Sports Rock

batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
edited March 2014 in Strut Central
Im sick of hearing that late 70's/early 80's mid-uptempo hard rock guitar for most of the commercials in sports radio/tv.

That ESPN theme is tired. Hard Guitars..........

What era is that sound (whats Bands pleez....AC/DC?), and do 20 somethings listen to Rock that sounds like that.

Im cool w/ Classic Rock and all that, but shit seems so stuck in that specific style.

Arent there any other instruments u could use to market that same style?

Bass solos, Drums Solos?

U still get that slow hard Blues Rock underneath a truck or jack daniels ad but cmon.

Im talkin w/ the Sports realms. Weve had plenty of other Genres get repped on various commercials.
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  • DuderonomyDuderonomy Haut de la Garenne 7,789 Posts
    )

  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Hard Pop Rock

  • )


  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    You have to really really really love sports to listen to (mostly) idiots talking about it with the constant interruption of those guitars and shouting pitch men.

  • Sheeeeeit, y'all are talking my language. This is my line of work!

    Part of the reason for the staying power of the classic rock sound is that the executives who make a lot of decisions grew up with that sound. That said, the last few themes I've worked on, the number one piece of advice I've give composers is: make a cool piece of music, we'll find a way to use it as a theme/intro. If you set out to write a theme, you will sound like the recycled garbage that Batmon is mad about.

    Sports Center may be tired, but that jingle is memorable. That "na-na-na--na-na-na," is what everybody is after.

    CBS uses their NFL theme for NFL only; Fox uses their NFL theme for all their sports... Different philosophies for different networks.

    Sports library music? Oof. That's some brutal shit, y'all.

  • i think it's pretty amazing that "beautiful people" by marilyn manson has made it's way into the sports arena pantheon.

  • the colbert's "sport report" theme music pretty much nails it.

    went to a pro hockey game for the first time in about 15 years recently and they merked the organist, it's piped in shit along the lines of "

    AC/DC: back in black/ you shook me
    BTO: takin care of bizness
    Doors: roadhouse blues
    Van Halen - jump
    Chubuwumba- hey now, you're an allstar
    Guns n' Roses- paradise city

    mixed in with more recent-ish rock like greenday, fallout boy, etc.

    you know, i think they choose this familiar dreck because it appeals to most of those drinking the 10 dollar beers.

  • Mike Pesca pointed out once that Chris Berman referencing Bachman Turner Overdrive was now referencing a 40 year-old song. Or, put another way- when BTO came out, it would be the equivalent of referencing Glenn Miller.

  • frat boy rap is another strain of "sports rock"

    eminem - lose yourself
    macklemore
    beastie boys- license to ill era stuff like "no sleep till.." and "fight for your right"
    young mc/tone loc/run dmc - nostalgic stuff from late 80's that you rap along with ironically

  • undisputed king of sports arena rock



    :game_over:

  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    im not talmbout the hits that get played at the arenas...im talmbout the music underneath the show themes and the commercials...



    Your telling me that the 20 - 40 demographic listens to that sound STILL?

    I know like the ads for trucks and shit is for older dudes w/ money so they cater to that crowd.
    The stereo magazine showcase the newest music to play on the newest equipment and they are talmbout getting Deep Purple and shit ( iget that old rich dudes can afford it), but damn, hasnt there been any change in mainstream Rock taste since 2000 to change the advertisement music?

    or in a another genre.......and its prevalent there too...Comic book tv & films......

    and......




    "WHoooooooooooooo...AWESOME!!!!!!"

  • skelskel You can't cheat karma 5,033 Posts
    There's two anthemic strands of "rock" that will never lose credibility: Blitzkrieg Bop and Ace of Spades

    Do it, sports Muzak dudes

  • I think I get what 'Mon is asking here and I'm afraid the simple answer is twofold.

    1) Your basic mainstream sports consumer in his white ram 500 listens to the clasicrock on the radio all day long
    in the majority. He may HAVE newer music, but at the work site and on the drive home it"s 102.Whatever.

    2.) Nostalgia makes us comfortable and the average Joe just wants to be comfortable. You can cast a much wider
    net with nostalgia than trying to be current or relevant..

    My Oh Two

    .Interesting topic.

  • And I get that you are referencing the STYLE of the music cues on sports shows.

    Seems like there is a formula of rawk guitar and compressed drums and even melodic themes that these cats
    have deemed to be hitting the classic rock comfort chords that lull the Rickeys into continual comsumption of
    talking head analysis.
    If you notice, the more conservative news networks use the same musical ploy..

  • I think that kind of rock also has the feeling/attitude that fits sports. Aggressive and fun while a lot of modern pop rock is moody or schmaltzy.

  • vinylstalker said:
    1) Your basic mainstream sports consumer in his white ram 500 listens to the clasicrock on the radio all day long
    in the majority. He may HAVE newer music, but at the work site and on the drive home it"s 102.Whatever.

    I don't think that's true anymore. I think more of those guys are listening to horrible New Country shit than anything else. But they can deal with classic rock okay, too, and recognizable riffs go a long way.

