10 Young Rock Bands Trying To Make Their Way To The Top

Can these young rock and rollers fill their predecessors' boots, or has rock and roll peaked?

Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard
Communion Records

A controversial topic in the rock community is originality. Rock has been around for quite a few decades, making it difficult for new rock bands to claim a signature sound without some superfan claiming it's a ripoff of 'their' band and calling for a boycott. There's no denying that there's some serious talent making its way to the surface of the rock charts, but is the rock community ready for some fresh meat with familiar sounds?

Greta Van Fleet has received plenty of backlash for their apparent similarity to rock legends Led Zeppelin, with Robert Plant himself jokingly commenting on how the lead singer Josh Kiszka 'stole' his voice. With dialogues such as this one in the rock and roll community, it is more challenging than ever for young rock bands to make a name for themselves and receive the recognition they deserve.

Maybe it's time we stop and take a moment to appreciate some of the talent emerging in the rock genre. Some of these you've probably never heard of but isn't it time to give the new kids on the block a chance?

10. Larkin Poe

This badass female duo have something special going on. The two sisters, Rebecca and Megan Lovell, produce great bluesy rock sound with elements of psychedelic rock mixed in there. Rebecca has an incredibly powerful, and slightly gravelly voice with a southern twang. Megan primarily plays the guitar alongside her sister and provides backing vocals, and the two of them together form a powerful rock band.

Originally the sisters had a band, The Lovell Sisters, which they formed in 2005 as teenagers. They called it quits in 2009 but reformed in 2010 as Larkin Poe, named after their great-great-grandfather. Their band currently consists of the two sisters and Tarka Layman on bass and Kevin McGowan on drums.

The band has played at Glastonbury on two occasions, earning them the title of Best Discovery Of Glastonbury 2014. They have found success over the years and opened for artists such as Elvis Costello and have released five studio albums in the last 12 years. One of their hit singles reached number one on the Billboard blues album chart in 2020, but they have mostly stuck to cover songs since then. Hopefully, there will be some more original music; otherwise, defending this band for their original sound will become more challenging.

Contributor

Currently travelling around doing the typical self-discovery thing while managing social media pages and writing about all things film, food and music-related. If I'm not climbing rocks or making a mess in the kitchen, I'm using my love for writing to connect with like-minded individuals.