It really is shocking how fast the music industry of today evolves, especially when compared to the one the world knew, oh say, 50 years ago. Sometimes I become lost within my own mind, pondering the issue of whether it really is an artist himself that shapes the kind of impression he leaves on the world, or if it actually has more to do with the industry surrounding him. Let me explain:
The Beatles are known to a rather large portion of people as one of, if not the greatest band in history, and this is likely due, in large part, to the near legendary status the band has achieved through the extended amount of time they’ve spent in the limelight, the worldwide, simultaneous acceptance of their music, and to the stories that have thusly been passed down through several generations (although as of this month, the stories will very likely cease to be passed on, and will hereby be replaced by “Rock Band,” and quite naturally, an entire generation of children shouting, “Hey wait! How did those guys know Rock Band songs before the game was even invented?”). But let us, for the sake of this point, pretend that the Beatles had started their revolutionary work in 2009, rather than in the 60′s. If their music had been able to spread across the world in a matter of only a couple minutes, rather than several years, would they have made such a substantial impact? Or would would the constant music stimulation from blogs and instant media sources allow them to fall out of the mainstream just as easily as they came into it?
Either way, there’s no denying the fact that today’s music industry moves very fast. I recall a time only a few years back when dj’s who chose to drop an electro track at a party would quickly find themselves either spinning for an empty house, or would be continuously bombarded by the infamous, “Can you play something I can dance to?” request. And yet here we are today, listening to MSTRKRFT‘s Heartbreaker on mainstream radio and watching Will.I.Am morph into Zuper Blahq. That means that it took only three years for electro to go from completely unheard of to full on mainstream, and I’m convinced that this is, whether or not we want to accept it, the way of the future.
So what, you might ask, got me thinking about all this hypothetical junk? Strangely enough, it wasn’t the Beatles, and it wasn’t electro; It was dubstep. In thinking about this emerging genre, it is impossible to ignore the plethora of ties that it has to the electro world (and no, not it terms of sound, but rather of progression). Electro started out completely underground, and then gathered attention by including hip hop verses and associating itself with the mainstream hiphop world, and in an astonishing parallel, dubstep started out as a peculiar British phenomenon that struggled to fill even the smallest of venues, and has since gathered considerably more attention by associating itself with the electro world.
So what does this mean? Has today’s music industry really changed the way music itself evolves? It it still possible for a single artist to remain at the forefront of the industry for more than a couple years? How far will dubstep go? Will it follow the same evolutionary path that electro did?
Here are a couple of pieces to get your mind thinking electro/dubstep hybrid. And naturally, should they provoke any interesting ideas, feel free to share.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
TC – Where’s My Money (Caspa Remix – Jack Beats Re-Edit)
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Tags: caspa, jack beats, MSTRKRFT, tc, udachi, will.i.am, zuper blahq
Share
Absolutely BRILLIANT blog post. I am a HUGE fan of dubstep/grime, and Rusko, is of course, a genius. My other favorite producer/remixer is RJD2, if that gives any perspective. Great blog post and TY for the music!
Wow! Jack Beats re-edit is just… wow and the Udachi is bonkers.
Win!
Thanks!
i really enjoyed what you had to say, and it’s very very true. although dubstep is still a bit underground. But, yes its becoming mainstream, there is a mix called Dubstep LA and its a bunch of dubstep artist/dj’s with some West Coast artist, and that itself is making it a bit mainstream, its a bit sad that it WILL become mainstream because speaking for myself, i would love to keep this underground! but o’ well! thanks for the posting buddy!! check out the blog….feedthefever.blogspot.com
much love!
-NURRD!
feedthefever
fantastic post. so very true. I don’t know wether you live in Britain or not, but I’m finding it is pretty ‘mainstream’. I’m pretty sure I heard a Chase & Status dubstep remix on the Chris Moyles morning slot not long ago!
ivan
Electro is the new pop within 3 years. Dubstep will be the new Electro in 1.5 years. Future Garage Grime Dance Punk will be the new Dubstep in 9 months after that….. and before we know it Genres will all but obliterated (or if you are one of those web2.0 geeks… songs will have genre tag clouds instead of a set genre)
so when is drum n bass comming back?
i think comparing dub step to electro is a lil far but i hear your intention…. i think it should just be noted all dance music is back, people are interested in all dance music again…and dybstep is def the freshest fiercest sound at the moment…. i hope it makes it to main stream rather than dying like dnb did in there early part of 2000′s
Dubstep didn’t associate itself with electro, dubstep artists dont remix electro ones, electro associated itself with dubstep.
And to the last guy, D&b never left, where do you live?
yes, i agree with you, its becoming more and more accessible and i find it really positive to see how this underground genre is emerging, but yes it is sad to see it leaving the underground scene because as soon as it is completely ‘mainstream’, it will no longer be as ‘cool’ as some people may see it and therefore less interesting, despite this, dubstep is a really good genre of music which now ive discovered, i couldn’t live without
skream,datsik,fable,tc,silkie,rusko,goli & ashburner representing nottz
Hell yeah! DnB certainly didn’t go anywhere! Boh!
lol
… and yes, dubstep did associate itself with electro. Dubstep associated itself with all musical styles which is why it kicks ass! It really has been a breath of fresh air and in doing so it kicked all the other musical genres into gear as well.
Now we have drumstep and dubstep has taken on so many forms its crazy impossible to keep up!
For me.. i still love the hyper garage of Burial… dude is one serious cat!
nice post.
Bill
did you seriously just say electro involved itself with dubstep and not vice versa… right there you are way wrong about that bro… just sayin.. electro was before dubstep… and dubstep has electro songs remixed into dub.. obviously we all heard of rusko.. what about the song by kid sister??? originally electro.. or even some of caspas songs.. or nero or skrillex or even some local artists… bro before you dis on something that you know nothing about.. get your facts straight.. and FYI the whole techno genre in general all remixed from rock n roll, blues, hip hop, dance, drum n bass.. dont ever dis on another genre…
Are you retarded? Did you even read the article you’re hating on? When did I say dubstep came first? When did I say any of the shit you’re pissed about? Did you notice any of the other comments on this post? The ones from people who actually have the intellect to comprehend what it’s about? Did you notice how they’re all positive? You’re one very confusing fellow. I feel bad for you.
Im lovin This jellyroll tune! Makes me wanna go “roll”.
Love the blog, I’ve listened to borgore like 34 times today. Keep up the blog man!
Love the blog, I’ve listened to chrispy like 17 times today. Keep up the blog man!
NEW SOCIAL MUSIC BLOG DIRECTORY – http://musicbloglist.com/ – Sign up for free and sync your music blog to your profile using your blog’s rss feed.
trance video…
[...]Uh Oh Disco™ | Dubstep Becomes Electro[...]…
Chilstep Music…
[...]Uh Oh Disco™ | Dubstep Becomes Electro[...]…