Electronic music can trace its root back to the ‘20s. Kraftwerk popularized the more specific genre, electronic dance music, in the early ‘70s. Since that time, the genre has evolved into a strikingly vast pool of subgenres, many with characteristics so subtly different that distinguishing between them may seem petty.
It is not petty because if a club advertises for a jungle night but plays house instead, people who show up expecting jungle will be angry and will leave the dance floor. If this is even 30% of the people, the party loses a lot of strength, and more people will walk out.
It is in the individual’s best interest, as well as club owners’, to understand what kind of music will be being played that evening, and what kind of a crowd it usually draws. Likewise, a DJ has to be very careful about the music he or she buys and mixes.
Moving forward—techno comes from Detroit and Juan Atkins is important. In England in the ‘80s, people got samplers. They started sampling breakbeats and making cheap, bass-centric music. This sounded surprisingly good in clubs. It was called “hardcore” (in the United Kingdom.).
There was a creative renaissance shortly thereafter, and things like trance and intelligent dance music came out.
The urban front absorbed dancehall influences and put out jungle, soon to be drum and bass. A different strain took in house influences and became UK garage, which basically sounds like R&B ballads remixed with double speed drums.
UK garage with British rappers became known as grime and took off in urban environments. The tracks got bigger, dirtier and eventually bass-centric again. Finally, these dirty bass-centric tracks took on dub/reggae influences and the resulting niche genre was called “dubstep.”
Dubstep has caught on, threatening crossover and global success time and time again. Skream’s “Midnight Request Line” was popular in 2005.
More recently, Pitchfork.com marked Darkstar’s “Aidy’s Girl’s a Computer” as one of the top 100 tracks of 2009.
Lil’ Jon has been seen on YouTube going crazy for dubstep, Snoop Dogg has rapped over dubstep producers Chase & Status, Eve has rapped over dubstep pioneer Benga. Chase & Status have remixed Jay-Z and produced Rihanna.
Part of the reason for dubstep’s accomplishment is its diversity. Outside of a general tendency to shuffle percussion and two-step the treble in order to fit boundaries set by all dance floor genres, dubstep has an extensive ability to vary itself and experiment. It can tear-out or chill-out within a matter of seconds in the hands of a good producer. Dubstep mixes have been made using everything from Lil’ Wayne songs to the James Bond theme.
Of course, the success of dubstep is a problem too. For years, part of its appeal has been its largely vocal-less, and therefore distinctly imageless, prerogative. With people like Snoop Dogg getting in on the scene, it will be hard to keep dubstep underground. Even taking dubstep out of London, away from the melting pot of cultures and musical influences that spawned it may strip away some of its individuality.
It may sound ridiculous to talk about strict geographical borders in 2010 but it is still worth remembering that the best house music is still tied hyper-specifically to Chicago in the early ‘80s, for some people even to specific clubs.
Regardless, the genre has expanded beautifully.
Good new producers are emerging daily, and club nights featuring dubstep are popping up all over the place. Best of all, dubstep has these fun sounds in it that can make the most cynical curmudgeon laugh with amazement.