The constant suspense

What exactly is rock music?

Long hair, leather jackets, ripped jeans... yes and no;

Guitar, bass, drums... yes and no;

< p>Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Nirvana... yes and no;

Youthful freedom, hormonal impulse, deviance... yes and no;

Rhythm , lyrics, melody, dreams, truth, feeling, wildness, faith, power, anger... Yes, and no;

...

These are not rock music, it can also be said All, so what is the specific metaphysical definition of rock music? It seems to me now that raising this question is like setting a trap for myself, just like someone who is stupid enough to ask what true love is and whether there is true love in this world. Because there can never be a standard answer. Not all the time! Whenever you find that you are only one step away from touching the edge of the truth, but you don't know where a fork in the road appears. As long as you take a step forward, you will reach the truth, but this fork in the road will take you away. It leads you back to the original starting point, so your thinking has to start from the beginning again.

History Says

The first work in history to be labeled as rock and roll was "Rock and Roll All Day" recorded by white American musician Bill Haley in the mid-1950s ( Rock Around the Clock). At that time, Bill Haley was wearing a crisp suit and tie, with his hair combed shiny. If such a person walked on the street or stood on the stage today and sang this song, no one would think He was singing rock music, but history defines it as the first rock song. This is not surprising. It turns out that people still think that the sky is round and the earth is square. It turns out that people also think that the earth is the center of the universe! We can think of it as a joke played on us by the times. In this way, any specific definition seems to be relative, because times are changing, and people's fields of understanding are constantly expanding and changing.

The most difficult thing in the world is to define something, because it requires an accurate and concise description. The easiest thing in the world can also be said to be to define something, because you can completely give a concept according to your own way of understanding and level of understanding. So a long time ago, in the traditional consciousness of Chinese people, long hair and a leather jacket were rock and roll. Then some people think that rock is SOLO on the guitar, bass on the bass, and rhythm on the drums. Nowadays, some people say that rock and roll is a kind of spirit, but some people say that this is wrong. So with more and more doubts, I began to look through relevant books and information, and found the following definitions given by some so-called rock experts:

Grell Marcus is a well-known The author of the rock classic "Mystery Train", he believes that rock and roll is nothing more than "an American culture". For example, Elvis Presley is nothing more than "dramatizing the feeling of being an American and the meaning of this feeling." , values, and the pros and cons of American life.”

Carl Belz, in his book "Rock Story", regarded rock and roll as "folk art", a subconscious slang expression.

Charlie Luter calls rock and roll the "sound of the city" and believes that it is a new musical cry created by urban teenagers.

Jonathan Eisen called rock music "a rebellion against the hypocrisy of Western culture...a profound form of subversion" in "Rock of Ages".

Dave Harker used the Marxist theory of class struggle to analyze rock music in "Bang for Your Money" and considered it to be "working class culture"; while Paul Johnson analyzed rock music in "The New Statesman" The emphasis on rock music is a bourgeois conspiracy, the purpose of which is to recruit potential revolutionaries and make them "indulged in it and become numb, lazy and out of touch with reality."

Richard Goldstein believes in "The Poetry of Rock" that the most important feature of rock is still the unbridled squandering of youthful vitality...

Speaking of Here, I am reminded of the way American black musician Chuck Berry used his work to define rock music. This is also a piece from the early days of rock music in the 1950s, Johnny B, Good. It tells the story of a young man who plays guitar and leads to success. It uses narrative techniques to add a very attractive aura to rock music. Rock music can make an ordinary person lead to success and glory. This ordinary person does not need to have any knowledge of music theory or understand music, as long as he has an ideal, as long as he has the courage to sing what he thinks in his heart, as long as he is willing. It is also worth mentioning that on a spacecraft launched by the United States to alien creatures, this song was recorded on a CD as the essence of human civilization to express the achievements of earthly civilization.

Thus the authorities say

[Chinese characters are really interesting. Of course, the authorities here do not mean government authorities, but which "authorities" are "obsessed with".

]

What exactly is rock and roll with Chinese characteristics? Let’s take a look at what people inside and outside the Chinese rock music circle have to say, and we’ve heard a variety of opinions. Some people say that rock and roll is a kind of spirit and rebellion, some say it is a kind of self-catharsis and expression, some say it is freedom, some say it is anger, some cannot explain clearly, and others think rock music is Just a form of music. But from their words, we can hear a common feeling, that is, it is really difficult to define rock and roll because the problem is so big.

This problem is too big...it's really too big! It’s actually hard to define it even now, especially in Chinese, because everyone will say what do you mean by saying that, and what do you mean by saying that? I don’t think I should give it to rock. What defines it, anyway, it is a form of music. As for me, its meaning is that there are many, many (such) music that have affected my life and given me a lot of spiritual impact.

