A Collective Study into The Power Trio

jastrub · 02-05-2011, 05:02 PM

Lately I've been thinking a lot about the concept of a power trio. Although I am a synth player, I do sincerely believe that the power trio is the purest musical form in Rock. It is to contemporary music as the string quartet was to Beethoven.

A lot of my favorite bands are power trios, the most notable of which are Rush and The Police. I also find that the bands that make me go "wow" tend to be power trios. An example of this would be Behold... The Arctopus; a band which I do not regularly listen to but which simply astounds me with its weirdness and the technical proficiency of the members.

So I would like to open up this commentary on power trios on this website, to find out what fellow music fans have to say about the construction. Some questions that I hope to answer include:

Is the power trio the purest musical form in Rock?
Is the power trio dying out or does it have current relevance and potential for a rebound?
Would the power trio be possible without modern studio wizardry, and do the countless overdubs that a power trio requires threaten their musical integrity?
What are the best power trios, and can we learn lessons from their success that could help us find out about the form as a whole?
Is a power trio still a power trio if, say, the guitarist is replaced by a synth player?
Are non-Rock trios that comprise bass, guitar and drums still power trios?
What is the history of the power trio?

Drumolator · 02-27-2011, 05:21 PM

I like power trios, and they are still relevent. It helps if at least one member can play more than one instrument. Here are some that I like:

Cream
Rush
Emerson Lake and Palmer
Jimi Hemdrix Experience / Band of Gypsys

Peace and goodwill.

02-05-2011, 05:02 PM	#1 (permalink)
jastrub Groupie Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 47	A Collective Study into The Power Trio Lately I've been thinking a lot about the concept of a power trio. Although I am a synth player, I do sincerely believe that the power trio is the purest musical form in Rock. It is to contemporary music as the string quartet was to Beethoven. A lot of my favorite bands are power trios, the most notable of which are Rush and The Police. I also find that the bands that make me go "wow" tend to be power trios. An example of this would be Behold... The Arctopus; a band which I do not regularly listen to but which simply astounds me with its weirdness and the technical proficiency of the members. So I would like to open up this commentary on power trios on this website, to find out what fellow music fans have to say about the construction. Some questions that I hope to answer include: Is the power trio the purest musical form in Rock? Is the power trio dying out or does it have current relevance and potential for a rebound? Would the power trio be possible without modern studio wizardry, and do the countless overdubs that a power trio requires threaten their musical integrity? What are the best power trios, and can we learn lessons from their success that could help us find out about the form as a whole? Is a power trio still a power trio if, say, the guitarist is replaced by a synth player? Are non-Rock trios that comprise bass, guitar and drums still power trios? What is the history of the power trio?

02-27-2011, 05:21 PM	#2 (permalink)
Drumolator Groupie Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: central Louisiana Posts: 4	I like power trios, and they are still relevent. It helps if at least one member can play more than one instrument. Here are some that I like: Cream Rush Emerson Lake and Palmer Jimi Hemdrix Experience / Band of Gypsys Peace and goodwill. __________________ Mark Wellman ><> Drum machines have no soul!