When Rock ‘n’ Roll Legends Won’t Let Go

The legendary rock band The Rolling Stones is back at it again, teasing rumours about another album release in their six-decade discography. Guitarist Ronnie Wood has all but confirmed that fans should expect new music soon. Fronted by the iconic Mick Jagger, the English rock band is known for their songs ‘Paint It Black,’ ‘Angie,’ and ‘Sympathy For The Devil.’  These tabloid darlings shaped the public idea of a rock star from the heroin to the bohemian fashion statements. Except perhaps The Beatles, The Rolling Stones dominated the 1960s and the better half of the 1970s. They are among the longest-running touring bands of all time. It’s time the rock and roll hall of famers stopped. 

NAME DROPS ON ALBUMS

The Rolling Stones last released an album, ‘Hackney Diamonds,’ in the fall of 2023, to receive overall mixed reviews. On one hand, they received a Grammy nomination, and some critics argue that the album sounds as Stones-esque as any one of their cheesy 80s comeback songs, which is in itself a success given the span of their career. Many musicians hit their peak and go steadily downhill soon after, so props are due for their ability to stay in the spotlight even that long. On the other hand, many critics also commented on the cash grab to reel in more fame before hopefully going quietly into the light. These critics included musicians such as Damon Albarn of Blur and The Gorillaz, who scolded The Stones for their cheap use of Sydney Sweeney for their music video on the song “Angry,” and cast the name of their album as phony and inauthentic. The music video did, in fact, come off as a cheap ploy as it featured every music cliche in the book: a hot blonde in a convertible dancing to their music while billboards displayed old footage of The Stones in their glory days. 

The biggest critique that anyone should hold against their last album is that they included so many aged-out stars simply to garner more listeners. No one listens to or plays these albums because they are good, but because they want to hear their favourite artists play. The quality is no longer there, so the bands are resorting to flashy name drops to be featured on various songs throughout their poorly written albums in order to stay relevant. There was once a time when rock musicians, The Rolling Stones included, agonized over their music and wrote poetic lyrics that meant something. They created new sounds that could change lives and religions. Now they only write to sound like a shadow of their old selves, or do not even attempt to be listenable because they know it does not matter what they create. Similar to a famous author writing their name in bolder, larger print than a book’s title to boost sales, these artists know that because it came from them and because they included the right names, it does not matter how they sound, because people will listen in any way. The records will be bought because people have collections to complete. 

There is something to be said about just how starved the average rock fan is for new material. Rock has not been the dominant genre in decades, and new rock bands, especially rock bands that are not just derivative copies of the greats (looking at you, Greta Van Fleet), are few and far between. Perhaps fans would not be so willing to shell out their hard-earned cash if they had something new to listen to. But on the other side of that coin, maybe new bands would stand more of a chance if they did not have to compete on the same stage as aging rock stars who bring in listeners simply because of their past. 

FLASHY, OVERPRICED CONCERTS

The Rolling Stones are not the only aging bands making a return, as Rush has recently announced a new tour coming up in the near future. The same can be said, at least in the last five years, of Mötley Crüe and Guns N’ Roses. On the slightly younger side, Foo Fighters and Queens Of The Stone Age have announced a joint tour coming up in 2026. However, with some of these older bands, it seems as though the tour has more to do with making money than with the sanctity of the concert, as these bands put on flashier and flashier shows.

A concert at its core is a transcendent experience where the audience acts as a congregation comes together to worship the music and connect on a truly human level. It is a moment to celebrate something above us all, a movement truly bigger than yourself. We fought for rock in the 60s, and again in the 80s during satanic panic, and we have won. The war on rock today should be no different. The movement is not an idiotic consumerism-driven industry of cool for hollow rockstars to pervert. If the cost of the average concert for a young band or music festival was not enough, the aging rockstar coming back into the spotlight for a cash grab feels almost like the final nail in a concert experience. 

