Wait for it…
Today is a celebratory day for me, and somewhat of a relief as well. I’ve spent more than a year compiling research on Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and today marks the launch of the paper The EDM Guide: Technology, Culture, Curation and the digital brand EDMTCC. Initially this project was limited to just compiling a few case studies, but quickly grew to be something else. The more I researched, the more I felt that there was an opportunity to tell a much bigger story about the music, culture and movement of EDM.
The paper documents events like the birth of digital music and how this time period correlates with some of the most significant technological advancements in EDM like Beatport and Serato. It showcases never before released stats for companies like UKF and SoundCloud. I was also able to interview several people, from companies like Astralwerks and 22tracks, covering the landscape of EDM’s legacy and what is taking place on the cutting edge.
It would take a book or several books to comprehensively document all the key events and technical advancements in EDM. In some ways this depth is part of the point and definitely a key theme throughout the text. This music and culture has an immense depth and has for some time. It would also be antithetical to try and cover everything in a paper that uses “curation” as a key theme.
The content presented has been curated through a variety of sources, but it is absolutely influenced by my personal story of how I came to care so much about these genres and why they’re important to me. Working at a club in Bristol (UK) in the early 2000’s is a part of this. Going to prog house and trance shows at Atlanta’s club 1150 is a part of this. Baptism into bass music via NYC’s Dubwar is a part of this. And most recently the dubs from down under are a part of this.
This paper scratches a bit below the surface to portray these key stories and those that made them. My hope is that this research will serve as a catalyst for continuing these discussions even further. I created the brand EDMTCC because these topics are much bigger than one paper and a brand provides an overarching vehicle to continue the discussion through a variety of channels.
The EDM Guide: Technology, Culture, Curation is available for free to read online or download:
And of course some music!!
Thanks for your interest, contact info here and below.
-Robby Towns, Founder of EDMTCC & NestaMusic
info@edmtcc.com (General Inquiry & Speaking Requests)
https://plus.google.com/+Edmtcc/posts
https://www.youtube.com/user/edmtcc