Art Rock is a subgenre of Rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to Rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art Rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an artistic statement, opting for a more experimental and conceptual outlook on music. Influences may be drawn from genres such as Experimental music, Avant-garde music, Classical music and Jazz.

Art Rock was created with the intention of listening and contemplation rather than for dancing, and is often distinguished by the use of electronic effects and easy listening textures far removed from the propulsive rhythms of early Rock. The term may sometimes be used interchangeably with “Progressive Rock”, though the latter is instead characterised in particular by its employment of classically trained instrumental technique and symphonic textures.

Compared to Experimental Rock, Art Rock artists may exist within a specific Rock discipline while only loosely interpreting other influences, employing them as tools of expression rather than functioning within them. This allows artists to contrast unorthodox production, structure, or instrumentation with a conventional performance style. Art Rock is often perceived as having a higher level of ambition than other Rock acts; artists attempt to expand Rock’s creative potential using albums as a lyrical and thematic whole, although the “concept album” would later lose its exclusivity.

The music, as well as the theatrical nature of performances associated with the genre, was able to appeal to artistically inclined adolescents and younger adults, especially due to its virtuosity and musical/lyrical complexity. Art Rock is most associated with a certain period of Rock music, beginning in 1966-67 and ending with the arrival of Punk Rock in the mid-1970s. After, the genre would be infused within later popular music genres of the 1970s-90s.

The main source of Art Rock is British art schools of the 1950s and 60s, exposing artists to music as an academic field and a more conceptual approach to music theory. The production of Pop artists such as The Beach Boys also motivated experimentation with soundscapes, popularizing the view of production as a means of expression. The DIY, multi-influence explosion of Psychedelic Rock and Garage Rock also gave outsiders to pop more motivation to experiment within traditional structures.

This led to its birth in the United Kingdom. The Who’s Tommy became definitional to both Art Rock and the Rock Opera, and The Beatles’s avant-garde production techniques strengthened ties to Classical music and Psychedelia. The genre’s greatest level of popularity was in the early 1970s through British artists. British acts in the 70s began to use the counterculture of Glam Rock as a sonic basis, with Roxy Music further popularizing Art Rock for a British audience. Band member Brian Eno then stressed the role of production with his work for David Bowie, connecting Art Rock to Krautrock and Ambient. His abstract production and integration of new technology became defining characteristics of the genre.

In the United States, The Velvet Underground, experienced in the drones of Modern Classical, led a shift to transgression in the ethos of Rock. The concept, technicality, and non-rock influences of Progressive Rock also served as a starting point for bands such as Pink Floyd and King Crimson. Both grew parallel to each other, although Art Rock’s eclecticism extends beyond Jazz and Classical music structures.

Despite Punk later dominating Art Rock’s niche, New Wave acts of the 80s and Alternative Rock of the 90s often embraced its influence. Radiohead, inspired by Bowie, leaned into electronic and minimalist aesthetics after the rise of the nostalgic Britpop. Early strains of Post-Rock such as Talk Talk further stressed Art Rock’s atmospheric tendencies, drawing further from Jazz. Although now distant from the peak of its popularity, Art Rock persists in the present day through indie artists such as St. Vincent and the Post-Rock-inspired Black Country, New Road.

sources: discogs, wikipedia, rateyourmusic