Electroclash
| Electroclash | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | New wave, synthpop, house, electro, techno,[1] chiptune,[2] post-punk, alternative dance |
| Cultural origins | Late 1990s, USA (Detroit & NYC) and Netherlands |
| Typical instruments | Synthesizer, drum machine, guitar |
| Derivative forms | Electro house, tech house, electrotech |
| Other topics | |
| New rave - Madchester - Synthpunk | |
Electroclash, also known as retro electro, tech pop, nouveau disco, the new new wave[1] – and ambiguously both synthcore and electropunk[3] – is a style of music that fuses 1980s electro and new wave synthpop with 1990s techno and electronic dance music.[2][4][5] It emerged in New York and Detroit in the later 1990s, pioneered by acts including Collider, I-F and those associated with Gerald Donald, and is associated with acts including Peaches, Adult, Legowelt, and Fischerspooner. It was popularised by the Electroclash Festival in 2001 and 2002 and subsequent European tours, but faded as a distinctive style in the early 2000s, when it was fused with tech house to form the electro house genre.[6]
Terminology and characteristics
The term electroclash was coined by New York DJ and promoter Larry Tee[4][5] to describe music that combined synthpop, techno, punk and performance art. The genre was in reaction to the rigid formulations of techno music, putting an emphasis on song writing, showmanship and a sense of humour,[2] described by The Guardian as one of "the two most significant upheavals in recent dance music history".[7] The visual aesthetic of electroclash has been associated with the 1982 cult film Liquid Sky.[8]
History
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I-F - "Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass" (1997)
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Electroclash emerged in New York at the end of the 1990s. It was pioneered by I-F with their 1997 track "Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass"[2][9] (which, "introducing old-fashioned verse-chorus dynamics to burbling electro in a vocodered homage to Atari-era hi-jinks," is the "record widely credited with catalysing" the electroclash movement),[2] as well as Collider with their 1998 album Blowing Shit Up (though Collider called its own style "electropunk" as the genre had not yet been named).[3] The style was pursued by artists including Felix da Housecat,[10] Peaches and Chicks on Speed.[11] During the early years, Ladytron were sometimes labeled as electroclash, but they rejected this tag.[12] Goldfrapp's albums Black Cherry (2003) and Supernature (2005) incorporated electroclash influences.[13][14]
It came to media attention in 2001, when the Electroclash Festival was held in New York.[15] The Electroclash Festival was held again in 2002 with subsequent live tours across the US and Europe in 2003 and then 2004. Other notable artists who performed at the festivals and subsequent tours include: Scissor Sisters, ADULT., Fischerspooner, Erol Alkan, Princess Superstar, Mignon, Miss Kittin & The Hacker, Mount Sims, Tiga and Spalding Rockwell. The style spread to scenes in London and Berlin, but rapidly faded as a recognisable genre as acts began to experiment with a variety of forms of music.[16][17]
Popularity chart
Successful records from the electroclash movement include:
| Year | Song | Label | Artist | UK [18] | UK Dance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | "Silver Screen Shower Scene" | City Rockers | Felix da Housecat featuring Miss Kittin | #39 | #2 |
| "Emerge" | Capitol | Fischerspooner | #25 | ― | |
| 2002 | "Set It Off" | Kitty-Yo | Peaches | #36 | ― |
| "Sunglasses at Night" | City Rockers | Tiga and Zyntherius | #25 | ― | |
| "Rippin Kittin" | Zomba Records | Golden Boy with Miss Kittin | #67 | #1 |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Carpenter, Susan (August 6, 2002). '80s+techno+beat&pqatl=google "Electro-clash builds on '80s techno beat". The Spectator. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 D. Lynskey (22 March 2002). "Out with the old, in with the older". Guardian.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Potter, Josh (3 November 2011). "Walking Mix Tape". Metroland. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Electroclash Mix by Larry Tee | Music Review | Entertainment Weekly
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Larry Tee Biography on Yahoo! Music
- ↑ "Electro House". Tumblr. Retrieved 12 June 2012. "It was in the early 2000s when a big movement of electroclash being mixed with synthpop. Meanwhile, tech house was also becoming more known and gaining some serious buzz. When the two were combined that is when Electro House came to be the way it is now. ... 'Satisfaction' was one of those songs that people would have stuck in their head for days. This song still continues to receive a lot of attention even now. It won world wide rewards as well as make Benny Benassi the father of Electro House."
- ↑ "The female techno takeover", The Guardian, May 24, 2008
- ↑ "The Great Electroclash Swindle". Retrieved August 10, 2008.
- ↑ "I-f – Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass". Discogs. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
- ↑ M. Goldstein (22 March 2002). "This cat is housebroken". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011.
- ↑ J. Walker (5 October 2002). "Popmatters concert review: ELECTROCLASH 2002 Artists: Peaches, Chicks on Speed, W.I.T., and Tracy and the Plastics". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011.
- ↑ Ladytron rejected the electroclash tag
- ↑ Phares, Heather. "Black Cherry – Goldfrapp". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
- ↑ Oculicz, Edward (23 August 2005). "Goldfrapp – Supernature". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
- ↑ Quinnon, Michael: "Electroclash". World Wide Words, 2002
- ↑ Harris, John (2009). Hail! Hail! Rock'n'Roll: The Ultimate Guide to the Music, the Myths and the Madness. Sphere. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-84744-293-2.
- ↑ "So-cool U.K. quartet Ladytron brings electro-pop to Gothic.
- ↑ Search song on EveryHit.com database
See also
- List of electroclash artists
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