How Electronic Music Evolved With Me
Back in 2010, my first introduction to electronic music was strobe by deadmau5. To be honest, at first it seemed a little boring. My friend at the time insisted that we keep on listening. As the song progressed, saw-tooth synths layered on top of each other. Then the kicks, bass, claps, and white noise risers joined in. At a certain point in the song, you can feel yourself rooting for a mission! I was hooked. I listened to all of deadmau5's albums and followed his livestreams.
I then started to looked for more artists to listen to. Skrillex quickly popped up. The first song I listened to, scary monsters and nice sprites, was released on deadmau5's label mau5trap believe it or not! That rough, growly bass was unlike anything I heard of at that time! Skrillex quickly became a top artist for me, even till today.
People around me labeled both of these artists as dubstep, but I did more research into the EDM genres. It turns out, deadmau5 was considered progressive house and skrillex was considered brostep, a subgenre of dubstep (which originated in the UK). I also found out about trance, drum and bass, electro house, and techno.
I pivoted to drum and bass next. Noisia (or VISION flipped) were (and still today) considered one of the best D&B artists. stigma by noisia blew my mind. Stigma clocks in at a fast 172 beats per minute. The music I listened to before, was 128 (deadmau5) and 140 (skrillex). The dark, mechanical, distorted bass that you expect from Noisia is very unique. Stigma in particular makes you feel like you are riding a motorcycle while fighting off mutant zombies in a desert wasteland. Just my cup of tea.
My next phase, around 2012-2015, I really embraced what some would call festival/electro house - Avicii, Nicky Romero, Hardwell, etc. I can't quite describe it, but listening to those artists during that time period was special. Everyone knew the lyrics, so it made festivals even more fun.
From 2015-2017, I tried to explore all genres at once to see what was out there. Few honorable mentions: porter robinson, mat zo, kill the noise.
In 2017, I graduated college, and I largely accepted that era of my life was over. I didn't really aspire to go to a club or an EDM music festival any more. I still listen to the artists above, and many more, but it is more of a nostalgic homage to what I enjoyed with so many people throughout those formative years. Since then, I have pivoted to more ambient artists: Jon Hopkins, Aphex Twin & Tycho to name a few. Jon Hopkins's music has resonated with me the most during this era so far.
When I first heard open eye signal by jon hopkins, it opened my eyes to how raw and emotional electronic music could be. Not that I did not feel any emotions with other electronic songs, but something about this music cuts straight to your soul. This song has a particular ambient, chilling driving force that reminds that you time is passing by. In a way, this reflected my feelings at that very moment - I just graduated in college, started working full time and tried to find my calling as a new professional. After open eye signal, Jon Hopkins released everything connected which was a pivot from his earlier raw dark-ish ambient techno. Based on my interpretation, he curates feelings of euphoria, implying that all humans are experiencing a similar complicated existence. Having watched Jon Hopkins interviews, this vibe checks out. He actively practices transcendental meditation and tries his best to connect to his listeners by providing these surreal experiences. When I saw Jon Hopkins in Austin a few years ago, it felt like a new part of my mind and soul opened up. During covid, Jon Hopkins music really helped me get through periods of social isolation.
My music taste in electronic music has evolved dramatically, but so has my life. Looking back, each phase of the music tracked very closely to the person I was becoming.