Hanako yamada

Dr. Jim Kline

Esol 1309

Rock pop and Heavy metal

Even though Rock pop and Heavy metal sprung from the same genre (Rock & roll) their differences are notable. They came from the same root, but they emerge on different times. In addition, they also differ in musical sound (instruments), lyrics and audiences.

Let me start first with the beginning of Rock Pop. It started approximately in the 1950. This genre is named Rock pop, because is a mixture of pop (popular), that’s means that is heard by many people and Rock because it has the best part of Rock music, like lyrics and great production level.

In contrast, heavy metal sprung after, around the 1970. With a great legend like Led Zeppelin, some fanatics call him the father of Heavy metal. Many groups like Iron Maiden, kiss and metalica came up with this loud metal noise, wearing weird clothes and make up. And once again, they made a new type of Rock music.

The instruments that Pop Rock groups and singers used are the acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums, piano, organ and bass. Like in the song of Sheryl crow, a rock pop veteran, in her song “soak up the sun” she use only a keyboard, acoustic guitar, bass, lap steel, drum and drum programming. Now with the technology, many artist use more instruments and music programmers, even they can use classic instruments. For example in the song “Clocks” the British band Colplay played in conjunction with the New York symphony, without leaving their basic instruments.

On the other hand, the Metal bands use electric guitars, bass, and drums. Like the German metal group Rammstein, they use 2 electric guitars, bass, keyboards and drums. It is rare that a metal group use a keyboards, but Rammstein only used it on intro’s and outro’s as you can notice in the song “Du hast”(you have).

The rock pop and heavy metal differs also in lyrics. Rock pop lyrics are about love, real life problem or important issues like politics. For example, “Soak sun” lyric is about how people complain about material things, instead of enjoying life and appreciate the things you have.

Compare with Rock pop, Heavy metal lyrics are about anger, violent, sex, darkness and why not some of them are about love. The song “Du hast”, is weird and confusing because you do not know what the German group really want to say with this song. The first par of the lyric they only sing “du Hast”(you have)”du hast mitch”(you have me) and continue with “Du hast mich gefrag” “Du hast me ich nichts gesagt” (you asked me and I have said nothing), the song repeats this words again and again.

Whereas Rock pop is generally heard by young male and female people, because it is very popular and good rock music, Heavy metal is primary heard by male audiences, that does not mean that they do not have female audiences, and also the majority of audience and players are white.

In conclusion, Rock pop is more soft and heavy metal is noisy, they are like white and black colors. They evolve from the same root but you an notice the difference just by hearing the songs.