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Rock Sound

Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park on the cover of June 2014 edition
Categories	Music magazine
Frequency	Monthly
Circulation	14,057
First issue	1999
Company	WhyNow
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Website	www.rocksound.tv
ISSN	1465-0185

Rock Sound is a British magazine that covers rock music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, while also giving coverage to better-known acts. It generally focuses on pop punk, post-hardcore, metalcore, punk, emo, hardcore, heavy metal and extreme metal genres of rock music, rarely covering indie rock music at all. The tag-line "For those who like their music loud, extreme and non-conformist" is sometimes used. Although primarily aimed at the British market, the magazine is also sold in Australia, Canada and the United States.

History

The British edition of Rock Sound was launched in March 1999 by the French publisher Editions Freeway. The magazine was bought out by its director, Patrick Napier, in December 2004. The magazines offices are in London. Separate titles with the same name have been published under the same umbrella company in France since 1993, and in Spain since 1998.

The first issue was published in April 1999. Issue 2 featured British band Reef on the front cover, and later issues 3 and 8 featured Terrorvision and Foo Fighters respectively. In July 2011 a host of "Through The Years" articles were written to celebrate the 150th issue of the magazine. 2017 witnessed the first annual Rock Sound Awards where £1 from every magazine bundle sold was donated to the One More Light Fund in memory of Chester Bennington.

The magazine was known for including a free CD in most issues, which had tracks from bands' new albums that have not been released as singles. These were called '100% Volume' or 'The Volumes', with other past compilations named 'Music With Attitude', 'Bugging Your Ears!', 'Sound Check' and 'Punk Rawk Explosion'. Sometimes whole albums were included with the magazine, particularly from bands wanting to gain exposure, including Futures' debut album The Holiday in March 2010, and Burn The Fleet's debut album The Modern Shape in May 2012.

In more recent years, exclusive artist merchandise including t-shirts have been sold alongside the magazine via the Rock Sound web store.

In 2023, Rock Sound became part of WhyNow media group and a special edition magazine was published in partnership with Slam Dunk Festival featuring headliners Enter Shikari and The Offspring on the cover. A weekly digital cover feature, The Album Story, was also launched on ROCKSOUND.TV.

Rock Sound's 300th issue was published in September 2023 with Fall Out Boy, Corey Taylor and Motionless In White appearing on the cover. The magazine will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2024.

Audience

The magazine had a circulation figure of 15,005 from January to December 2010 auditored by ABC. This includes 10,162 sales in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and 4,843 from Other Countries. The same auditing body said the magazine had a slightly lower circulation figure of 14,227 from January to December 2011, with sales of 10,053 from the United Kingdom and Ireland, and 4,174 from Other Countries. The majority of sales come from newstrade, with some coming from subscriptions.

The main rival to the magazine in Britain is Kerrang! because of the similar types of music both magazines cover.

Album of the Year

At the end of every year the magazine lists their favourite 75 albums released in the previous twelve months.

• 1999 – Filter – Title of Record
• 2000 – A Perfect Circle – Mer de Noms
• 2001 – System of a Down – Toxicity
• 2002 – Isis – Oceanic
• 2003 – Hell Is for Heroes – The Neon Handshake
• 2004 – Isis – Panopticon
• 2005 – Coheed and Cambria – Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness
• 2006 – The Bronx – The Bronx
• 2007 – Biffy Clyro – Puzzle
• 2008 – Genghis Tron – Board Up the House
• 2009 – Mastodon – Crack the Skye
• 2010 – Bring Me the Horizon – There Is a Hell Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven Let's Keep It a Secret
• 2011 – Mastodon – The Hunter
• 2012 – The Menzingers – On the Impossible Past
• 2013 – letlive – The Blackest Beautiful
• 2014 – Lower Than Atlantis – Lower Than Atlantis
• 2015 – Bring Me the Horizon – That's the Spirit
• 2016 – Panic! at the Disco – Death of a Bachelor
• 2017 – All Time Low – Last Young Renegade
• 2018 – Twenty One Pilots – Trench
• 2023 – Sleep Token – Take Me Back to Eden
• 2024 – Twenty One Pilots – Clancy

Hall of Fame/Throwback

Rock Sound inducted numerous albums into its Hall of Fame, as part of a long-running feature. The main criterion for inclusion was thought to be influence – even within a particular genre – and for that reason many of the albums have been commercially successful as well as critically successful because they have then gone on to influence large numbers of bands or the music scene. Thus this differs from the Yearly Top Albums lists which do not take influence into account. In each article there was normally an interview with band members, a commentary on the album's release, a look at its initial success, and reaction from other musicians or participants in the album's creation - such as producers, engineers, and music video directors. Towards the end of this section's run it was renamed to "Throwback".

