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Electropop

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Electropop
Stylistic originsElectronica, pop, synthpop, EDM, electro, post-disco
Cultural originsLate 1970s - early 1980s, primarily Europe, Japan and United States
Typical instrumentsSynthesizer - Vocals - Drum machine - Tape loops - Drums - Guitar - Bass - Sequencer - Keyboard - Sampler - Vocoder - Personal computer
Derivative formsChillwave[1] Dance pop

Electropop is a pop-oriented form of electronic music primarily consisting of the use of synthesizers. The genre has seen a revival of popularity and influence since the late 2000s.

The term was used during the 1980s to describe a form of synthpop characterized by an emphasized electronic sound — often described as cold and robotic — and by minimal arrangements.[citation needed] This was mainly due to the limitations of the analogue synthesizers and recording techniques used at the time, but has since become a stylistic choice.[citation needed] Electropop laid the groundwork for a mass market in chart-oriented synthpop.[citation needed][original research?]

Electropop songs are pop songs at heart, often with simple, catchy hooks and dance beats, but differing from those of electronic dance music genres in that songwriting is emphasized over simple danceability.[2] Electropop is characterized by a distinctive low frequency synthesizer sound which might variously be described as crisp, crunchy, crackly, fuzzy, warm, distorted or dirty.[2]

History

Electropop music began appearing in the late 1970s, with the "Robot Pop"[3] of German band Kraftwerk,[4] the "technopop"[5] of Japanese band Yellow Magic Orchestra,[6] and the electronic music of British artists who took inspiration from David Bowie's "Berlin period" albums Low, Heroes, and Lodger,[7] as well as late 70s electronic disco, especially Germany's Munich Machine led by Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer. Some groups also took inspiration from the NYC synthpunk group Suicide,[8] and the Krautrock groups Neu!, Cluster and Can.[citation needed]

By the early 1980s there had been a long history of experimental avant-garde electronic music, notably in Western Europe that provided access to a bank of technical expertise built up over decades, via organisations such as the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, and the London Electronic Music Studios.[citation needed] These institutions were patronised by early rock synth pioneers such as Brian Eno, Roxy Music, Tangerine Dream and Pink Floyd.[citation needed]

The first bands to be labeled as "electropop" by media were The Human League, Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Soft Cell in 1980–1981.[citation needed] The term became widely adopted in British media to set apart these bands from the previous post-punk, futurists and new wave acts which didn't use a fully electronic set-up or simply were not regarded as pop.[citation needed]

Electropop's early steps, and the Numan Futurist movement in particular, were strongly disparaged in the British music press of the late 1970s and early 1980s as the "Adolf Hitler Memorial Space Patrol" (Mick Farren).[9]

Despite this, electropop flourished in the United States in black culture, particularly in Detroit.[citation needed] Musicians such as A Number of Names and Cybotron pursued a version of the style inflected by R&B and funk which eventually established the Detroit techno scene.[citation needed] During the early 1980s, the electro style was largely developed by Afrika Bambaata, who was heavily influenced by Yellow Magic Orchestra and Kraftwerk.[10]

21st century revival

In the late 2000s, many popular mainstream artists began to make electropop songs.[11] Australian singer Kylie Minogue utilized a strong electropop sound for her tenth studio album X in 2007.[citation needed] It was shortly after that many other pop artists began incorporating the genre into their music. The second album by British singer Lily Allen released in 2009 called It's Not Me, It's You is largely electropop as opposed to her first ska album.[12][13]

Current wave of electropop artists

Kesha is considered one of the most successful American female electropop artists of the early 2010s
Womanizer
Britney Spears' 2008 hit single, Womanizer, which is styled in the electropop genre.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The British and other media in 2009 ran articles proclaiming a new era of the female electropop star and indeed 2009 saw a rise in popularity of female electropop artists. In the Sound of 2009 poll of 130 music experts conducted for the BBC, ten of the top fifteen artists named were of the electropop genre.[14] Lady Gaga had major commercial success since 2008 with her debut album The Fame.[15][16][17][18][19] Music writer Simon Reynolds noted that "Everything about Gaga came from electroclash, except the music, which wasn't particularly 1980s".[20] Other female electropop acts that emerged were Ladyhawke,[21] Kesha,[22] Britney Spears,[23][24][25][26][27] Elly Jackson of La Roux [21] and Perfume.[28] A video by Little Boots, who topped the BBC poll for 2009, showed her using a Tenori-on.[citation needed]

