Beths (new record out)
Rookie (their 2020 release is good)
War on Drugs (well, Granduciel is now 41)
Futurebirds (think they are in their 30s)
Madison Cunningham (not rock...more a combo of jazz and folk, but she's 24 and insanely talented. Actually was Andrew Bird's lead guitar player on the last tour at the age of 23)
Love The Beths and War on Drugs. You’ve given me some new stuff to check out.
My personal addition to this list would be Snail Mail. She’s 21 now but I saw her on tour for her album two years ago and it was awesome.