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View Full Version : Why there's about to be a big scene shift in semi-underground electronic music



Hygro
02-14-2012, 04:47 AM
We're in for a game changer in the electro and related scenes, and here's why. The loudness war capped out in the 90s at some point, but pop music, trying to outdo each previous record, already compressed to maximum volume, started cutting more and more bass to give more perceived volume. After all one high pitched decibel sounds a LOT louder than a low pitched decibel. So bass takes up a HUGE amount of room for very little of the perceived volume. Keep only your kick in the bass range and make your "bass" in the midrange and you can make LOUD banging music.

At some point more and more people started to go "I dont care how catchy this is, this music just sucks". It's why you saw an early break in sound when JT went from NSync to a solo career produced by the Neptunes/Timbaland in 2003ish, they ditched the loudness and brought back the bass. Largely, pop music completely shifted starting in 2004 but really in 2006 and 2007 into a completely different, bassier fuller sound. People just got so tired of the millennium pop, because the production techniques were literally fatiguing to the ear. And soulless sounding. The same thing is happening in electro and dubstep right now. And that's why it's going to change.

(stolen and edited from a facebook post I wrote a month or two ago). Edit: woot hundreth post lol

howitzer
02-14-2012, 06:18 AM
+1, I've been feeling the same about current popular electro house/dubstep for a long time, I've just never had the level of knowledge to put it down as succinctly as yourself.

+rep, well said, bring back the bass!

Hygro
02-14-2012, 06:57 AM
Thanks, man :)

and LMAO who the hell edited my title? My original was more accurate... if less "poetic".

sobi
02-14-2012, 08:35 AM
I dont't think its anything more than the same thing that happened to trance and progressive 10 years ago. I've said it before and I'll say it again... Trends come and go in dance music, but it always goes back to it's one constant. Straight up House music.

Adzm00
02-14-2012, 08:47 AM
I hope both wubble wubble step and electrohau5 both die a quick death.

nevin
02-14-2012, 09:00 AM
Thank you hygro.. you've actually helped me improve my mixing as i didnt understand the loudness war thing. Now i've got some new ideas to craft :D

Hygro
02-14-2012, 10:06 AM
haha you're welcome nevin! :D show us your results!

Era 7
02-14-2012, 10:16 AM
me wants chest pounding bass :argh:

l0ckd0wn
02-14-2012, 10:18 AM
I think this is a classic observation, done up to look like a profoundly new discovery.

In short, music rotates in cycles and popular music has done this many times over, only now the "club scene" is the mainstream.
I think there is some truth in the dance-movement of boybands to 4x4 dance-to-mainstream stuff like lady gaga, but I think Electro and the whole "dirty electro" scene has withered and went.

Electro just had it's rotation with the Bangalter/Justice party come through where it was center of the universe.

Then dubstep stole the wobble and the glitch.

I predict something more melody driven in the next few years that isn't nu-disco or the more freeform dance music because they have always had that. Maybe reconnecting with a more big synth sound again.

But I do hope that circus-shit music by the likes of Afrojack, some Calvin Harris and a few others that bang the single note piano and make it sound like a cheesy air raid or something similarly terrible.

login
02-14-2012, 10:30 AM
I think this is a classic observation, done up to look like a profoundly new discovery.

In short, music rotates in cycles and popular music has done this many times over, only now the "club scene" is the mainstream.

What club scene? U.S. club scene?

NickyNines
02-14-2012, 10:55 AM
Yeah I feel like Electro hit its peak like 3-4 years ago and what was considered "new" is just a garbage blender of the same synths and one shots in the present day. The kids who like actual musical talent are regressing more into deep house (which used to be considered house) and indie dance to stray away from the masses and listen to productions that have quality production in them. Not mention just go somewhere where you can enjoy yourself without being next to 150,000 people squished together.

My prediction is massive mid synthy dubstep hit its peak at the "1st of the year" ( haha get it :) ) and will fade, fizzle and pop into oblivion by the end of next year. Leaving the more classic low synth dub step to grab a hold of the scene after that. As far as what will be popular... I think it is all going to Big Room House.

ezelkow1
02-14-2012, 11:02 AM
return of the BigBeat, one can always hope

But I have a feeling it will be closer to what l0ckdown said, something melodic, Ive always had this inkling feeling that more melodic trance-ish type stuff was going to have a come back some time in the near future.

