Gene Simmons famously declared that “rock’n’roll is finally dead” somewhere around the middle of this decade. Pointing the finger at file-sharing for what he called the “murder” of the genre, he railed against modern technology and what he perceived as the decade’s lack of talent, decrying the absence of a “next Bob Dylan” in modern music’s landscape.
But pay no attention to uncle Gene. Firstly, he’s been saying this sort of thing since 1993, and we all know how the 90s panned out in terms of rock’s legacy. Secondly, a quick scan of the list of albums below will show you that rock music’s been plenty busy over the last 10 years.
Rock’n’roll mainstays AC/DC released Rock Or Bust, an album we felt “placed its faith at the feet of rock‘n’roll, both as a restorative force and also as a vaccine against all ills” when it was released in 2014. Fellow veterans Tom Petty, ZZ Top and Rush all joined them in releasing belters at various points throughout the decade.
But there’s been plenty of new blood making their mark on the decade, too. The Struts cemented their profile with two swaggering albums – 2014’s Everybody Wants and 2018’s Young & Dangerous – their success helped in no small part by the impossible charisma of vocalist Luke Spiller. Who says we don’t have any rock stars anymore? Low Cut Connie, Idles, Fantastic Negrito and Courtney Barnett all furnished us with future classics.
Now, as the decade’s close creeps into view, we’re asking you to cast your mind back over the past 10 years and tell us which albums defined the decade for you. We’ve got you started with a long-list below, but it’s by no means exhaustive, so there’s an option to add your own at the bottom. You’re allowed 10 votes – one for each year, perhaps? – so make them count.
We’ll be releasing the results at the end of the year, so be sure to check back then to see how your favourites fared.
Vote for the best rock album of the decade