My friends, today we are going to make the world a better place. Together, we’re going to understand why we should ban the word “EDM” from our vocabulary. It’s not going to solve global warming or limit the NRA’s influence over regulators, I’ll grant you that. But it’ll open your eyes and ears to a whole new world of digital sounds and genuine creativity.
Why does it matter, might you ask? To all appearances, there’s nothing wrong with this three-letter acronym standing for “Electronic Dance Music” and widely used by neophytes to designate anything they hear in clubs, gyms or house parties. The problem is that by regrouping everything under a single erroneous term, we eclipse a whole array of sounds and textures, like looking at the world through a quarter-sized hole.
In essence, EDM is an empty shell. Nobody can define what it is because it’s not definable as a musical genre. It’s more of a portmanteau word used to qualify what we don’t understand, not because of ignorance but because of a lack of curiosity.
I’m not a fan of etiquettes myself, and I quickly lose focus when taken into a debate about sub-genres and acronyms to define an ensemble of sounds, ideologies or sexual preferences. But if I can make you better understand this musical genre I love so dearly, then I’m willing to stick a few etiquettes here and there.
Indeed, electronic music is a complex genre emerging from the sounds of disco, funk and early synthesizers of the 1970s. Today, it consists of many sub-genres forming a large spectrum of styles, from the almighty house music which will set dancefloors on fire to the more mature sound of ambient music. Whatever you listen to, there’s a relatively obscure word to qualify it. And in 100% of cases, that’s not EDM.
I consider myself a musician: I’m not saying that I’m especially talented, or even successful, but I enjoy making music using computers and noises. And when I hear people saying: “Oh, so you make EDM?”, it fills my heart with pain and despair. Calling everything EDM is harming diversity – it’s like a monstrous industrialization of electronic music.
As all commercial trends, EDM is made to please, to address a market need. In doing so, it creates a uniformization of sound and structure, staying within the boundaries of the known and the expected. It restrains creators and listeners from uniqueness, providing them with an overused set of sonorities – what “the people” want to hear.
And the issue is much broader. By contenting ourselves with what we’re fed through most radio’s top 50 charts or YouTube’s trending tunes, we’re staying in a comfort zone that has nothing innovative to offer: we’re building our own musical prison, preventing original music’s glowing sunlight from reaching our faces.
To me, nothing beats the feeling of wholesomeness derived from a new musical discovery. And by getting interested in what you’re listening to, you’ll ignite your curiosity, leading to more discoveries, linking each track in an endless string of good vibes.
And I’m not only talking about genres but also record labels, artists, their history, the people behind the production process: all the steps involved in getting this dopamine flowing through your brain as your heart synchronizes with the beat and you wander in uncharted musical landscapes.
Spotify understands this very well: their algorithm has this magical ability to push you towards new musical horizons while staying on point with your preferences – hats off. YouTube is not far behind, although you’ll have to explore its depth by yourself.
All this being said, you’re free to enjoy music the way you want. I love to think it’s all about feelings and moments, so if you have your way of listening, that’s fine. But if you want to discuss it with others, make the effort of knowing the nomenclature and understanding the field – there’s tons of info out there.
To underline the importance of knowing what you’re talking about, try entering an Apple Store and asking them why Internet Explorer is not pre-installed on the new Mac: you won’t make it out alive.
