Electronic / EDM
in Music ·
Frank Howard79 said:People who typically dislike electronic music are usually those deeply anchored in nostalgia for bygone eras—which is fine, I suppose—but they harbor a fear of anything unfamiliar. They aren't afraid of the technology itself, since electronic music isn't some recent novelty, but rather they recoil at the mere mention of "futurism." They lack that specific sensation, that profound feeling of merging the unknown with the entire universe, or that rush of emotion one gets when experiencing distant, distant worlds... or perhaps the atmosphere of Blade Runner simply triggers an innate sense of anxiety in them.
Every genre of music possesses its own distinct identity, making any debate regarding its worth essentially pointless. Such discussions rarely yield constructive conclusions; instead, they merely serve as a vehicle for people to vent their own personal biases and cinematic fixations.
Regrettably, many people make a massive error by judging electronic music based solely on what is spoon-fed to them via television and radio, which is mostly garbage.
It stands to reason, really; someone who doesn't actively listen to electronic music isn't going to go out of their way to hunt for it, so they judge everything based on what commercial media pushes.
Electronic music boasts numerous titans and masterpieces—think Mike Oldfield, Vangelis, Jean-Michel Jarre, and other classics—and even in more recent times, the field has expanded significantly. In truth, there are more great works than we can possibly fathom, making it genuinely difficult to keep up. There are far too many sub-genres to track, let alone every single individual artist...
For instance, I could quite easily refer to Vangelis as the Mozart Classical Era equivalent, or rather, the Mozart Electronic Music.
I generally find myself in social circles that favor rock, metal, and those other "traditional" genres—groups that frequently disparage electronic music by claiming it isn't "real" music.
In a fair and just world (read: America), these people would show at least a modicum of respect toward the genre and simply stick to their own preferences.
I truly value the entirety of the musical spectrum, from rock to metal and everything else, and I believe I am capable of discerning quality from mediocrity—I possess at least that minimum threshold of knowledge required to form a legitimate and objective assessment.
Most of you who do not listen to electronic music lack that foundational knowledge, and therein lies the distinction. Consequently, you have no standing to draw conclusions—though I give credit to the exceptions who are actually acquainted with the genre and are thus qualified to offer a proper critique.