Pop Rock: you already know the chorus

Brazilian pop rock gives you plenty to sing along to, even while you're learning the Portuguese words. On Rita Lee's 1980 album with Roberto de Carvalho, often known as Lança Perfume, bolero, bossa nova and reggae sit alongside pop and rock. The melodies are inviting; the lyrics aren't always polite.^[1]

The audience for rock grew during the following years as labels competed for younger buyers. Research by Luís Antonio Groppo traces that expansion through Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Brasília. These were local scenes as well as markets, with bands developing songs that listeners could claim as their own.^[1]

Head into Spanish-speaking Latin America and the shared singalongs change. Argentina's Soda Stereo came out of new wave and reached audiences well beyond their home country. De Música Ligera is one of the songs that made that crossing.^[1]

A shared language makes lyrics easier to follow across borders, but it doesn't give every band the same sound. Try Mexico's Maná alongside Chile's Los Prisioneros, then turn to Juanes and Shakira in Colombia. Puerto Rico's Fiel a la Vega offers another take on rock in Spanish.

Some English-language songs carry an equally strong sense of place. The Beach Boys made California part of their sound, with vocal harmonies that deserve as much attention as the instruments. Follow one voice through a passage, then listen to how it fits with the others. An easy melody can take careful construction.^[1]

Put those records next to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, then Canada's Alanis Morissette and Avril Lavigne. Listen to the differences in delivery and guitar sound, or how each song builds towards its chorus. There's no single band setup or vocal style that accounts for all four.

English-language pop rock also comes from countries where English isn't the main language. Sweden's Roxette and Norway's a-ha work with keyboards as well as guitars. Alongside the Beatles and the Cranberries, they offer very different ways to make a melody stand out.

Mecano and Zazie bring Spanish and French into the mix. You might catch the tune before you understand a line of the lyric. That gap can be a reason to listen again, rather than a reason to pass over a record.

In South Africa, Johnny Clegg and Savuka made language part of the band's sound. They brought Zulu musical influences into rock and sang in both Zulu and English. Reaching listeners elsewhere did not mean leaving those influences behind.^[1]

Stay in South Africa for Just Jinjer's pop rock and Beatenberg's guitar-led pop. Then head north to Cairokee, a band formed in Cairo. These records offer quite different starting points for hearing what rock bands do in their own musical surroundings.^[1][2]

Singing in English didn't guarantee a place on the radio either. In 1980s New Zealand, commercial stations gave little airtime to local music. Even Crowded House struggled for attention before Don't Dream It's Over became a US hit.^[1]

Bic Runga later recalled hearing about that American chart success and writing out the song's lyrics. A familiar band could make a life in music seem more possible. Her own records are a good place to continue, alongside the Australian and New Zealand artists here.^[1]

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