(Except for totally awesome, obviously)
Putting it simply, a rock opera is a studio album of rock music which tells a story.
It’s similar to a concept album, which is an album which centres around a theme or narrative.
So, a rock opera is a type of concept album — rock operas are all concept albums, but not all concept albums are rock operas.
Green Day’s rock operas (like the famous American Idiot,) are obvious — they’re clear narratives, with 21st Century Breakdown actually being split into a clear 3 act structure:
- Set-up/scenario
- Sh** hits the fan
- Resolution
Rock on!
Adapted from this post on Dora Reads