The British Rock Invasion 101: PART TWO
Tim Vuotto ~ 12/13/2024
THIS IS PART TWO OF ANOTHER STORY YOU CAN READ HERE.
80s:
Iron Maiden:
Founded in 1975 by bassist Steve Harris, (the only remaining original member) they wouldn't really hit their stride in the US until the band replaced Paul Di’Anno with new frontman Bruce Dickison for their 1982 album Number of the beast. It has sold over 20 million copies worldwide as well as debuting on the US main charts at #33. The album is regarded as one of the greatest heavy metal albums of all time. They would continue the success from that album with a terrific run of albums through the 80’s with albums such as 1983’s Piece of mind, 1984’s Powerslave, 1986’s Somewhere lost in time, and 1988's Seventh son of a seventh son. They're still around today, with their latest album releasing in 2021. I’m a fan myself as it's one of my dad’s favorite bands so I grew up listening to them quite often during road trips and whatnot.
Judas Priest:
Another huge name in Metal of the 80s was Judas priest. Formed in Birmingham in 1969 they were recently inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame two years ago, it was well deserved as they co-ran the british metal scene in the 80s. Instead of asking “Stones or Beatles?” in the 60s, if you were a metalhead in the 80s it was “ Maiden or Priest?”. As previously stated I’m an Iron Maiden guy, I've tried to listen to Priest a few times but they never quite caught my attention. A few songs are good and worthy of listens such as “Turbo love”, “Breaking the Law”, and “You've got another thing coming”.
90s:
Oasis:
Absolute Icons. Brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher took the world by storm. The Biggest band to come out of England since the Beatles. They were first formed in Manchester in 1991, the brothers agreed to join an already formed band called “Rain” who were in need of a Vocalist and a guitarist. Liam joined first and eventually convinced his older brother Noel to join as well by promising him the creative freedom/ songwriting leader of the band. Unfortunately, the brotherly duo couldn't seem to ever get along, as we see throughout the bands entire lifespan. They were set to do an MTV unplugged live album in 1996 after two critically acclaimed albums (what's the story?), Morning Glory, and Definitely Maybe”. Liam had been claiming all throughout rehearsal that he was having issues with his throat but he would try and push through it for the unplugged performance. When performance day rolled around Liam showed up visibly shitfaced to the point where he couldn't perform. The band went on to record the unplugged album without him with Noel taking over the vocals. All throughout the show Liam famously sat in the nosebleeds smoking cigs, crushing beers, and heckling his brother through the entire performance. Things carried on thin ice for years afterwards, even getting so bad between them that they reportedly couldn’t even stand to be in the same room as one another. It eventually came to an end in 2009 after a huge argument between the brothers broke out backstage before a gig. They went their separate ways, did their own solo work until finally, they made amends with one another and agreed to do a worldwide reunion tour starting summer 2025. If they can manage to not kill one another, they will make a shit ton of money. Maybe that's the entire purpose for the tour as I've read that Liam is in desperate need of cash, but either way, it's exciting to see them back together again and I will be trying to get tickets to see them when they tour the US in 2025.
00s:
Arctic Monkeys:
Where to begin with this one. If you've read my earlier article about rock music slowly dying you know I referred to them as being “Sellouts”. I still stand by that. But while they were still trying to make legit alternative rock music, they were fantastic. I referred to Oasis as being the biggest thing out of England since the Beatles, well… The Arctic Monkeys were SUPPOSED to be the biggest thing since Oasis as they were heavily trending in that direction. Unfortunately, we all know the direction they took, but it wouldn't feel right to not mention them as their album AM is one of my favorites ever, across any genre. The world agreed as it sold 4 million copies worldwide and their Hit song Do I wanna Know? Landed at #70 on the US main charts
Conclusion
The UK has given us many iconic bands throughout the decades, all of which helped usher in an entirely new sound on the market. It's easy to say music wouldn't be the same without these bands.
TO BE CONTINUED…
