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To me the major change is simply how the music industry works. It wasn't that long ago that a record label would sign an act and they would back them for a while. They would develop them and let them find themselves artistically. If this meant they had to put out 2-3 records and do a lot of touring before they found their stride, so be it. They signed less acts, looked for the really talented musicians and worked with them to develop real art.
These days it is very much a product. They sign a lot more acts, get them out as fast as possible and hope that a few of them get a hit song. The industry has changed so much that it is less about the personalities and more about getting a song on a hit movie soundtrack or making a video that will get a lot of views. They want to sell a lot of singles downloads and not worry so much about making a good record. Hell, there are a lot of acts these days that never even record a full album, they just put out a few singles here and there and if those do well they go back and make a full album. The music labels are no longer in the art business, they is in the product business and the quality shows.
As for rock and guitar players, I mostly agree. Music goes in cycles and right now we are in one that is lacking good guitarists and real influential rock bands. I can't say that I hear every band out there, so there are probably some good rock bands out there that just haven't gotten the exposure they deserve, but in this day and age if you don't have a hit song right away, it is going to be very hard to get your stuff heard by a large audience and make any kind of real career for yourself.
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