The Conflicting Attitudes of Electronic Music

Vickie Lau
Chi Omega

Today we’ve forgotten how to simply listen to music, have fun and chill out. Music is slowly becoming just another industry in this country. If you look at most of the cheesy, exaggerated music that has become popular in the United States, you’ll see a poor representation of variety. Just by looking at our collective taste in music as a nation you can tell that we despise subtlety. Major labels, MTV and other major media tastemakers dominate radio stations and airplay.  They are the ones helping reinforce time and time again the same music tastes, submerging our nation into an endless feedback loop.

So then what happens when an emerging genre of music is introduced to an exclusive-eared nation?

Slowly, more people are becoming open to electronic music. While the United States is a little late on the scene – a scene that Europe has been getting knee deep into over the last 20 to 30 years – there are many that hope people can begin accepting the greatness it has to offer.

Even though electronic music popularity and its associated subgenres (dubstep, house, trance, techno, electro) are slowly growing and maturing in the U.S., the skeptics still remain.

Much of the uncertainty may be due to the reference points that come to mind when thinking of “dance” or “electronic” music. This ends up turning off people who might otherwise be into some pretty good music, if only they gave it a chance initially. We hear, “I don’t want to listen to that frat-step bro music,” or “It’s just the same sounds over and over again.”

Sure, Greek life has definitely helped reinforce the “rave” scene a little, thanks to highlighter and basement dance parties galore. However the word “rave” is one that is abused and should not be revived in that sense.

To all the true EDM lovers who shake their heads with angst in response to all the corny “RAVE” and “TeChNo 2012” playlists on fratmusic.com, I feel your pain as well. Poorly done mashups and remixes done by random people ruining great originals – it kills me too. You and I both know that Flo Rida’s “Good Feeling” shouldn’t belong on such a playlist. Avicii himself is probably just as pissed as we are that he remixed (and ruined) the song in the first place. I too, wish some of these confused songs would disappear. However, in a weird way, we must be thankful.

Mainstream music artists are noticing the trend and hopping onto the bandwagon. While their tracks probably have you hitting the “off” button to your radio by the fifth time you’ve heard it, they’re subliminally helping push our nation’s music taste into the electronic generation. Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Britney Spears – what do all these pop stars currently have in common? Their hits are all being co-produced by electro-house artists.

My point is, electronic music is bringing the art form to music back. We get to relinquish in the kind of music that can express feelings without even using words most of the time – music of pure emotion that one can only hope to understand by opening up to it.

So, put down the auto-tuned, repetitive sultry Drake CD for just a BRIEF moment (I swear you’ll be okay) and embrace the beats. You’ll miss out on an amazing new era of dance music if you don’t. Remember, electronic music is just a small and blissful reminder to us that we, humans, control the machines (not the radio). Open up to funk and soul!

Vickie is a junior studying public relations and graphic design. You may contact her at vickie@odyssey-east.com.