Male acts that have emerged included British writer and producer Taio Cruz who charted well in the U.S.,[29] One man act Owl City who had a number 1 US single,[30][31] and another one man act Kaskade,[32] and LMFAO.[33] Singer Michael Angelakos of the Passion Pit said in a 2009 interview that while playing electro pop was not his intention, the limitations of dorm life made the genre more accessible.[34] Some artists have used music technology to convert songs from other genres into electropop; for example, Paul Duncan of Warm Ghost took a record by indie folk artists Mountain Man and turned it into an electropop song.[35]

In 2009, James Oldham—head of artists and repertoire at A&M Records—was quoted as saying "All A&R departments have been saying to managers and lawyers: 'Don't give us any more bands because we're not going to sign them and they're not going to sell records.' So everything we've been put on to is electronic in nature."[21][36]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Spilling Beyond a Festival’s Main Courses March 21, 2010
  2. ^ a b "Electropop music". Last.fm. 29 Jun 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  3. ^ Kraftwerk at AllMusic
  4. ^ Rachel Devitt, "Geeks of electro-pop meld man, machine in mind-blowing show", The Seattle Times, April 28, 2004. [1] Access date: August 11, 2008.
  5. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra profile". AllMusic. Retrieved 2009-06-03.
  6. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra reunite for Massive Attack's Meltdown." Side-Line. [2] Access date: August 11, 2008.
  7. ^ Greg Villepique, Salon, January 25, 2000. [3] Access date: August 11, 2008.
  8. ^ Scott Thill, "All-Star Admirers Resuscitate Suicide", Wired Listening Post, June 24, 2008. [4] Access date: August 13, 2008.
  9. ^ The Seth Man, Julian Cope Presents Head Heritage, June 1, 2004. [5] Access date: August 14, 2004
  10. ^ David Toop (March 1996), "A-Z Of Electro", The Wire, no. 145, retrieved 2011-05-29
  11. ^ "Synth Pop". rateyourmusic.com. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  12. ^ In the Studio: Lily Allen Makes “Naughty” Follow-Up Rolling Stone July 1, 2008
  13. ^ Lily Allen It's Not Me It's You Review Sydney Morning Herald February 14, 2009
  14. ^ UK gaga for electro-pop, guitar bands fight back The Kuwait Times January 28, 2009
  15. ^ Number one single for Lady GaGa BBC 11 January, 2009
  16. ^ Lady GaGa holds onto chart crown BBC 29 March, 2009
  17. ^ Lady GaGa, Calvin Harris Top U.K. Charts Billboard 13 April, 2009
  18. ^ 25 faces to watch in 2009 The Times 8 January, 2009
  19. ^ Lady GaGa: pop meets art to just dance The Telegraph 21 January, 2009
  20. ^ The 1980s revival that lasted an entire decade by Simon Reynolds for The Guardian 22 January 2010
  21. ^ a b c Gaga for girl power Sydney Morning Herald 28 February, 2009
  22. ^ Ke$ha demands a pinch of respect and mirth The Times March 7, 2010
  23. ^ "New Music: Britney Spears f/ will.i.am – 'Big Fat Bass'". Rap-Up. Devin Lazerine. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  24. ^ "'Hold It Against Me' Is Primo Britney". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  25. ^ Marikar, Sheila. "Britney Spears Drops 'Till the World Ends,' Mimics Ke$ha". ABC News. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  26. ^ Lipshutz, Jason. "Britney Spears, Till the World Ends". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  27. ^ Ganz, Caryn. "Spears at her most daring and innovative — really! Dark, dangerous, fascinating". eMusic. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  28. ^ "Perfumeが1位獲得！YMO以来約25年ぶりの快挙" (in Japanese). Oricon. 2008-04-22. Retrieved 2009-10-17.
  29. ^ Taio Cruzes Up The U.S Chart! MTV UK 3 March 2010
  30. ^ Maybe I'm Dreaming: Owl City [6] Access date: July 9, 2009.
  31. ^ Pop's space cadets set to blast off BBC 1 January 2010
  32. ^ Electric Daisy Carnival at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Santa Barbera Independent June 29, 2010
  33. ^ Party" just beginning for electro-pop duo LMFAO Billboard reprinted by Reuters January 4, 2010
  34. ^ Interview: Michael Angelakos of Passion Pit Boston Phoenix October 1, 2009
  35. ^ Erick Sermon (March 2011). "Warm Ghost – Uncut Diamond EP -- Partisan Records: 2011". Music Nerdery. Retrieved 2011-05-08. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  36. ^ La Roux, Lady Gaga, Mika, Little Boots: the 80s are back The Telegraph 5 August, 2009

References

  • Depeche Mode & The Story of Electro-Pop, Q/Mojo magazine collaboration, 2005.
  • Electronic Music: The Instruments, the Music & The Musicians by Andy Mackay, of Roxy Music
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