RDRCK
02-14-2012, 12:01 PM
Won't happen. Here's why. Shitstep and Shitectrohau5 producers aren't smart enough to find their arseholes on a golf course, let alone produce with a modicum of feeling or soul.

I honestly have no idea what the next big thing will be. I do know that all the brosteppers have now picked up on the Night Slugs, Hessle, Hotflush, UK Funky, Numbers, Percussive type sound. Perhaps this is the next thing we'll have on the Radio (with Rihan$hatney vocals over the top, of course) and in the top 40 clubs :shrug:

Smallz
02-14-2012, 12:15 PM
This always happens about every 5 years. A new kind of sound comes in and becomes popular. Then something more innovative comes along and replaces that. I remember back around 2006-2007 when electro house had a nice rock and roll feel to it with Justice, MSTRKRFT, Digitalism, Soulwax, etc. and now that sound is not as big anymore and has gotten replaced by a more big room sound with folks like Swanky Tunes, Hard Rock Sofa, R3hab, etc.

So I agree, we are due for a new kind of sound.

Tektonix
02-14-2012, 12:29 PM
Yes please, New sound would be nice. Everything sounds like toulouse and antidote....its like fail TB-303 shit D: I want everything to sound like knife party and chrizz luvly again....bring back the bass heavy wet filthy electroooo!!!!

Schreiber
02-14-2012, 01:25 PM
Yes please, New sound would be nice. Everything sounds like toulouse and antidote....its like fail TB-303 shit D: I want everything to sound like knife party and chrizz luvly again....bring back the bass heavy wet filthy electroooo!!!!

That would be great. Antidote is one of my favorites, that sound would be very welcome to my ears.

PONTUS.2
02-14-2012, 01:59 PM
mind = blown :slayer:

drumpusher
02-14-2012, 02:03 PM
What is this subjective bullshit on my DJF? :err: :teef:

Estacy
02-14-2012, 02:09 PM
I want to get dyamics and good sound back in clubs, I'm an advocate of good sounding music. a well mixed track is a pleasure to listen to, but I find that in genres like Deep House, this is already the case. so it does depend on genres. But nice, deep bass that gets your hair moving is something that more tracks ought to have

Mahatma Coat
02-14-2012, 02:30 PM
If it doesn't have any bass, then why the hell are any of you playing it?

If its got no bass its not getting within 5 miles of my turntables.

The simple solution would be just for DJs to be a little bit more discerning with the standard of music they play, but I guess that's too much to ask these days.

mrkleen
02-14-2012, 02:38 PM
I want to get dyamics and good sound back in clubs, I'm an advocate of good sounding music. a well mixed track is a pleasure to listen to, but I find that in genres like Deep House, this is already the case. so it does depend on genres. But nice, deep bass that gets your hair moving is something that more tracks ought to have

Most sound systems are utter CRAP. Would make no difference how people produce or whether you use WAV files in 99% of nightclub situations.

RDRCK
02-14-2012, 02:40 PM
Most sound systems are utter CRAP. Would make no difference how people produce or whether you use WAV files in 99% of nightclub situations.

Seconded.

l0ckd0wn
02-14-2012, 05:17 PM
U.S. club scene?
Yes.

Yes, the US club scene :rolleyes:
Indeed. The era of David Guetta, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Neptunes/Farrel Williams, etc. etc. mainstream-pop-into-4x4-dance-music. It's been going on awhile now, but with the more mass adoption of "the DJ," the glam that goes with the "scene" and the over hype of super party places like Vegas & Ibiza, it's become forefront for "to be seen" with or as a DJ in one of these super expensive places. This is more a US thing, and I think Europe has matured beyond this towards the end of the 90s or sooner.

thehadgi
02-14-2012, 05:28 PM
Still think there is a weird obsession with bass... there are more important aspects of music imo. Rage against the machine, now their stuff was pretty loud back in the day, and their bass player rocked it hard (should prob know his name...). But still, it wasn't exactly blasting out sub freq's that made subs blow. Or maybe subs still blew ha. I guess I'm saying what other people already said above. Trends come and go, and I guess mixing for bass is a trend now (or was before....?), but it wouldn't bother me if in the engineers in the studio stop mixing with bass as the focal point for tracks.