Overload’s lead singer: Gao Qi

Oh, my God, this, this, (define rock music) I’m a little afraid! I have been doing music for more than ten years. It can be said that I have been doing music for 20 years. I spent ten years studying folk music and another ten years getting into rock music. To tell you the truth, I started doing world music last year. I dare not say that I am very clear, but at least I can feel that I have realized some truth, and this is what I got. I think first of all, rock music is a reflection, and the most important thing is to reflect your mental state, your state of existence. It can be said that with your behavior, music has a relationship with you, integrates into your life, and touches every minute. I think this is such a state.

Cobra Girl Band drummer: Wang Xiaofang

How can I define this? I'm not at that level yet! This thing... still cannot be defined. It's like holding a rock and roll competition, who wins first place and who wins second place. I think this is unnecessary and a very funny behavior. So this definition cannot be given, we just make music. If this definition must be given, ROCK means... I still can't say it.

Translated band guitarist: Acura

Blurred and unclear, maybe because of the diversity of rock and roll. Picking one concept as rock from all the definitions, monographs or fans' feelings about rock is nothing more than blind obedience; and creating a definition from our experience and cognition is at best a disloyalty. The willfulness of responsibility. In fact, among the many rock musicians we mentioned, there are quite a few who say this.

Actually, at that time, I was not very clear about this concept. What I like very much is Heavy Metal.

At that time we thought of making this kind of music. When the band was named at that time, why it was called Black Panther was also related to our thoughts at the time.

Guitarist of the Black Panther Band: Li Tong

For us, rock music has always been a symbol of power, and for us, this power may be the key to our generation. It is a responsibility that everyone has, especially those of us who have received formal music school education. Our music must have a direction, rather than just playing casually like a lot of music nowadays - I am talking about myself. . We all have a reason, so as far as our original intention of making music is concerned, we must make a kind of powerful and healthy music.

Leader of Samsara Band: Wu Tong

I think it is an explosion and manifestation of oneself, and it is a true reflection of one's own ability and energy, which is very real.

Translated band and second-hand rose band bass player: Chen Jin

I think it is a challenge to people. It’s not easy for people to like it, especially in China. It can be said to be like a kind of blood that blends into your body. I have no awareness of it, and I don't think about it. I'm afraid that once I think about it clearly, I won't do it. There may be too many substantive things that I'm avoiding, because it has been true for so many years. Come and go, it’s so painful.

Leader of the Black Panther Band: Qin Yong

“Once I think about it clearly, I won’t do it.” This is really an interesting way of saying it, just like love ( It’s strange, I unconsciously used the metaphor of love again. What is the relationship between rock and roll? I don’t know!) When it’s all clear, it’s time to break up or get married. People who are really in love often There is no way to find the north. As anyone who has had a little exposure to rock will feel, although rock is first and foremost a kind of music, there are no complete musical elements in this music that can make people absolutely sure to distinguish it from other music forms. Completely differentiated. Its rhythm, instruments, volume, melody, and sound can all be found in other music forms, but the combination of these ubiquitous elements can enable people to determine whether a certain piece of music is rock. There is a sentence that may be more appropriate to express here: it can only be understood, but cannot be expressed in words. And this meaning sometimes does not entirely depend on musical elements. Rather, it depends more on history, on the all-encompassing spirit of rock, and on the beliefs of those who advocate rock. Faith creates spirit. In the Chinese rock circle, there are many people who believe that rock is a kind of spirit.

Now, to be honest, I think it is impossible to give it a precise definition. This is my opinion. From my understanding, I think rock and roll is a kind of spirit.

Former member of Seven Plywood Band: Wenbo

I think the most important thing about rock and roll is the spirit. Because of course the music is done very beautifully. There is really a lot of rock music that is very particular about it, but usually the rhythm, harmony, and melody in rock are very, very simple, because these three things are not for them. The most important thing is the word, which is a spirit.

Former member of Seven Plywood Band: Yang Le

Wenbo and Yang Le can be regarded as the earliest generation of rock people in China. They received traditional Chinese education, but their views are There is a striking resemblance to Guo Yiguang, the former guitarist of the Tang Dynasty Band, a Chinese-American who was educated in the United States since childhood.

Rock is a kind of spirit. Many people say this. I don’t think you need to think too much. If you know rock, you just know it in your bones. You don’t need to explain what it is. Anyway, I listen to music. This is rock and roll, this is not rock and roll, I don’t have a strict distinction.

Former guitarist and co-founder of Tang Dynasty Band: Guo Yiguang

I think mentally, for me, music is not important. I think in fact, as far as music is concerned, it is just a carrier, just like words, it is a carrier. But music is a little different from things like words. It’s the space that music gives you. For me personally, the reason why I choose this thing is because the space will be very large; things like writing are relatively specific. Sometimes, writing can make you...can give you...a A feeling.

