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Ed Says. . . Why does no one write rock operas anymore?

A bit of a strange one this week, as something's been playing on my mind. It all started during one of my commutes to ABoF HQ - I went past a poster for "Rock Of Ages", and as a certain hairy TV personality stared down at me, I wondered whatever happened to rock operas, and more importantly, the concept album?

I enjoy a bit of musical theatre, and love a bit of theatre in my music, so album's like Bowie's Diamond Dogs (originally supposed to be the score for a 1984 musical), Pink Floyd's The Wall, The Who's Tommy, and pretty much anything by Rush always appealed to me. These were albums with narrative structure - each track told a story that fed into the overall experience of the album. You could dip into them now and then, but the best way to listen to these albums was from start to finish, preferably loud and with no distractions.

Now, I may just be out of touch, but it has been ages since I've heard a band attempt this in one of their releases, and I for one mourn the passing of the concept album.

Unfortunately, it's more than likely just a sign of the times. Now that people tend to download albums in dribs and drabs from iTunes, making a concept album must seem a waste of time to most musicians. But there are still some fans out there that'd love to hear one, and I'm one of them.