The Kinks were part of a number of groups that influenced and developed rock music...including punk, grunge, heavy metal, etc.
Included in that group, were The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Iron Butterfly, Budgie, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Steppenwolf and Judas Priest.
My uncle listened to Elvis, while I grew up on the Beatles and Rolling Stones. I eventually moved on to the guys above, including The Kinks. The problem with The Kinks was that they would break up every other week!
These groups considered hard rock and precursors to heavy metal, also heavily influenced the development of Punk Rock...which of course led to Grunge.
Cheers!