Actually I would argue that the 1980's was secretly a highpoint in rocknroll . . . not for what was played on the radio, but all the great "indie" stuff that wasn't.
Rock died in 1992 with Nirvana and the rise of hip-hop. (Not Cobain's fault, it was the GRUNGE HYPE around Nirvana that killed it. I think he sensed this and that's part of the reason he killed himself.)