No matter your mood, electronic music has something suitable. The selection is impressive and provides something for every taste imaginable.
Techno was the initial genre to break through. Originating from disco music, its foundation lay heavily in drum machines and synths.
Techno
Techno is an electronic music genre which originated in Detroit and Berlin and has had an immense impact on other electronic genres. Characterized by synthesizers and drum machines with dark hypnotic sounds, early pioneers include Kraftwerk who released “Autobahn” in 1982 featuring heavy synths with simple lyrics set against an uptempo beat. Later artists like LFO, Regis Adam X & Blake Baxter made names in techno with more complex sounds and production techniques.
Techno is known for its fast tempos and repetitive beats, making it popular with dancers around the globe. Techno has also had a profound effect on other electronic genres such as house and trance music.
Techno was one of the earliest electronic music genres to emerge and has since evolved into various subgenres such as acid techno, Detroit techno and minimal techno.
Acid Techno is a subgenre of electronic music characterized by diverse musical styles and beats, emerging from the acid house scene in the 1980s and distinguished by its use of acid lines typically generated from Roland’s TB-303 synthesizer, fast tempos and use of Roland TB-303 synthesizer.
Detroit techno is a style of techno originating in Detroit, Michigan, characterized by the use of both analog and digital instruments as well as polyrhythms and funk basslines. This genre’s dark yet atmospheric aesthetic make it popular with dancers across the world.
Minimal techno is an electronic music genre characterized by minimalism and repetition, using synthesizers, drum machines and acoustic instruments like guitars. Known for being highly experimental in nature, Minimal techno has also been utilized as part of art installations or film soundtracks; artists such as Shinichi Atobe have perfected this form.
House
House is the original electronic music genre, making its debut mainstream popularity decades ago. Artists such as David Guetta have found great crossover success through chart-topping hits with high energy tracks featuring captivating lyrics – popular across various events from small clubs to massive music festivals.
House music is defined by bouncy beats and catchy melodies, its roots in disco. Funk, soul and rhythm and blues were later added onto this sound by producers in its early days; producers would often sample and chop funk/soul breaks to form the foundation of each beat before layering vocals for vocalized tracks that carried both rhythmically and lyrically. Hip-hop also relies heavily on vocalists delivering lyrics along with rhythmical beats for added impact.
Progressive house is an electro house genre that combines elements of big room house with more melodic, radio-friendly tracks. Progressive house has proven highly commercially successful over time; artists like Kygo have taken advantage of this genre’s growing popularity to create remixes for pop stars’ hits.
Deep house is an EDM subgenre that’s become popular as an easier-going alternative to more energetic styles of the genre. It is typically defined by its smooth bassline that doesn’t rely as heavily on 4-on-the-floor kick patterns as other genres; furthermore it incorporates pads and keys from classic synths such as Minimoog, Jupiter-8 and Roland Juno-60 for added layers of comforting soundscapes.
Kawaii bounce is another subgenre of house music that draws its inspiration from Japanese pop culture and trap music. This more casual form of house features bouncy drums, high-pitched vocals and samples you might normally find in east coast club music.
Electro
Electro music first made its mark during the early ’80s with Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash’s work to push funk and hip hop music forward through synthesizer technology. Electro became one of the cornerstones of both Hip Hop and Techno genres as well as having its own distinctive blend with funk music.
Electro drum beats are electronic renditions of traditional four-to-the-floor rhythms found in dance music, often featuring hard kicks with syncopated rhythms accented by snare or clap, open/closed hi-hats, clave and cowbell to add an organic element. At one time the TR-808 synthesizer became widely utilized for this style of music, creating its signature sound.
While most songs in this genre are instrumental, vocals may be added and processed using vocoders for an upbeat and danceable sound. Lindsey Stirling is known for using this technique with her violin skills combined with synthesizers to craft smooth jazz tunes that will keep audiences moving!
Electro music has evolved into many subgenres over time, such as Electroclash and Electro House (which has its own tag). Techno artists such as Cybotron and Anthony Rother have had significant influences on this subgenre of electro. Electro is often associated with Afrika Bambaataa, Daft Punk and Dynamix II’s music; however it also influences Detroit techno pioneer James Stinson and his project Drexciya (famously known for exploring science fiction themes in his works).
Hardstyle
EDM (Electronic Dance Music) is a genre of electronic music characterized by repetitive beats created using electronic instruments to promote dancing. EDM music can be found across numerous styles, such as techno, house, trance and dubstep; production for EDM uses synthesizers, drum machines and other electronic devices to produce an ever-repetitive rhythmic beat which induces dancing; this genre boasts multiple subgenres with their own specific sounds and styles.
Hardstyle EDM hails from the Netherlands and Belgium and features distorted kick drums with catchy melodies for fast-paced dancing. Now popular across America, Hardstyle may soon make its mark as mainstream EDM.
Hardstyle electronic music typically features distorted vocal samples or screech, with its tempo typically falling between 140 and 150 BPM. Buildups and drops typically involve increasing intensity gradually before dropping with hard-hitting kick drums and an abundance of distortion, screechiness and screechy sounds.
Recent trends in hardstyle have seen an upsurge in collaborations between artists from other genres such as pop, trap and electro, leading to frustration from hardstyle fans who prefer pure hardstyle tracks. Some producers have even blended elements from other genres into their hardstyle tracks so as to be indistinguishable from other hardcore styles. Euphoric hardstyle has emerged as a subgenre that emphasizes emotion and melody over harsher sounds of raw hardstyle; examples being Realization of a Dream by Alpahverb and Code Black’s Dragonborn tracks as examples of this subgenre.
Reggaeton
Reggaeton music originated in the Caribbean region and has quickly spread throughout Latin America. This genre blends styles like dancehall from Jamaica, reggae en espanol from Panama and hip hop from the US into its own unique musical genre, featuring rhythmic beats accompanied by traditional instruments like drums, guitars, and percussions; also featuring lyrics containing social commentary as rapping verses.
Although hip hop has been around since the late 1970s, its popularity exploded during the 2000s due to internet use and an increase in dance music production techniques found in mainstream pop and hip hop songs – artists like Daddy Yankee and Balvin are prime examples of this trend.
Hardstyle, a subgenre of techno that features distorted kicks and melodies with strange rhythms, has grown immensely popular over the past several years in Europe and now America as well. Indeed, leading EDM label Insomniac even opened a special hardstyle division to meet growing demand for this style.
Electronica music encompasses many styles. While it may be soothing or energetic dance music, artists such as Lindsey Stirling and The Bond Quartet who specialize in this form can combine classical instruments with electronic beats to produce visual effects for an unforgettable listening experience. Electronica can serve as a perfect background sound while working or studying, or simply relaxing and unwinding after a hard day’s work or studying.