Teacher and musician at the Central Conservatory of Music: Wang Yong

Hao Fang has this comment in his rock monograph "Suffering Flowers in Bloom": "If we talk about China before the 1990s, , rock and roll was just Cui Jian’s independent cry, the yearning and imagination of young people starting from "Gates of Eden". Now, it is resounding in every dance hall, every Walkman, and in every radio station, TV station and Big newspapers and tabloids have even become the most popular slogan, a verbal poster for any fashionable young person to show that he is not out of date. "But in the 21st century, those young people who once used rock and roll as a fashionable slogan have grown up. , maybe they are the famous Lao Wu, and they have already raised rock and roll to the level of humanity.

When I heard the sound of the guitar, I turned around. Now I have turned around several times. This sound is heard by everyone. Look, maybe this voice can solve some problems. There are also some people who refuse to admit defeat and want to go to the scene themselves to practice this kind of rock music. I see what kind of humanity I have unlocked and what kind of personality charm I have discovered after listening to rock music. This is all a process of people's experimentation. Rock music has already established some roots in China, and the flowerpot is almost ready to bloom. Everyone is doing soil work, including our current conversation, which is a kind of soil. The process of communication and introduction to the media is a kind of nutrition that is watered every day.

Former Tang Dynasty Band guitarist: Liu Yijun (Lao Wu)

I think it is difficult to give a definition of rock music. Maybe conceptually he should have his own definition. Doing things is still a way of feeling and living, or an attitude towards life. In fact, when I first started making rock music, I was completely vague. I didn’t start making such music after having a concept. It is a very natural beginning, or in other words, having a concept is also an experience along the way. I think rock and roll is a revolution, a revolution in culture and music.

Drummer of the Tang Dynasty Band: Zhao Nian

Speaking of revolution, I remember that The Beatles once had a very classic piece called "Revolution". If we talk about combining rock, humanity and revolution There are some strong words in connection, so what Hua Xin said is the true feeling of an old rock comrade.

Rock music means you have to have enough of it, and then you have to think about other things, which are a bit commercial, a bit vanity, and a bit narcissistic about yourself. But didn’t I say that sooner or later the environment will tell you what you do and what you want to eat. If you want to have enough, you will feel happy with what rock music brings to you.

Rock singer: Hua Zi

I think it is freedom, for me.

Rock artist: Qin Qi

At that time, it seemed that I didn’t think more about what rock music was like. At that time, the only thing Hou might have thought about was Cui Jian. He will write some of his thoughts into songs. No one else has thought about how high their music should be raised...

Rock may be more about venting anger.

Guitarist of the original Breathing Band: Cao Jun

In fact, when it comes to the concept of rock, there are often some conflicting opinions. For example, Cao Jun thinks it is a way to vent anger, while the Compass Band Guo Liang, the keyboard player, feels that this statement is wrong.

First of all, rock and roll does not represent anger or rebellious things. It may contain such elements, but it is not absolute.

Keyboardist of Compass Band: Guo Liang

Rock music is also a form of music for me, and then I have to be very myself and be able to express it without any restrictions. Technically speaking, rock music, for example, on drums, is not like the traditional music and ethnic music we make, which are all ready-made things on the score. There are very few of our own ideas in it. We can only add a little bit of our own in the musical expression techniques. thing. That's not the case with rock music. You can put a lot of your own ideas into it. I am more creative and more self-centered.

Drummer of the Black Panther Band: Zhao Mingyi

What is my current view on rock music... I think the music I make has rock music itself. Rock music is just a variety and an element. I could use that on something else, use that element. No matter what it is, I think it is more appropriate to put this thing here, and I can use it. For example, the music I create, I don’t think it’s just rock music, there are many popular things in it. For example, the model I’m standing on the stage now is a rock music model. I think it’s a revolution again. It can't be changed. I think the inclusiveness and diversity of music now may be particularly interesting. Just like in the past, one way of life or one kind of words was used to explain an environment, but now there are many kinds of words, just like Just like buying a household appliance now, it has translations in many languages. Right, I think music may be the same, but what’s different about music is that first of all, music doesn’t need to be translated, but if you can put a variety of different things in it, I think it will be very wide and big. .

Former member of the Tumbler band: Zang Tianshuo

From their answers, many people actually talked about diversity. For example, many people talked about this view: Wang Xiaofang, the drummer of the Cobra Girl Band, said that she has studied folk music and rock music, and is now doing world music; "Tang Dynasty" Lao Wu also said that making music should not have too many family concepts; the famous music critic Dai Fang also said that what he now calls rock music, in a broad sense, is all music that makes him happy. In fact, music should be treated tolerantly, and there should not be so many categories, categories, categories, etc. As long as it is real, it should have sufficient room for development.

