Rocktology – Top American Bands Tournament
I’ve got to admit that The Cars winning our top American bands tourney was kinda unexpected. They completely dominated the F4, backing over Van Halen’s feet and then getting CCR with the door. Cheers to The Cars’ social media community, which came out in force when it counted most to support their boys. That’s right, I said…
Each of the four regions in this 64-band bracket-style tournament had its share of excitement. Region Red provided the first dramatic moment when the ghost of Glenn Frey rose up and hit a buzzer-beater in the final minutes to deliver the Eagles from a 1st round upset at the hands of Foo Fighters. Hell proceeded to freeze over in round 2, as The Cars unexpectedly rolled Henley & crew. Red also saw our first tie-breaker, with the good folks from the 360° Facebook page overwhelmingly declaring the White Stripes victors over Steely Dan.
Even though they were the top seed in Region White, it was still surprising to see the Creedence Clearwater Revival cruise to the F4 and into the final game. Not a ton of upsets in White, but there were some fun matchups. Motley Crue gently nudged Smashing Pumpkins in the 1st round, and then it was a clash of SoCal cultures v Beach Boys. White had some unintended symmetry as well with Beach Boys v Beach House and Black Keys v Black Flag.
Region Blue turned out to be the Pacific northwest region, with Nirvana, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam all representing. Interestingly, The Doors took each of them down in succession on their way to the F4. The Doors were also involved in one of the highest participation matchups in their 1st round duel with Cheap Trick; both squads enjoyed a lot of support. Blue provided the biggest surprise of the tournament as Weezer upset the Dead in round 1.
Fresh off their 360° career feature, “Dave Halen: The Real VH,” Van Halen came from a 5-seed and dominated Region Purple. VH upset VU in the Sweet 16, as the Velvets had trouble with the hard stuff, barely edging Aerosmith in the previous round. But Purple’s most exciting action came in round 2 as Talking Heads stormed from way behind to stave off an upset at the hands of Guns n Roses.
We’d like to personally thank everyone who voted and retweeted, particularly Mr. Mark Wiley and those good-time Detroit rockers The Beggars. Thx for letting yourselves be heard!
For those picking us up late, a quick reminder on inclusion and seeding. There was a small nominating committee with the following rules:
-List in ranked order of 10 American bands from each decade (1960s – 2010s)
-4 at-large picks.
-No “and the” groups (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)
-No primarily vocal groups (The Supremes, Temps)
-No artists that are really one person with rotating side contributors (Phosphorescent, Iron & Wine)
-Band’s 1st record release or decade of most influence considered (e.g. Soundgarden and Nirvana both debuted in the 80s but had their greatest impact in the 90s)
-Raw scores compiled to determine inclusion and seeding
-Bands not segregated by decade in brackets (top four with the lowest score received a 1 seed, next four received a 2 seed, etc)
Here’s how it played out…
Yes! Rocktology champions! First try!
Final Four
Region Red
- 1 The White Stripes 88
- 16 Cage the Elephant 12
- 8 Greta Van Fleet 32
- 9 Steely Dan 68
- 5 Pavement 69
- 12 Alabama Shakes 31
- 4 The Pixies 57
- 13 Jane's Addiction 43
- 6 The Shins 41
- 11 Red Hot Chili Peppers 59
- 3 The Stooges 100
- 14 The Record Company 0
- 7 The Eagles 52
- 10 Foo Fighters 48
- 2 The Cars 63
- 15 Tool 37
- 1 White Stripes 51
- 9 Steely Dan 49
- 5 Pavement 29
- 4 Pixies 71
- 11 Red Hot Chili Peppers 30
- 3 Stooges 70
- 7 The Eagles 45
- 2 The Cars 55
- 1 White Stripes 54
- 4 Pixies 46
- 3 Stooges 28
- 2 The Cars 72
- 1 White Stripes 39
- 2 The Cars 61
Region White
- 1 Creedence (CCR) 88
- 16 Tedeschi Trucks Band 12
- 8 Interpol 35
- 9 Hüsker Dü 65
- 5 The Black Keys 47
- 12 Black Flag 53
- 4 MC5 57
- 13 KISS 43
- 6 The Ramones 60
- 11 B52's 40
- 3 Crosby, Stills & Nash 95
- 14 The Strokes 5
- 7 Smashing Pumpkins 48
- 10 Motley Crüe 52
- 2 The Beach Boys 90
- 15 Beach House 10
- 1 CCR 74
- 9 Hüsker Dü 26
- 12 Black Flag 37
- 4 MC5 63
- 6 The Ramones 53
- 3 Crosby, Stills & Nash 47
- 10 Motley Crüe 41
- 2 Beach Boys 59
- 1 CCR 67
- 4 MC5 33
- 6 The Ramones 46
- 2 Beach Boys 54
- 1 CCR 56
- 2 Beach Boys 44
Region Blue
- 1 Nirvana 89
- 16 Protomartyr 11
- 8 Metallica 69
- 9 Parquet Courts 31
- 5 Lynyrd Skynyrd 72
- 12 The National 28
- 4 Wilco 55
- 13 LCD Soundsystem 45
- 6 Soundgarden 74
- 11 The Killers 26
- 3 The Grateful Dead 45
- 14 Weezer 55
- 7 Pearl Jam 69
- 10 Spoon 31
- 2 The Doors 55
- 15 Cheap Trick 45
- 1 Nirvana 63
- 8 Metallica 37
- 5 Lynyrd Skynyrd 55
- 4 Wilco 45
- 6 Soundgarden 81
- 14 Weezer 19
- 7 Pearl Jam 45
- 2 The Doors 55
- 1 Nirvana 70
- 5 Lynyrd Skynyrd 30
- 6 Soundgarden 46
- 2 The Doors 54
- 1 Nirvana 47
- 2 The Doors 53
Region Purple
- 1 Velvet Underground 88
- 16 Best Coast 12
- 8 Aerosmith 62
- 9 Sonic Youth 38
- 5 Van Halen 88
- 12 The Allman Brothers 12
- 4 The Replacements 59
- 13 The Byrds 41
- 6 The Doobie Brothers 37
- 11 Guns & Roses 63
- 3 Talking Heads 86
- 14 Queens of the Stone Age 14
- 7 Funkadelic 44
- 10 Green Day 56
- 2 REM 88
- 15 Dead Weather 12
- 1 Velvet Underground 52
- 8 Aerosmith 48
- 5 Van Halen 67
- 4 Replacements 33
- 11 Guns n Roses 45
- 3 Talking Heads 55
- 10 Green Day 19
- 2 REM 81
- 1 Velvet Underground 38
- 5 Van Halen 62
- 3 Talking Heads 48
- 2 REM 52
- 5 Van Halen 62
- 2 REM 38
