What is it that sets rock and roll apart from other music? What makes it so different and so fascinating? People love the wild Bohemian rock musicians, love the radiant stage, love the loud and passionate voice of the lead singer, love the buzz of the electric guitar, the loud sound of the drum, the bass and the ethereal psychedelic synthesizer, love the vast sea of people in concert, love the dazzling flash lights, love the feeling of eardrum oscillation, love the music of the music. Love the alcohol and adrenaline that runs through your veins, love that even if it’s only for one night, it’s better than forever… However, behind all this, is the rock singing out of the bottom of everyone’s heart pain – loneliness.
After listening to some rock music, I understand more and more: rock is the music of individualism. Rock ‘n’ roll sings about a person’s emotions, thoughts and desires. The spirit of rock proudly declares to the world that I am a man of character, and you will not assimilate me!” The infinite “I” in rock, as the avatar of the creator, is the first element that occupies the standard in the works. Whether it’s Queen’s “I want to break free” or “I want to be on the beaten path” from “The Girl in the Greenhouse”, it’s a straightforward expression of personal emotion. Even when it comes to love, rock rarely describes the lingering affection of lovers, such as dedication and persistence of lovers, but focuses on the unforgettable memory and precipitation of love, and pays more attention to the meaning of love to “me”. For example, one of my favorite songs, I remember you by Skid Row. The so-called rebellion, anti-tradition and maverick are actually an individual’s attitude and stance under a specific social background.
Everything has a price. The price of individuality is loneliness. It may be easy to show your individuality, but it also means that you have to wave goodbye to the happy atmosphere of the group and face the cold world alone. People are afraid of loneliness, not fear of loneliness itself, but fear of loneliness derivatives: fear, confusion, loneliness, helplessness. After all, the power of individuals is limited, so human beings choose to form a group. While obtaining the precious sense of security and identity, it also means that they must give up some individuality and individual pursuit to better integrate into the group. But when the compromise becomes unbearable, or when the society is so messy and dirty that it simply can’t deliver what it’s supposed to, there’s always a group of people who say, No! Some of these guys picked up electric guitars and played rock and punk. In their hands, music, an art form as old as human history, was reinvigorated. If folk and pop music are paeans to life, rock and roll is the sword that cuts through life’s nothingness. Given the choice between whitewashing peace and confronting loneliness, rock chose the latter.
Loneliness has always been one of the motifs of rock music. There are numerous references to loneliness in rock music. From “lonely lonely time~” in Led Zeppelin Rock n ‘Roll, to Bob Dylan’s helpless sigh Like a rolling stone, to Deep Purple’s lonely April… Too much it can be said that loneliness has become the biggest source of inspiration for rock musicians. So rock is also a lonely music.
In modern times, the government’s control over the people has actually been greatly strengthened. The fabric of society has become more compact, pressed together like atoms in a metal, while the barriers between people in society have increased. Everyone has a depression in their heart, even if they don’t want to admit it, everyone lives in a pitch sauce. As Kiyoshi Miki said, “Loneliness is not in the mountains but in the streets, not in one person but in many people.” In rock music, many lonely souls find their sustenance. Behind the revelry is the resonance between lonely hearts.
All good things come to an end. When the show was over, the fans dispersed and returned to the embrace of collectivist society. Not everyone has the courage to stand at the forefront of the wave, most people finally just through rock to vent their heart of pain, rock sings their heart’s desire; they love rock, but cannot join rock. For the rock musicians, only “pick up the cold branch refused to perch, lonely sandbar cold.” This is the tragedy of rock and roll. So you can always hear a little bit of sadness in the rock melody, and it always makes me move.
Rock and roll is a flower watered by tears, more than lonely, rock and roll die.