In fact, any "standard" definition of rock may regard anything other than rock as rock and exclude true rock. Therefore, I respect and practice the strong sense of individuality shown in the most typical rock singers, and independently select the essence and dross of rock and roll. What is particularly important is that the premise of all our remarks is to first emphasize that rock is a kind of music and a kind of fun, but I also insist that rock is not just a kind of music, it is also the best way to judge and test the times and people's hearts. one.

What bystanders say

So many rock musicians have talked about their own understandings, and indeed there are different opinions. If their vague state of the concept of rock can be explained by the obsession of the authorities If so, can those who work, report and watch around them be able to see clearly?

As for the concept of rock music at that time, I think it was Cui Jian, because I had more contact with Cui Jian. Later, they started to play Tianshuo and Dingwu one after another. I feel like they have a spirit when they sing, but I can’t tell it right now. He Yong had a "Mayday" band at that time, so when everyone was together, I felt that when they sang, they were different from their normal state. Pop music also existed at that time. In 1986, Guo Feng held a concert called "Let the World Be Full of Love", a concert with 100 singers. During that time, I also met some people, and the situation was different. At that time, I only felt that they had something spiritual. But I couldn’t explain it clearly at the time. Later, I gradually cooperated, understood, and communicated with them, and communicated with people abroad. Rock music is about rhythm and spirituality in lyrics.

Famous manager: Wang Xiaojing

In my opinion, rock and roll does not have a strong concept, it is just different from the vulgar music and it feels better.

Famous recording engineer: Wang Xinbo (brother)

I think that for me, it is actually a spiritual temperament, and it is actually a brainwashing process. In fact, you have established your own value concept through this thing. This concept is actually, for example, you have some breakthroughs with the existing social system, even moral concepts, and some values. A very important thing about rock music is that you have to have something rebellious, a so-called, or different way of thinking.

MTV Director: Zhang Yang

First of all, the first one is rebellion against this society. I have my own opinions and express them in my own voice. I understand that Chinese rock music is such a kind of music.

MTV Director: Shi Yunjiu

Rock music is a way of expression and a way of life.

Former drummer and performance manager of the Tumbler Band: Li Ji

A way of expression, a way of life, and actually a way of performing. Rock and roll doesn't seem to be that simple. Speaking of this, I am reminded of John Lennon's classic work "Imagine".

In terms of the capitalist environment and values, this song is rebellious and alternative enough. He emphasized certain concepts of utopian socialism, and even after the song came out, it was banned in some Western countries. However, as far as music is concerned, if you hear this song for the first time, its beautiful melody and slow rhythm make it impossible for you to judge it as rock music. Therefore, any biased, one-sided and arbitrary definition is irresponsible.

The definition of rock music given by Mr. Zhang Chijun, who once worked as a legal consultant at Magic Rock Records, is quite intriguing.

Rock music itself is a lively music. I am not a music expert, but I can only say that it is a very lively and stimulating kind of music. For example, there are negative elements in its lyrics, which are not positive and healthy. But then again, aren’t there also negative things in popular songs? There are also negative things in the lyrics of popular songs...

Former legal consultant and lawyer of Magic Rock Records: Zhang Chijun

< p>Huang Liaoyuan and Dai Fang were basically the first media people in China to report on rock music. Since the 1980s, we can see various reports or articles they wrote about rock music appearing in newspapers, so they have a deep understanding of rock music. To some extent, it does represent the Chinese media’s understanding of rock music.

Rock music itself is a very commercial culture and a popular culture. What is special in China is that rock music is regarded as something related to avant-garde culture. In fact, rock music is a very commercial thing. I think the most successful rock music in the West is very commercial rock music.

Former Xinhua News Agency reporter, former Tang Dynasty band manager: Huang Liaoyuan

I think, as a kind of music, in a narrow sense, it is the kind of rock music back then. It was my favorite kind of music at that time, and I was at that age at that time. Apart from the special reason for my work and the need to report on this field, it was also my favorite thing; in a broad sense. Above, I mean that music is becoming more and more popular now, and I don’t necessarily mean rock music. I think any good music nowadays will... make you very happy, or make you feel fulfilled. That kind of thing.

Former "Beijing Youth Daily" reporter, current "Beijing Evening News" reporter: Dai Fang

How to put it, actually, I spent a lot of space trying to describe what rock and roll is. Like that, but then I used a method, I can clearly know what is not rock and roll, that is the way I used to define it. Because every listening experience tells me that it is actually difficult for you to tell people what rock and roll is, but if you hear a sound, the sound of a band, you can tell yourself immediately and clearly whether this is Rock and roll as you imagine it.