But do you have to be good at maths?

I have a soft spot for math rock. And no, you don't have to be good at maths to dig it.

Math rock is a sub-genre of progressive rock; a broad term which covers pretty much any style of rock that pushes the boundaries of conventional rock music. 

It's no secret that I'm a fan of the unconventional and math rock certainly fits the bill. So called because of it’s unusual, frequently changing time signatures; math rock has tight rhythms with precise changes in style and tone. There's lots of stopping and starting and changes in tempo. This creates a jarring affect which can feel a bit frantic. Math rock has unusual time signatures which are technically complex and harder to play, so people who play math rock are really skilful.

Math rock became a notable genre in the late 1980s - early 1990s and some my favourite bands that are considered math rock, like Polvo and Shellac, started back then. There's also a lot of great Japanese math rock bands like Tricot.

                               

I discovered math rock in my early 20s. I always listened to a lot of punk and post punk music and the math rock sound is not dissimilar. It's noisy, chaotic and often interspersed with delicate melodies. And it's powerfully emotive. But what really got me about math rock is all that noise and chaos is actually very controlled in a masterful way. I love that.

So, do you want to hear some math rock? Because I've got you covered! I've put together the perfect playlist so you can dive head first into the sonically complex world of math rock. All you have to do is hit play.