04/10/2023

By Juana Cheja

Remember those times where festival line ups were filled with bands? Or all those times spent watching black and white videos of groups of scrawny twenty-something year old guys in their skinny jeans and greasy hair singing about the strains of another breakup. I miss those days. 

Nowadays, artists seem to like being solo rather than in a group, and I'm no way throwing shade to any solo artist- though I still believe One Direction should have a reunion soon- but bands have this sense of unity and belonging that solo artists will never be able to accomplish.

Bands are kinda like the three musketeers, one for one and one for all, everything is done for everyone. It's a group of individuals who are working for the same common goal, having their music heard. Sure, some members are more known than others.

Like you’ve most probably heard an Oasis song, and probably have heard the names Liam and Noel Galgaher somewhere in your life, but i bet- even if you are a casual Oasis listener such as myself- probably have no clue who their drummer was. Let alone their bassist. 

But in the last couple of years we’ve been seeing less new bands in the spotlight. But why are there no new bands rising in popularity? Well the answer is social media. 

Many artists these days are promoting themselves and their work through social media platforms, such as tiktok and instagram, to get more recognition; and it's much easier to buy into the authentic idea of one artist rather than a group of four guys under the same social media platform. 

But there still are new bands coming through and breaking the industry. Wet Leg, a British indie rock group formed in 2019, demolished this year's music award season with their debut self-titled album Wet Leg. And bands like The 1975 and Arctic Monkeys are still touring and releasing new music. 

Although bands might be an artifact from the past, we can only hope for a moment where they will make a comeback. Until then, I will be listening to the old One Direction albums until more is- hopefully- released. 

Picture By: Hollie Fernando