Your Verdict on Electronic Music Today

LRC · Post by **LRC** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:02 pm

How do you think electronic music has developed over the last years? Obviously with the advances in technology there is a distinct a new sound to it today. To list everything which has had an influenced would be a near impossible task, but does it sound better?

Take the term "better" in it's loosest sense, not sure it's the right word but the vocab is limited. I listen to techno, especially the darker harder stuff (pounding grooves, mark broom, speedy j, chris liebing, the advent, dj rush). i used to listen to minimal e.g. audion, modeselektor, oxia. not mentioning hawtin (although i just have) because everyone loves hawtin.

for me the best stuff is 1998-2005. i like the techno today, but is seems to have a lot of electro synthy type sounds. difficult to describe, but i find it very hard to take it seriously. maybe it just the kind of music i like, but there doesn't seemed to be the same darkness to music as there was. could just be i'm not listening to the right sites.

what do you guys think? better, worse, different, no change, or anything in between?

incidently if there's anyone who really really really likes techno, get in touch and we'll swap some mixes.

NorthernMonkey · Post by **NorthernMonkey** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:19 pm

Late eighties were the best for me, quality original house/techno with each producer developing his own style - Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Todd Terry, Reese and Santonio, etc., you could spot who had produced a tune just by listening to the first few bars. It all sounds the same to me now...hold on, I think my dad used to say that...

minimal · Post by **minimal** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:26 pm

the first raw techno, oh that was music, the first UR releases, axis, purpose maker, tomorrow, m plant, accelerate, ah those were label

but even some soulfoul deephouse mixes you can find on deephousepage.com.
dude thanks for this post, tonight I'll be going thru my old cds, and the first I'll listen will be "timeless" mixed by Juan Atkins.

I'll do a list, so we can swap mixes for sure!

Fernando Carvalho · Post by **Fernando Carvalho** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:42 pm

Better than ever, really.

There are so many people making music these days, so many netlabels....
Not everything is good, of course, but you can find gold with a little searching work. Just you will not find it in a record store anymore

Early electronic music is amazing, it was new and sounded really fresh. But today is the day!

It´s good to know your past, but always looking at the future

NorthernMonkey · Post by **NorthernMonkey** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:46 pm

Fernando Carvalho wrote:Better than ever, really.

There are so many people making music these days, so many netlabels....
Not everything is good, of course, but you can find gold with a little searching work. Just you will not find it in a record store anymore

Early electronic music is amazing, it was new and sounded really fresh. But today is the day! It´s good to know your past, but always looking at the future

Sure, there's plenty of decent stuff around now, but because the genre is so completely saturated it's getting harder to find it.

SubFunk · Post by **SubFunk** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:05 pm

i sort of agree with the above post, there is a lot of quality stuff out, but it gets harder and harder to find something fresh and inovative, there is to much same sounding and arranged stuff out our days, on the one hand it's good that technology is pretty much avialable for 'evryone' on the other it's bad.

the point of sadness starts when i read threads like this for example 'how can i make my bass [or whatever else] sound like this or that from this or that excisting artist'

this is what makes todays electronic music... well sometimes very boring.

as i said of course not all of it, but when i go searching for tunes compared to 10 - 15 years back i have to listen to a pile of records tripple the size to find something what i consider being 'uniqe'

then again i don't mean to paint the situation black!!!

there is a lot of great stuff out.

keep on making music

Tarekith · Post by **Tarekith** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:09 pm

I think it's better than ever, as long as you stay away from club/dance music. IMO, a lot of the club oriented stuff coming out today is pretty similar to what we were seeing 5-6 years ago.

WaveRider · Post by **WaveRider** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:49 pm

Tarekith wrote:I think it's better than ever, as long as you stay away from club/dance music.

agree, there is the best music going right on now, but hard to find for most people.

NorthernMonkey · Post by **NorthernMonkey** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:55 pm

WaveRider wrote:
Tarekith wrote:I think it's better than ever, as long as you stay away from club/dance music.
agree, there is the best music going right on now, but hard to find for most people.

I'm not sure it's any 'better', you can find decent music from any decade, including this one, but I think there's not as much originality as there once was in terms of sound and style - with everything available now it's sometimes too easy to pick a few presets, tweak them a bit, get RMX to make a few patterns and you've got a track on your hands; whether it's a good tune or not is subjective, but it certainly kills the originality.

Angstrom · Post by **Angstrom** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:00 pm

WaveRider wrote:
Tarekith wrote:I think it's better than ever, as long as you stay away from club/dance music.
agree, there is the best music going right on now, but hard to find for most people.

also agree,
music has become easier to produce so sadly there is a greater percentage of shit around, but talented types have also ridden the tech revolution.

It seems odd in the age of internet that there isn't any Killer 'social music explorer' . Sure you can go to beatport or itunes, but the recomendation factor is still mainly down to your mates.

Something like Pandora works reasonably well, that's my current fave. But it's still not the google of music recommendation

social music overview
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/02/05/so ... -overview/

jeskola · Post by **jeskola** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:06 pm

I really really really cant wait till this "Arcade" house dissapears. You know this gash electro shit with old school 8 bit bleeps and beeps. drives me insane.

Hey day for me is that dark proggy sound from around 98 till 2002

Anyone remember bedrock black?

ChiDJ · Post by **ChiDJ** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:06 pm

This is a great time. And it's no different then it's always been. To find great music, you have to dig. Back in the day it was record bins. Now it's websites. Just because we have almost instant gratification with digital downloads, doesn't change it because, although we have faster access, we have more to go through.

The search for great music is the same as always, dig. dig. dig.

I love the Club Music that's coming out right now. I always love fresh new music. (disclaimer - What is "fresh" to me, may suck by other's standards).

Just don't expect me to like Country

AOnline · Post by **AOnline** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:14 pm

Agree!! Think the choice for good music really became broader. Indeed, lots of copycats around, but I liked the fact that it all became a bit more underground again!!

Oh but

I still love the '92 R&S Records sound... Timeless!!

djadonis206 · Post by **djadonis206** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:34 pm

I've noticed most forms of dance have taken a more minimal electro type sound as opposed to the progressive influence that was on music in the late 90's early 2000's - with that said, there are good producers out there...good music

The recycled loops crew
the Jesus Loved You crew
Primate stuff is banging
The F1 stuff is really good
Patterns label is slamming

I could go on and on

iamnotcool · Post by **iamnotcool** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:40 pm

I cant speak for other people or styles, but right now things in techno are fookin amazing! Labels like Delsin, Bio Music, Kanzleramt, etc. are puting out some quality techno tunes, without a whole lot of the redundant MNML crap that techno was bombarded with in 05/06. This year should be a good one.