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The Rise and Rise of EDM
Tuesday 18th June 2013 | Keshav
EDM music is on the rise.
Saturday afternoon is normally the prime time for radio stations. Millions tune in as bosses throw their might to come out on top in the battle for the most important time slot of the weekend, therefore, it was surprising to see Dutch house prodigy Dyro taking the reins at BBC radio 1 this weekend. The young DJ was on fire as he electrified the airwaves with his unique brand of Dutch House. Dyro is not the first DJ to hit the mainstream; a trend seems to be emerging.
Recently, more and more DJ’s and producers are seeing sales sky rocket as they profit from the current buzz surrounding the whole EDM scene. The electronic scene two decades ago was mostly comprised of underground DJ’s playing in illegal set ups, but now when we see an electronic act such as Disclosure top the album chart it represents a shift. The shift is in the change of attitude, no longer is EDM brandished as a genre of music which is not accessible to the average person, but it is now a key part of society.
There are many different reasons as to why this shift has occurred. One potential reason may be the rise of the ‘Superclub’. It’s often difficult now to go to a club without there being a variety of dance floors. In the 90’s we saw specialist clubs attracting a certain kind of clubber, however, club executives realised the potential of opening up the market and extracting greater profits. The ‘Superclub’ now plays all sorts of genres to satisfy the waves of young party goers. The rise of this sort of club has pulled electronic music from the underground and it has become the driving force of modern music.
Another potential reason as to why Electronic music has seen a phenomenal rise in popularity is a general change in music tastes. Traditional ‘Pop Stars’ such as Rihanna and Justin Beiber are starting to lose their appeal as they keep churning out the same manufactured music and present an illusionary image of the music business. TV shows, such as X Factor, have lost their charm due to their failure of producing any sort of world class talent. The public are growing increasingly tired of this brand of artist and want change. Electronic music provides an exciting new element with experimental sounds and loops the music always seems to be growing and developing. Take white noise by Disclosure for example a track bursting with energy which absolutely stormed the UK charts because it something that no one had heard before, something creative that caught many by surprise.
What must be said however is the modern day electronic music we see is primarily a re- formulation of the traditional two step garage beat used by people such as Artful dodger many years ago. The garage scene in the UK provided such a new dimension not only to hip hop but also gave birth to a new genre – Dubstep. Big base and powerful beats have seen this genre scale new heights in its relatively short history. Once again Dubstep was something new, something fresh and, more importantly, something people liked. Dubstep started slowly breaking into the charts as people gained interest in the genre. Many artists themselves have pioneered the electronic movement as they have realised its potential. In 2008 Craig David the hot superstar at the time teamed up with Artful Dodger to produce 'Rewind' a massive chart success that built the foundations for electronic music to expand upon. More recently we see artists such as Nikki Minaj implementing the large bass beats in her songs 'Starships' and 'Pound the Alarm', receiving a lot of chart success in the process. As more and more stars are using this winning production formula we have to question: where this came from?
Like him or loath him the rise of David Guetta has been essential to the commercial success of electronic music. The French DJ has given the genre a new image away from the drug culture typically associated with the scene. What we see here is a shift of target audience. The music companies are now able to market dance music to the younger ages. This opens a completely new market for them to exploit. David Guetta and Calvin Harris are the two artists who especially have become a symbol for many young people and allowing them to work with big names only expands their fan base further. What’s interesting is how Daft Punk’s new album has pulled dance back into the mainstream. ‘Get Lucky’ for instance will no doubt be this year’s summer track but the French duo have only gone and increased the size of the electronic music juggernaut while still remaining loyal to their roots.
Don’t be surprised next time you here ‘Au Seve’ by Julio Bashmore on mainstream radio because this is the era of electronic music. With an ever changing digital world people remain connected and it’s easier to plot the rise of the electronic scene. Electronic music represents the modern attitudes to a dynamic society. More and more producers will be thrust into the spotlight as the dance music bubble continues to expand. The question is will this bubble burst? The answer for the here and now is 'No", but should producers start moving away from purely EDM music and being led by management and music companies?
That is the question.
Keshav Kapoor
@keshavkapoor15
