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culprit1
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Pioneers of electronic music #4: Pierre Schaeffer
5 November, 2008 | 8.28PM
Pierre Schaeffer was a pioneer of musique concrète, a style of avante-garde composition based on natural environmental sounds and other non-musical noises.
The Frenchman helped bring the cut ‘n’ paste method of composition to a worldwide audience during the 1940s.
Here’s a history lesson on one of the 20th century’s most important electronic music pioneers.
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Track analysis: Benga ‘The Cut’
24 April, 2008 | 8.28AM
Benga’s masterful new album ‘Diary Of An Afro Warrior’ hasn’t left my CD player for over a month.
The album contains a fantastic selection of bass-driven music, made all the more astonishing when you take in to account that this talented British musician is just 21 years of age.
The production on standout composition ‘The Cut’ is an exercise in clarity and power, making it a perfect choice for the latest track analysis feature.
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- Get 'The Cut' on Beatport
Pioneers of electronic music #3: BBC Radiophonic Workshop
9 April, 2008 | 12.30PM
Founded by the visionary Daphne Oram, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop became one of the most famous institutions in musical history.
Following years of impassioned badgering by studio engineer Oram, the BBC launched the workshop in 1958 with a budget of £2,000 ($4,000).
The burgeoning studio’s primary role was to create incidental music and background soundscapes for the BBC’s radio and television output.
Due to the musique-concrete style of much of what was being produced, Oram was brought into contact with some of the leading lights of the time, notably Karlheinz Stockhausen and John Cage.
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Track analysis: Chemical Brothers ‘Saturate’
4 March, 2008 | 5.22AM
The Chemical Brothers’ latest Grammy-winning album ‘We Are The Night’ is an immensely inspiring collection of psychedelic electronica.
One of the album’s many highlights is the epic dance anthem ‘Saturate’.
This track marks a return to form for the Chems, revitalising those classic barnstorming, block rockin’ beats with some exemplary thematic development.
You can listen to the track at the Chemical Brothers’ MySpace page, whilst following the track analysis below.
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- Check out Chemical Brothers on Beatport
Pioneers of electronic music #2: Steve Reich
27 February, 2008 | 2.23PM
Steve Reich (b. New York City, New York, 1936) is one of four universally recognised pioneers of the musical minimalist movement.
Developing in America from the mid-1960s, minimalism paved the way for a wide spectrum of musical activity, including house, techno and electro.
Enormously influential on a generation of musicians and producers, Reich’s beautifully repetitive compositions continue to sell CDs and concert tickets by the bucketload.
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In praise of rave
11 February, 2008 | 3.21PM
Rave, or ‘ardcore as it was affectionately called in the UK, has been consistently maligned over the years by dance music’s so-called connoisseurs.
But like it or not, rave was a huge influence on electronic music’s development and is now receiving more of a sympathetic ear, thanks to the success of many bands such, including the Klaxons.
As an impressionable 11 year old in 1992, the most exciting aspect of the rave scene for me was the perceived criminality — the scene was awash with drugs, which ensured regular media coverage on the evening news.
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- Check out 'Best of Dubstep 2007' chart
Track analysis: Pendulum ‘Granite’
11 January, 2008 | 10.30AM
Still going strong in Beatport’s drum & bass chart (despite being released back in November 2007), is the excellent single ‘Granite’ from the irrepressible Aussies Pendulum.
I thought it would be fun to break the track down from a technical point of view, second-by-second, and analyze all the core elements that make it.
It may give some insight into Pendulum’s studio tricks - ‘Granite’ was my favourite track of 2007.
The band encountered a plethora of message board-based ‘sell-out’ criticism when this single was released, much of it totally unwarranted and deeply unfair.
Pendulum introduced Led Zep guitars to a drum & bass track – so what?!
Electronic music thrives on innovation and some classic tunes were thoroughly maligned on their original release.
Whilst I personally prefer the more subtle and soulful production of my fellow Welshman High Contrast, there’s no denying that Pendulum have been the mainstream breakthrough success of recent times.
Hell, they’ve even garnered daytime radio play (no mean feat nowadays) and a Prodigy remix commission.
It is a credit to Pendulum’s studio prowess that they have established an original sound that is entirely their own. This makes their music instantly recognisible on the radio or in the club.
And ‘Granite’ is full of the classic Pendulum musical staples.
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- Get 'Granite' on Beatport
Pioneers of electronic music #1: Karlheinz Stockhausen
4 January, 2008 | 12.01PM
We thought it apt to begin Beatportal’s Pioneers of Electronic Music series with an introduction to the legendary German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, who sadly passed away aged 79 on December 5th 2007.
The man often claimed that he was born and educated on the distant star Sirius, so goodness knows where he is now.
A huge influence on a wide range of musicians, Stockhausen has received props from the likes of Frank Zappa, Kraftwerk, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Pink Floyd, Sonic Youth, Bjork and The Beatles (even appearing on the famous cover of their ‘Sgt. Pepper’ album).
His musical impact has also been acknowledged by leading jazz musicians such as Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock.
Stockhausen’s influence on popular music is not surprising, given that he was one of the first composers to focus primarily on sounds and “soundworlds” as the first point of composition, rather than the more traditional approach of simply utilising established orchestral instruments, notes and scores.
He even spoke of dreaming up sounds and performances in his sleep.
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