10 Most Innovative Rock Acts Of The 2010s
Rock never died, it was just evolving.
As the decade drew to a close, 2020 rolled out and the inhabitants of the world found themselves sequestered behind closed doors, people had plenty of time to do sweet f**k all.
When Tiger King ended and the enthusiasm to make sourdough died, there wasn't much left to do, other than delve deeper into the realm of music. And after about the thirtieth hour down the YouTube rabbit hole you probably found yourself realising, the 2010s yielded some damn fine music.
It's very easy to come to the conclusion that everything has been done in rock. How can the genre keep going forward when the guitar solo has been worn thin and the power chord no longer resonates in the same way?
But, far from constricting creativity, this has only pushed artists to go in ever more bizarre and unexpected directions.
For all its short comings the internet has exposed people to ever more wide ranging musical experiences, which undoubtably led musicians to draw inspiration from genres they might not have in the past.
These are the rock acts who were doing something uniquely interesting while developing their sound, leading to some of the most original sonic experience in rock music during the 2010s.
10. Unknown Mortal Orchestra
At the start of the decade, Unknown Mortal Orchestra were part of that group of musicians pumping lo-fi psychedelic rock up from Down Under.
Like their contemporaries, Tame Impala and Pond, they didn't find it hard to transition from heavy guitar led music to a style that pulled in more electronic elements. Think, punk rock aesthetic with a psychedelic-disco hair cut.
Their third album was when the significant shift took place. The band still retained those core elements that made them so popular with rock fans, but they brought in a bunch of funkier more upbeat melodies. It was a nice change of pace from Ruban Nielson's previous tendency of indulging in sombre and more gothic sounds.
Their more recent records haven't been afraid to stray back into the realms of sludgy psych, however, the 2018 single American Guilt had enough distorted guitar plastered over it to satisfy even the most devoted of metal heads.
This is a band who are fully aware of the influences and are not afraid of flaunting them at times. But despite the vintage elements, they do it in a way to keep their sound refreshing.