Rock’n Me 22: Talking About Western Music - Alex Melton

Hello, this is Joshua, eager to talk about Western music.
In this 22nd edition, I will discuss YouTube artist Alex Melton. He is virtually unknown in Japan, and this might be the first-ever Japanese article about him (A Google search restricted to Japanese information yielded no results).

Alex has over 290,000 YouTube subscribers (as of writing) and is an artist who handles vocals, guitar, bass, and drums—all by himself. While this alone might not be particularly unusual, his specialty lies in “playing ○○ in the style of △△”, where he skillfully captures the characteristics of both elements and turns them into his unique creations. His journey to becoming a YouTuber is quite interesting, so I have compiled his story from the few interviews available.

Alex has been a big fan of pop-punk bands like Blink-182 and Sum 41 since high school, spending his days listening to their CDs on repeat. He later majored in music in college, learning about music production. Alongside his main job, he built a studio in his home in South Carolina. To attract customers to his studio, he started a YouTube channel and uploaded demo performances.

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic spread rapidly across the States, and Alex lost his main job. However, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise. He was now able to dedicate more time to music production and focused on making “playing ○○ in the style of △△” videos. Alex mentioned in an interview that “there is a large market for genre-flipping videos on YouTube, and if done well, they can transcend parody and become legitimate art.” His audience gradually grew, making YouTube his full-time job and even leading to a record deal. Of course, achieving success by ‘doing it well’ is the real challenge!

Alex’s strongest suit is “playing ○○ in the style of Blink-182”. To understand this, we first need to examine Blink-182 itself. Due to their upbeat energy and goofy music videos, they are often labeled a ‘silly band’. For instance, in their massive hit, they appear dressed as a boy band parody and dance around in just their underwear. This visual is already striking, but it pales in comparison to another of their hit songs, “What’s My Age Again?”—where all three members run naked through the streets for the entire video. (If you’re not at work, try searching for it on YouTube.)

■ Blink-182 “All the Small Things”

Now, Blink-182’s signature arrangement style has several characteristics. Vocally, they often use octave or third harmonies. Guitar-wise, their approach typically involves: (1) clean-tone intros and verse sections, (2) muted power chords in the pre-chorus, and (3) open-chord strumming in the chorus. Their bass lines contrast between solid root notes and harmonic accents, while their drumming features fast and intricate fills. Using this formula, Alex has transformed a famous song by Journey and Oasis into Blink-182-style tracks:

■ Journey “Don’t Stop Believin’”

■ Alex Melton “Don’t Stop Believin’” (Journey in the style of Blink-182)

■ Oasis “Wonderwall”

■ Alex Melton “Wonderwall” (Oasis in the style of Blink-182)

Another of Alex’s signature projects is “switching the drum beat to halftime”. In rock music, the snare drum typically hits on beats 2 and 4. Halftime shifts this emphasis to beat 3, making the song sound half as fast. Applying this technique dramatically alters Jimmy Eat World's hit song “The Middle”. This showcases Alex’s remarkable arranging skills and musical sensibility:

■ Jimmy Eat World “The Middle”

■ Alex Melton “The Middle” (Jimmy Eat World with a halftime drum beat)

A more advanced version of this idea is “changing the genre and switching the drum beat to halftime”. He applied this approach to Green Day’s masterpiece “American Idiot”. The original song is an energetic, up-tempo anthem criticizing the U.S. government during the Iraq War. It propelled Green Day to stadium-level success. However, Alex reimagined it in a modern country style, using halftime drumming to create a mellow yet pop-infused feel:

■ Green Day “American Idiot”

■ Alex Melton “American Idiot” (Green Day in a country style with halftime drumming)

There are countless other examples, but to conclude, I want to highlight his cover of Vanessa Carlton’s 2002 hit “A Thousand Miles”. The original features an unforgettable piano intro, Vanessa’s clear vocals, and a melancholic melody. Alex transformed this song into a Blink-182-style pop-punk track, re-arranging it for a guitar trio. Despite the upbeat instrumentation, he retained the original song’s emotional depth in a different way:

To be honest, I used to dismiss Blink-182 as a ‘silly band’ and disliked them. During their prime, their songs were everywhere, but I was put off by their over-the-top music videos and never bought their albums. However, upon revisiting their music recently, I’ve come to love them. In hindsight, Blink-182 was never just about goofing around. Their lyrics touch on the fleeting nature of youth, the struggles of growing up, and the challenges of relationships—deep themes hidden beneath their playful antics. This mix of humor and melancholy, combined with Alex’s outstanding performance and arrangement skills, makes his Blink-182-style covers so compelling.

■ Vanessa Carlton “A Thousand Miles”

■ Alex Melton “A Thousand Miles” (Vanessa Carlton in the style of Blink-182)

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