  • ppadilhappadilha 2,244 Posts
    gareth said:
    Fox uses their NFL theme for all their sports

    Fox launched their soccer channel in Brazil 2 years ago and I'm still dealing with the cognitive dissonance of hearing their NFL theme every time a goal is scored.

    b/w

    Cock Rock still seems to be the soundtrack of choice when advertising dudes think of mainstream 'merica. Even if it's tiring, it's largely inoffensive and has that "America, fuck yeah!" attitude that they want for selling cars/beer/sneakers/insurance/herpes meds/whatever. I can see Frat Rap taking its place eventually.

    People still sing "Take me out to the ball game," right? How long has that been around?

  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Take Me Out To The Ball Game is some traditional chant.....its not being overused to promote many sports.

    Im just perplexed that the RAWK style hasnt progressed since Carter has been in office.

    Your telling me that a great drum solo couldnt be incorporated? An aggressive Bass riff?

    Im trying to kinda give props to Classic Rock and ask the gatekeepers and their robots to ROCK another angle at the very least.

  • batmon said:
    Take Me Out To The Ball Game is some traditional chant.....its not being overused to promote many sports.

    Im just perplexed that the RAWK style hasnt progressed since Carter has been in office.

    Your telling me that a great drum solo couldnt be incorporated? An aggressive Bass riff?

    Im trying to kinda give props to Classic Rock and ask the gatekeepers and their robots to ROCK another angle at the very least.

    Rock bass and drum solos are horrible.

  • jleejlee 1,539 Posts
    crabmongerfunk said:

    Chubuwumba- hey now, you're an allstar

    I am so very ashamed to read this thread and my first point of contention is that you either meant Chubuwumba "I get knocked down" or Smashmouth's "allstar"

    So very ashamed...

  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Otis_Funkmeyer said:
    Rock bass and drum solos are horrible.


    If this was a separate question thread would dudes post up counter examples or agree w/ this sentiment?

    Are there NO memorable Bass, Keyboard, and Drum (or altogether) Riffs that could be played underneath a commercial that could invoke Classic Rock Nostalgia?

    The bassline/keyboard to Frampton's Do You Feel Like I Do?

  • parallaxparallax no-style-having mf'er 1,266 Posts
    batmon said:


    Im just perplexed that the RAWK style hasnt progressed since Carter has been in office.

    Your telling me that a great drum solo couldnt be incorporated?

    Right. But what's the aim of the music? It's not meant for public consumption. No one's trying to sell records or win a Grammy with that shit. I would guess that sound managers are appealing to a (largely white, middle aged male) demographic.

  • batmon said:
    Otis_Funkmeyer said:
    Rock bass and drum solos are horrible.


    If this was a separate question thread would dudes post up counter examples or agree w/ this sentiment?

    Are there NO memorable Bass, Keyboard, and Drum (or altogether) Riffs that could be played underneath a commercial that could invoke Classic Rock Nostalgia?

    The bassline/keyboard to Frampton's Do You Feel Like I Do?

    Yeah I was being a little flippant. Just going along with the "blick-mmm-blick-mmm" caricature of rock drum solos and that old joke about the remote island where the native drums never stop playing because then the bass solo would start.

  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Isnt this classic rock sound the same as 90s country?
    HWjr's MNF theme?

  • asstroasstro 1,754 Posts
    batmon said:
    Otis_Funkmeyer said:
    Rock bass and drum solos are horrible.


    If this was a separate question thread would dudes post up counter examples or agree w/ this sentiment?

    Are there NO memorable Bass, Keyboard, and Drum (or altogether) Riffs that could be played underneath a commercial that could invoke Classic Rock Nostalgia?


    The only bass/drum intro that matters:


  • jjfad027jjfad027 1,594 Posts
    Otis_Funkmeyer said:


    Rock bass and drum solos are horrible.

    But drum and bass would work. Can I get an AMEN!

  • dukeofdelridgedukeofdelridge urgent.monkey.mice 2,453 Posts
    Dodge is sponsoring Motley Crue's final tour, and they're using "Kickstart My Heart" in a song that references speed metal:




    This angers me.

  • JacksonÔÇÖs choice of monicker possibly has Crip implications. The record label he founded is named Jaccpot Records and his Instagram handle is jaccpot10. As the article notes, ÔÇ£Crips avoid putting a ÔÇÿCÔÇÖ next to a ÔÇÿKÔÇÖ because in gangspeak, that stands for ÔÇÿCrip Killer.ÔÇÖÔÇØ The detective asked Jackson about that, and Jackson reportedly told him that he chose to call his label Jaccpot Records because a domain for Jackpot Records was not available. There are also several previous and existing labels that go by the name of Jackpot Records, including the current Portland-based outfit that has re-released albums by the likes of Jandek. I just wanted to include Jandek in a story about DeSean Jackson, sorry.

    http://grantland.com/the-triangle/desean-jackson-faq-what-the-eagles-were-thinking-and-where-we-go-from-here/

  • HorseleechHorseleech 3,830 Posts
    dukeofdelridge said:
    Dodge is sponsoring Motley Crue's final tour, and they're using "Kickstart My Heart" in a song that references speed metal:




    This angers me.

    I've always referred to the music discussed in this thread as 'Chevy Metal'.
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