Editing Arena rock (section)

==Critical perspectives==
[[Ethnomusicology|Ethnomusicologist]] Chris McDonald of [[Cape Breton University]] has argued that the label of a musical artist as "arena rock" and "old wave", done by music critics dismissively, originates from a background of [[Class discrimination|classism]] influenced by [[modernism]]. Thus, mass popularity is put forth as an argument ''against'' perceived artistic merit, through the eyes of critics focused on [[high culture]] while disdaining market forces, particularly given the white, [[working class]] to [[middle class]] makeup of the fans. Focusing on the Canadian trio [[Rush (band)|Rush]], McDonald stated that the panning of the group as "dazzling yet empty" due to the musicians' focus on rock spectacle is a consequence of critics' [[psychological distance]] from the "[[middlebrow]]" populace that listens to them.{{sfn|McDonald|2009|pp=54–56, 62–65, 196–206}}

The use of commercial sponsorship for the large-scale tours and concerts of the 1970s, a practice that continues, has caused the music to pick up the pejorative label of being "corporate rock".{{sfn|Reynolds|Webber|2004|p=24}}{{sfn|Smith|2006|pages=xviii, 54, 72–73, 82, 215}}{{sfn|Crystal|2014|p=220}} Writer Chris Smith argued that the style dehumanized listeners, setting them up as passive recipients rather than allowing them to truly engage with musicians, and additionally put different bands in a position akin to homogenized products.{{sfn|Smith|2006|pages=xviii, 54, 72–73, 82, 215}} It has also been regarded as essentially malign [[capitalism|capitalist]] propaganda.{{sfn|Reynolds|Webber|2004|p=24}} The distance between taste-makers' judgment of certain groups as "uncool" and their mass audience appeal had existed since the style's origins after the ending of the 1960s,{{sfn|Waksman|2009|pp=21–31}} and a wide variety of other dismissive terms have been used such as "dad rock".{{refn|group=nb|The term "dad rock" was invented by the ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' music critic Rob Mitchum in his unhappy review of the album ''[[Sky Blue Sky]]'' by [[Wilco]] (2007). He later became opposed to the term.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Zoladz |first1=Lindsay |title=I'm Not a Dad, but I Rock Like One |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/18/arts/music/dad-rock.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=18 June 2020 |access-date=9 July 2024}}</ref>}}{{sfn|Crystal|2014|p=220}}
 
Deliberately playing against criticism and claiming to represent the people against the elite has been used in musical marketing.{{sfn|Waksman|2009|pp=21–31}} The association of arena rock with the so-called "[[yuppie]]s" and their [[conspicuous consumption]] additionally has tied the style with a group often maligned in the media, subject to mocking [[caricature]]s and other kinds of ridicule. However, as pointed out by historian Gary A. Donaldson, the music eclipsed the waning genre of [[disco]] and related bands successfully toured across the world.{{sfn|Donaldson|2009|p=248}}