A genre is nothing more than a grouping of cliches which you can optionally take here, and there. The dominant genre should be anything that blatantly ignores genre, and just involves people who write the best music with available resources imaginable. Taking in as much resources as available.
The actual narrative of music should be explored more closely like in classical. More formula breaking, risk taking, and generally unique music should be focused on. It should be custom to the artist/s composing it. Genres can be studied, and listened to for inspiration, but should only remain a fraction of the eventual process in creation.
But, what does that mean? Does that mean prog rock? Does that mean avant-garde? Does that mean experimental? Jazz fusion?
Means nothing, really.
Take most later Beatles for example. Lets say, the White Album.
Is the White Album a pop album? Yes, it had short catchy vocal/lyrically driven songs.
Is it a rock album? Yes, it was written by a band which started as blues based Chuck Barry inspired group, and never really lost elements of that.
Is it prog? Yes, sort of, definitely is intending to take rock in a new direction. It'd be argued that it also did so on a very large level.
Is it Avant-Garde? Well, technically, Beatles were exploring extremely experimental songwriting structures which involved what is usually branded as "random" jumps in genre midsong. Also, the Beatles were testing out and discovering worlds of rather unheard of studio technique. There are even tracks on there that are blatant attempts at Avant Garde.
In fact, The Beatles, whether you agree with it or not, and I like The Beatles but disagree, are considered largely to probably be the greatest music outfit of modern times. The only thing that kept them fresh was their refusal to stick within their designated genres.
Besides, the genres themselves are flimsy. Rock for example covers such a wide and random catalog. Started out as a more upbeat high energy tweaking of the blues, and while keeping that, ended up encompassing things like Nine Inch Nails which, in most cases, has relatively no blues influence, and can not be linked to early rock pioneers like Little Richard, and such in the slightest.
Genres are silly, in my eyes. I just voted Avant Garde because it vaguely means to completely ignore genre, and do your own thing. I think for the sake of exploring fresh music, fully manifesting evolutions in technology, evolving the narrative of music, and expanding people's consciousness, it's the best way to go.
Besides, it's how new "genres" are invented anyway, and we've been running the same old ones into the ground over the past thirty years or so.
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