Mötley Crüe, kings of music consumerism, sold out before they peaked—so it should really come as no surprise that to this day they are guilty of the same cynicism towards their audience by putting on a show of flashing lights, strippers, and autotune instead of a great musical, soulful performance. Their 2022 stadium tour, and even more recent tours, starring new guitarists and AI-written songs, have shown that the band is nothing if not consistent. In some ways, it can be hard to blame Mötley Crüe for disregarding the quality of their sound for shock value, after all, flashy lights and outlandish clothing to cover up an only slightly catchy song was the definition of hair metal. Perhaps having to compare actual great rock bands, like The Rolling Stones, to Mötley Crüe is what makes this all so painful. But today, the greats, the legends, and the founding fathers of the movement that is rock n’ roll have taken the same stance. These concerts are no longer about the music, but catching a cool show that just might be the last one of an old artist. Mick Jagger may still strut on a stage, and his voice may still be incredibly impressive for a man in his 80s, especially when compared to the likes of a modern-day Vince Neil or Axl Rose, but there is no denying that the focus of the concert has drifted from the music and towards cool, flashy lights and extras. People no longer go just because of the community or the shared experience, but for bragging rights. 

This can in part be blamed on the cost of concerts. It is hard not to pervert what has already been raped by a money-hungry industry. It is easy to believe that a younger band, one without such a strong and reliable fan base, might give in to the pressures to create a more “interesting show,” but a band of The Rolling Stones’ calibre should not have to stoop this low. 

THE GRAMMYS

It is not only the rise in overpriced, underperformed concerts by once great rock stars, but the continued making of albums that feel like they were meant just to make money. The Rolling Stones themselves have admitted to using AI in some of their new songs, and you can feel the lack of heart. In an interview with NME, Keith Richards even expressed joy at the idea of using AI to bring back Nirvana. If one wanted to see the catastrophic effect of worshipping money-hungry rock stars, they need look no further than the Grammys. The music from the greats no longer needs to be great because, as long as it is from them, it is sure to win an award and push out new, more deserving artists. The winner of the 67th Grammy Best Rock Performance award, in the year 2025, was The Beatles for their partially AI-written song “Now And Then.” This is not to say that the surviving Beatles should be criticized for using AI – if anything, they are the only band that should get a pass. The Beatles were known to experiment with new technology to create records. They revolutionized the music industry and made it into what it is today. For a song that was clearly an homage to Lennon, it is fitting that it is something that he would want. However, they should not have won a Grammy in the year 2025. Half the members aren’t even with us anymore. 

It is not just the winner that is so upsetting about the Grammys this year, but the nominations themselves. The Rolling Stones were nominated for their latest album “Hackey Diamonds,” and were named along with other ancient bands such as Pearl Jam, Green Day, and The Black Crowes. The Black Crowes’ latest work isn’t even listenable to their fans. Their return to releasing music has been disappointing at worst and forgettable at best, which is incredibly disheartening for what was once such a talented and soulful band. These bands should let us remember them as they were rather than watch them slowly descend into unlistenable dribble. These bands are not only killing their image but also the memory of what was once a great time in music history. When one thinks of The Rolling Stones, they should think of “Gimme Shelter” or “Mother’s Little Helper,” not whatever they have released to sell an album and make a few bucks now.

Long Live Commercialized Rock

There is seemingly no end to the overproduced new music, providing more flash than value in concerts. These “legends” will only continue to stomp out what listeners once loved about rock because they have no incentive to change. They keep releasing new music, which will push out any new artist from Grammy nominations and sell out stadium tours with little to no push back, because the rock scene is so bare that fans are just happy to have something vaguely new. What all this inauthenticity becomes is alienation and ultimately contempt for listeners, as artists cannot have respect for an audience that is willing to pay for anything regardless of quality. So the records, sorry, the vinyl, keep selling at 50 bucks a pop. The stadium tour sells out. The aging rockstar brings home another Grammy, and the movement becomes nothing more than a dream some of us had. If the fans are going to keep buying, and money is still to be made, then there is no hope until the last of the original rock stars die out. But what will be left of rock then?