According to a famous study performed in 1997 by 16-year old student David Merell, rock music, and especially hard rock, does not fare well with mice. David subjected three groups of mice to three different conditions in the same environmental setting. One of these conditions was rock music, where the other conditions were classical music and a control group with no music. The rock music mice had the slowest reaction time, when trying to navigate their way through a maze. The study also found that hard rock music resulted in mice killing each other, suggesting a a link between aggressive music and aggressive behavior.
Softer forms of music -- like classical instrumental and jazz -- actually show an improvement in regards to navigating through mazes and reacting to certain stimuli. In fact, studies show that mice can navigate through a maze at a much quicker rate listening to classical music than rock music, or even no music at all.
Compared to the effects of rock and classical music, country and western music didn't seem to show any improvement in the abilities of the mice; however, they did seem to move more slowly through the maze. They were still able to beat the mice listening to rock music and heavy metal.
Many researchers believe that the results of these studies can be applied to humans in some instances, yet many variables can distort these conclusions. Previous studies show that classical music can enhance learning and memory recall, whereas listening to heavy metal music and rock music in general can dampen these abilities. More research is needed however, to fully understand the role music plays in animal and human psychology and behavior.