Album	Artist	Nationality	Year	Issue	Guest Writer
The Shape of Punk to Come	Refused		27 October 1998	#136, June 2010
Jupiter	Cave In		8 August 2000	#138, August 2010	Jacob Bannon of Converge
Weezer	Weezer		10 May 1994	#139, September 2010	Gustav Woods of Young Guns
Smash	The Offspring		8 April 1994	#140, October 2010	Frank Turner
White Pony	Deftones		20 June 2000	#142, December 2010
Jane Doe	Converge		4 September 2001	#145, March 2011	Winston McCall of Parkway Drive
Queens of the Stone Age	Queens of the Stone Age		22 September 1998	#146, April 2011
Hello Rockview	Less Than Jake		6 October 1998	#149, July 2011
Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation	Funeral for a Friend		20 October 2003	#151, Summer 2011
Tell All Your Friends	Taking Back Sunday		26 March 2002	#152, September 2011
Relationship of Command	At the Drive-In		12 September 2000	#153, October 2011
From Under the Cork Tree	Fall Out Boy		3 May 2005	#155, December 2011
New Found Glory	New Found Glory		26 September 2000	#158, March 2012
The Artist in the Ambulance	Thrice		22 July 2003	#159, April 2012
Good Mourning	Alkaline Trio		13 May 2003	#160, May 2012
Start Something	Lostprophets		2 February 2004	#161, June 2012	Aled Phillips of Kids In Glass Houses
Ideas Above Our Station	Hundred Reasons		20 May 2002	#162, July 2012	Rou Reynolds of Enter Shikari, Frank Turner
Suicide Season	Bring Me the Horizon		29 September 2008	#164, Summer 2012	Sam Carter of Architects
A Fever You Can't Sweat Out	Panic! at the Disco		27 September 2005	#165, September 2012	Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy Mike Ferri of We Are the In Crowd
The Used	The Used		25 June 2002	#166, October 2012	Chris Pennells of Deaf Havana
The Young and the Hopeless	Good Charlotte		30 September 2002	#167, November 2012
Alive or Just Breathing	Killswitch Engage		21 May 2002	#168, December 2012	Matt Heafy of Trivium
Ascendancy	Trivium		15 March 2005	#171, March 2013
What It Is to Burn	Finch		12 March 2002	#172, April 2013
The Bronx	The Bronx		26 August 2003	#173, May 2013
Love Metal	HIM		14 April 2003	#174, June 2013
Infest	Papa Roach		25 April 2000	#175, July 2013
Tomorrow Come Today	Boysetsfire		1 April 2003	#176, August 2013
As the Palaces Burn	Lamb of God		6 May 2003	#177, Summer 2013
Bleed American	Jimmy Eat World		24 July 2001	#178, September 2013
Take to the Skies	Enter Shikari		19 March 2007	#179, October 2013
Miss Machine	The Dillinger Escape Plan		20 July 2004	#180, November 2013
Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness	Coheed and Cambria		20 September 2005	#181, December 2013
Gutter Phenomenon	Every Time I Die		23 August 2005	#184, March 2014
Perseverance	Hatebreed		12 March 2002	#185, April 2014
Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water	Limp Bizkit		17 October 2000	#186, May 2014
A Place in the Sun	Lit		23 February 1999	#187, June 2014
The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait for Something Wild	Sikth		18 August 2003	#188, July 2014
Superunknown	Soundgarden		8 March 1994	#189, August 2014
Punk in Drublic	NOFX		19 July 1994	#191, September 2014
Hollow Crown	Architects		26 January 2009	#192, October 2014
Slaughter of the Soul	At the Gates		14 November 1995	#193, November 2014
Get Some	Snot		27 May 1997	#197, March 2015
Follow the Leader	KoЯn		18 August 1998	#198, April 2015
Crisis	Alexisonfire		22 August 2006	#202, August 2015
Nothing Personal	All Time Low		7 July 2009	#203, Summer 2015
The Gift of Game	Crazy Town		9 November 1999	#204, September 2015
Menace to Sobriety	OPM		15 August 2000	#205, October 2015
This War Is Ours	Escape the Fate		21 October 2008	#206, November 2015
Anthology	Alien Ant Farm		6 March 2001	#207, December 2015
The Best in Town	The Blackout		25 May 2009	#210, March 2016
Nightmare Anatomy	Aiden		4 October 2005	#211, April 2016
Saosin	Saosin		26 September 2006	#212, May 2016
Ocean Avenue	Yellowcard		22 July 2003	#213, June 2016
Billy Talent	Billy Talent		16 September 2003	#214, July 2016

Rock Sound Records

In 2019, Rock Sound introduced a new venture titled Rock Sound Records, a sub-brand of Rock Sound offering and distributing music in limited physical formats, such as cassette tapes and vinyl records. Generally, this involves the exclusive physical release of a record released by a band that is signed to a different (major) record label. For instance, the first Rock Sound Records release was a cassette tape version of Simple Creatures′ debut EP Strange Love, while the band is currently signed to BMG.

