There are several topics where electronic music can be posted and discussed, but these topics are still related to genres and I feel that is limiting.
In here you can post and talk about anything you like that is (largely) electronic. Just two rules:
1. Post one piece at a time
2. Say in a few words why you like it
I will start.
Here's a piece I like very much from a relatively obscure electronic/synth composer Paul Ellis. It's obviously inspired by the "Berlin School" music from the 70s, but it adds something fresh.
This is music you have to listen to with headphones, loud. It's a very visceral experience to me. I love its sounds and the way it slowly evolves and grows ever more intense, with added and changing layers. It creates structures.
Harmonically it may be monotonous, repetitive, without key changes, but I don't have a problem with that as long as the rest is so exciting.
^^^ was enjoyable and I agree with what you say re. Build up and layers. But a few harmonic shifts would have worked wonders for me. But thanks for posting. I'm on iPhone so will have to wait till I can post any vids.
I tend to like electronic dance music more than other types of electronic, but it's a very large genre and plenty I haven't heard. It's all about the different textures in electronic music for me. It all may be one instrument, the synthesizer, but it's a very capable instrument. People underestimate the effort that goes into producing electronic music. This is one of my favorite songs, mainly because of the pentatonic themes used in it:
personally ime not a big fan of electronic music in general but i am however a fan of kraftwerk, and also as a longtime radiohead fan, theit later albums which where touching on the electro side, i do also plan at sometime to have a listen to kiasmos, but thats only because ime a big fan of olafur arnaulds.
Yes I am, yes it is.
I love the Constance Demby piece you posted as well. It has a soul stirring climax. It's largely improvised and made with the first generation of digital sampler synths. I posted it some time on the classical forums and it got trashed. Posting it in that forum was a bad idea, perhaps. But it's a pity some people are so biased against ambient, new age etc. and can't recognize its qualities. If you listen only once you're not going to hear it.
Hey, Albert. DeepR asked for one piece at a time. It's easy to forget in all the excitement, but I understand the reason.
I've grown to love electronica now that it has more sug-genres than there are stars in the galaxy. I don't care at all for the type of dance music that goes THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP mmm THUMP , but other stuff is really fun for this older codger who remembers when synths were so new they actually frightened people.
So, though I love glitch, dubstep, ambient and newer stuff I don't even have a name for I'll start with really old school. Though it incorporates a little acoustic piano too, here's what electronica was for us in the 70s. (There are three pieces in the video, but the first one is representative and all I intended.)
[Edit: YT videos are starting to sound harsh and glaringly digital to my ears lately. What have they done? Compressed everything to death?]
Oh - I'm supposed to say why I like it. It's one of the first pieces I ever heard using completely synthesized percussion. I'm sure it's not THE first. Just the first I heard., and I have fond memories of hearing it surrounded by black light posters in a haze of incense and other smolderings. Also I think it's in 6/8? which is a little unusual for any kind of non-classical. No - I think it's polyrhythmic. Or maybe just 4/4 with triplets or different accents. Okay, I give up.
Here's a piece by Bluetech that combines an almost ambient or chill mood with some of the cool sounds I enjoy from the glitch sub-genre, but not overly harsh and a lot more melodically then say Autechre has done lately. (Although I really enjoy Autechre too.)
On a side note, it's getting hard to find single tracks on YT lately. People want to post full albums. I almost miss the days before 3 and 4 hour videos were allowed. It should be more about promoting than piracy.
For some beautiful minimal electronica Alva Noto is a good place to listen. His collaborations with Ryuichi Sakamoto on Satie-like delicate piano works are great.
Beaini, a lebanese globetrotter with a solid techno background (with the Morphosis monicker, check out his album "What have we learned"), delivered this amazing mix for the weekly Resident Advisor's Podcast. It's avantgarde to the core.
Carbon Based Lifeforms is another of my favorites. They/she/he/it? is not too dance oriented, not too ambient, not too glitch, but just right. This piece borders close to the thump-thump-thump-thump I disparaged earlier, but the video is weird enough to make up for that.
^
^
I had thought of Steve Roach as just another part of the new age / Music From the Hearts of Space genre, but I see he's evolved it quite a bit. Those are pretty spiffy sci-fi high tech vibes he's created.
Ishq is an artist I don't know how to pronounce, but I do like his meditative other worldly atmospheric grooves with more natural sounding instruments.
The jittery beat, and the use of sampled and distorted strings in this track in particular is amazing. The atmosphere is completely saturated with sounds. its almost a game to figure out all that's going on within the track. every band is filled from low end to high. As a modern producer that's usually what you seek to do, but it only makes the EQing all the more frustrating!
I think some would be surprised at the nuances and even organic sounds that electronic music has to offer. It pains me when you talk about Electronic music and most don't know anything beyond techno. I could name some other more contemporary artists.
To name a few.
Kryptic minds and burial - Darker future garage and dub
Bonobo and sub-motion orchestra - trip hop jazzy fusion and dub
synchro and clubroot - lighter future garage and dub
holy other and Tycho - down tempo, Tycho in particular I would call a Post rock fusion.
that's just a few in there respected genres.
These are more of the softer listing types though even the infamous dubstep (which could be more described as any form of electronic music with a half time beat((not just modulated bass)) has some interesting things to offer.
I would suggest artists such a Seven Lions or Rameses B
I would absolutely love to share more! I would love to share some tracks from Sub-motion orchestra and Bonobo but those are not as largely electronic.
The jittery beat, and the use of sampled and distorted strings in this track in particular is amazing. The atmosphere is completely saturated with sounds. its almost a game to figure out all that's going on within the track. every band is filled from low end to high. As a modern producer that's usually what you seek to do, but it only makes the EQing all the more frustrating!
Ugh, yeah. Everything I do always sounds so murky and muddy. I try EQing and compressing etc but I can never get that clear well-produced sound. I like this anyway.
You mentioned him already but I've been meaning to post this here, always found this track really beautiful.
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