If a person was born in the last 30 years they would probably say that acoustic music is a stripped down form of the raw energy that music of today possesses. However, someone a little older than that, that can remember artists like Johnny Cash, and what music was like before electronic amplification might have something else to say about it.

The Death and Revival of Acoustics

During the 50’s, acoustic was the most prevalent form of music, but as amplified music became more popular, people started throwing away their acoustic guitars and banjos and moving on to electronic instruments. The advent of the Punk genre had a lot to do with this movement away from acoustic. Rock bands like Led Zeppelin, and the even earlier Jimi Hendrix Experience helped to usher in the new era of rock, but punk was the straw that finally severed the cord entirely because it was a genre of music that simply couldn’t exist without amplifiers and plugs of all kinds. It needed to be sloppy and juvenile and so loud it would break your eardrums. Something as simple as that needed a full on onslaught, and once this genre became fully popularized by groups like the Ramones and the Sex Pistols, acoustics became a thing of the past.

Recently though, there has been a revival of interest in acoustic music. Once punk faded out of the scene, and the softer lighter genre that we refer to as indie became the cool thing, a new attitude toward acoustic started to emerge as well as a new interest. People saw acoustic music as being more heartfelt and more down to earth. It was generally well received when a group did an entire acoustic set of their normally amplified music at concerts. As of 2011, audiences appreciate acoustic music more than ever before thanks to this renewed interest.

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