Hard rock

Search... All genres Rock Hard Rock Hard Rock 55,332 releases Hard rock is a subgenre of Rock music rooted in 1960s Blues Rock and Psychedelic Rock (especially its Acid Rock subgenre) music. Hard rock music always features distorted guitars and virtually always uses power chords, and frequently includes blues rock-inspired song structures and chord progressions. Flashy guitar solos are common, and vocals are typically sung in an aggressive manner. Hard rock was pioneered in the late 1960s by British artists such as The Who, Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Led Zeppelin, and Deep Purple, who were connected to the British Blues scene, as well as American artists such as Steppenwolf, Blue Cheer, and Grand Funk Railroad. The genre saw considerable commercial success in the 1970s, when artists including the USA’s Aerosmith and Scotland’s Nazareth imbued their heavy rock numbers with a more melodic sensibility and radio-ready production. The late 1970s saw the appearance of AOR, a commercialized derivative of hard rock. The music of AOR’s hit-makers such as Boston, Foreigner, and Styx was characterized by slick production, prolific balladeering, and Pop sensibility.