Stevie G: Where have all the bands gone?

Where have all the bands gone? 

In mainstream rock and pop, and other musical genres, the bands have largely been replaced by individual acts, while in hip-hop and R&B, the pattern continues. On a grassroots level, bands and collectives still prosper but overall, music has become more about solo acts in the last 20 or so years.

First up, let’s make this clear. Bands are not over, and certain music genres will never die. We are very lucky in Cork to have a really impressive music scene for our size, and there are numerous young bands across the spectrum of rock, alternative, punk, metal, and even pop. We have festivals, such as Upstart, showcasing these bands, while numerous events in Cyprus Avenue, Cork Opera House, Coughlan’s, The Kino, The Everyman, Fred’s and the Crane Lane, amongst others, have provided a stage for multi-band showcases.

It’s always been the way in Cork, and it’s a grassroots scene that includes numerous bars and venues and record shops, and other crucial points of contact for musicians and artists. There is pretty good cross-genre, collective co-operation between music and other art forms here, too, and I’m very excited about what I’m seeing from young people in 2025.

There are probably many reasons why the individual is being pushed more than the band these days. We definitely live in a different world than 30 years or so ago and, socially, youngsters are possibly more isolated, despite, or maybe even because of, social media. More teenagers are doing things alone, and the boredom from back in the day is possibly being replaced by screen time rather than playing guitar.

I’m not qualified enough to give an intellectual breakdown on all of this, and it’s just speculation. Teenagers will always be interested in music. But, these days, the pathways into that world are much more accessible, with cheap audio recording gear and lots of this favours individuality, rather than collective band practice. Introverted youngsters can make a mark in this world online and share files easily with people they’ve never met before. In the 1970s and 1980s, more people would have been meeting each other and there would have been fewer distractions.

Space is another big problem.

Teenagers, or anyone into music, can bang out tracks on their headphones with a laptop now, and they don’t necessarily need the space to jam. Space was always hard to find, but these days more parents, or bigger brothers or sisters, are at home longer and it’s harder to make noise.

Or to find room. I’ve often mentioned that renting a room to live in is very difficult for this generation, but finding somewhere to practice music is equally difficult. Many youngsters don’t have access to such space in schools, and, as a youth worker, I can tell you that we are massively lacking youth facilities and space here.

Record labels probably favour acts that are more contained and easier to manage than bands, and any band that does have success is almost immediately under exterior pressure from those who feel that certain individuals should go solo. This has always been the way to some degree, but in the YouTube/SoundCloud/TikTok era many youngsters break through individually on social media and may feel that they can do more themselves. Many can upload their own music to streaming without need for managers or labels.

As always, the music industry remains treacherous and dreams can often be dashed, but the simple act of making music or jamming is enough for many of us.

Hip-hop’s popularity often favours the individual these days and most of the great groups (NWA/Public Enemy/A Tribe Called Quest/The Roots) are either mainly legacy acts or gone, while in R&B you could say the same regarding TLC, En Vogue, SWV and many more.

A rapper or a producer or singer can quite easily develop individually in 2025, but the collective sharing of ideas in person is good for artists, too.

Sure, we can learn everything on YouTube and get feedback and help online, but there is nothing like developing ideas and making mistakes and occasional magic in the presence of friends or other like-minded music fans.

Bands and groups may not quite be at the forefront of things right now, but they will always be a part of the music scene, no matter what.