Discography

See also

• Kerrang!
• NME
• Metal Hammer
• Alternative Press

References

Citations

1. "Rock Sound Announces Fourth Consecutive ABC Increase". Rock Sound. 11 February 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
2. Rock Sound France – Oasis Cover
3. Rock Sound France – Marilyn Manson
4. Rock Sound France – Choix Des Critiques
5. Rock Sound Spain – Foo Fighters
6. Rock Sound Spain – Rammstein
7. Rock Sound – Covers 150
8. "Meet The Winners Of The First Ever Rock Sound Awards! – News – Rock Sound Magazine". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
9. Discogs – Rock Sound
10. Rock Sound – Digital Compilation
11. "whynow Media acquires Rock Sound". InPublishing. 2023-04-04. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
12. "Standard Certificate of Circulation: Rock Sound" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations (UK). Retrieved 5 September 2012.
13. ^ "Standard Certificate of Circulation: Rock Sound" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations (UK). Retrieved 2 October 2011.
14. ^ "Standard Certificate of Circulation: Rock Sound" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations (UK). Retrieved 5 September 2012.
15. "Consumer Magazines Combined Total Circulation Certificate: January to December 2013" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations (UK). Retrieved 7 August 2014.
16. "We Have Some Good News". Rock Sound. 11 February 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
17. Rock Sound (9 February 2017). "Rock Sound Announces Fourth Consecutive ABC Increase". Rock Sound. Freeway Press Inc. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
18. Rockmusiclists RS 1999–2006
19. RS MySpace Top 75 2006
20. Reuben Forum RS Top 75 2007
21. RS Top 75 2008
22. RS Top 75 2009
23. RS Top 75 2010
24. RS Album of the Year Countdown 2011
25. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2013 Part Five: 10 – 1". Rock Sound. 6 December 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
26. Bird, ed. 2015, p. 30
27. "Introducing Your 2018 Rock Sound Awards Winners – News – Rock Sound Magazine". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved 2018-11-30.
28. "Rock Sound's Top 50 Albums Of 2023 | The Album Story". Rock Sound. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
29. "Rock Sound's Top 24 Albums Of 2024". Rock Sound. 5 December 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
30. Rock Sound – June 2010
31. Jupiter Inducted Into Hall Of Fame
32. Rock Sound – September 2010
33. Rock Sound – Blue Album Indicted Into Hall Of Fame
34. Rock Sound – Smash Inducted Into Hall Of Fame
35. Rock Sound – December 2010
36. Rock Sound – March 2011
37. Rock Sound – Jane Doe Inducted Into Hall Of Fame
38. Rock Sound – April 2011
39. Rock Sound – July 2011
40. Rock Sound – Summer 2011
41. Rock Sound – September 2011
42. Rock Sound – October 2011
43. Rock Sound – December 2011
44. Rock Sound – March 2012
45. Rock Sound – April 2012
46. Rock Sound – May 2012
47. Rock Sound Issue 161
48. Rock Sound – June 2012
49. Rock Sound Issue 162
50. Rock Sound – July 2012
51. Rock Sound Issue 164, p.54-57
52. Rock Sound Issue 165, p.54-57
53. Rock Sound Issue 166, p.48-51
54. Rock Sound Issue 167, p.54-56
55. Rock Sound Issue 168, p.46-49
56. Rock Sound – March 2013
57. Rock Sound – April 2013
58. Rock Sound – May 2013
59. Rock Sound – June 2013
60. Rock Sound – July 2013
61. Rock Sound – August 2013
62. Rock Sound – Summer 2013
63. Rock Sound – September 2013
64. Rock Sound – October 2013
65. Rock Sound – November 2013
66. Rock Sound – December 2013
67. Rock Sound – March 2014
68. Rock Sound – April 2014
69. Rock Sound – May 2014
70. Rock Sound – June 2014
71. Rock Sound – July 2014
72. Rock Sound – August 2014
73. Rock Sound – September 2014
74. Rock Sound – October 2014
75. Rock Sound – November 2014
76. Rock Sound – March 2015
77. Rock Sound – April 2015
78. Rock Sound – August 2015
79. ^ GET YOUR WORLD EXCLUSIVE CASSETTE COPY OF SIMPLE CREATURES’ DEBUT EP FROM ROCK SOUND RECORDS
80. There's only 500 of these PUP 'Morbid Stuff' cassettes in existence! Don't miss out – they're exclusively available from Rock Sound Records., from Twitter.
81. Boston Manor Welcome to the Neighbourhood exclusively from Rock Sound Records
82. World Exclusive Real Friends 'Even More Acoustic Songs' Variant
83. ROCK SOUND RECORDS WORLD EXCLUSIVE: SUM 41’S ‘ORDER IN DECLINE’ ON CASSETTE
84. Crown The Empire on Twitter
85. Knocked Loose on Twitter
86. Rock Sound on Twitter

Sources

• Bird, Ryan, ed. (January 2015). "Top 50 Albums of the Year". Rock Sound (195). London: Freeway Press Inc. ISSN 1465-0185.

External links

• Official website
• French website

• 1999 establishments in the United Kingdom
• Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom
• Music magazines published in the United Kingdom
• Magazines established in 1999