Obv there are a bunch of tracks where that's not the case, but my 2 cents :D

Andrew B
02-14-2012, 05:30 PM
Thanks, man :)

and LMAO who the hell edited my title? My original was more accurate... if less "poetic".

No one edited it. I assume it's supposed to say "shift?" I can change it for you.

gjb1969
02-14-2012, 05:37 PM
go back to the sound of the 80s the sound of the real house

monomer
02-14-2012, 06:04 PM
go back to the sound of the 80s the sound of the real house

And the sound of REAL electro. Not the electro-house-fidget-house shit that I hear everywhere.

Notice how all the popular "club hits" are the CHEEZYEST of whatever genre they fall into? That the real undergound go's unnoticed to 95% of people into "electronic music"?

I don't buy anything that has no dynamic range. Thankfully, you can only cut grooves so wide in vinyl.

monomer
02-14-2012, 06:05 PM
And these day, even a crappy sound rig will hit below 50Hz. Just 20 years ago that was a far cry and huge horn subs.

Technology has come a long way.

DjZzeless
02-14-2012, 06:30 PM
I dont't think its anything more than the same thing that happened to trance and progressive 10 years ago. I've said it before and I'll say it again... Trends come and go in dance music, but it always goes back to it's one constant. Straight up House music.

^Nice...........and whats Dubstep?

RDRCK
02-14-2012, 07:29 PM
^Nice...........and whats Dubstep?

If your ear's been to the ground, you'll notice that a large percentage of dubstep producers/djs of note have been steadily going back to house music ;)

Take this, written by David Kennedy (Ramadanman/Pearson Sound/Maurice Donovan) and released on Untold's new label, for example...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyS987Jcudg

Or this, a straight up classic house track, on Numbers (yes, a dubstep label).


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiM4IEsMnM8

Or this, a collab by Joy Orbison and Boddika (one half of Instra:Mental), released on Loefah's label...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nk6_Ag62xc

;)

Wakka
02-14-2012, 08:05 PM
not so sure about 'underground' getting revamped. Definitely electro and mainstream prog/house. though. Agree 100% with the OP.

Adzm00
02-15-2012, 08:57 AM
And the sound of REAL electro. Not the electro-house-fidget-house shit that I hear everywhere.



This.

Someone knows. Now go tell the fannies in the electro forum.

KLH
05-02-2019, 09:15 AM
So has underground really disappeared?

Hygro
05-03-2019, 01:15 PM
Radio music and dominant popular underground music did get a lot bassier like 2 years later.

efinque
06-22-2019, 05:05 PM
What is this subjective bullshit on my DJF? :err: :teef:I think DJs out of all the people in the music industry have the right to demand better music (I mean cratedigging IS tedious).. then again there are DJs turned producers who have next to nothing against the big labels, as much as there are artists having a label breathing down their neck and trying to keep up with the executives waving their sales figures.

Manu
06-23-2019, 06:15 AM
Blast from the past. Where's that "big shift" then? I noticed an increase in crappy semi-illiterate autotuned amateur rappers, and they all sound like inbred cousins.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0-xZsekKn8


https://media.giphy.com/media/l2JeeUDBWj6BIIXT2/giphy.gif

efinque
06-24-2019, 08:07 AM
Blast from the past. Where's that "big shift" then?

I think it's about people working for people instead of people working for money.. these things in music seem to come and go in roughly 5 year cycles.

Semi-underground is rather vague but most things that have mainstream potential and appeal tend to get monetized real quickly, with the downside of the pioneering generation becoming unemployed or quitting because they never got used to doing it for the money alone. Then again people working in mainstream will almost never be seen as nothing else than using the audience as a resource.

Of course this is very harsh generalization, but I think many will find themselves in a tricky situation wherein the music could possibly pay their bills but they can't do it for their ideals, or in the sense that you won't be able to dabble or experiment due to pressure from the label or not having enough street credibility.

It's like the scene from Die Hard (white guy in Harlem) or the movie Erin Brokovich.

lolamopa
07-12-2019, 07:41 AM
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