|
EBM, or electronic body music, combines industrial elements with influences from popular dance music. The origin of the term EBM is attributed to Kraftwerk, who used it to describe their 1978 album The Man-Machine. Other electronic acts of the early 1980s, including Front 242 and DAF, soon began using the term as well. Clear electronic percussion, synths and vocals were typical of EBM of this time period.
|
|
Intelligent Dance Music (or IDM for short) is an offshoot of electronic music that developed in the early 1990s, predominantly in the United Kingdom. The term "Intelligent Dance Music" and the implied stance that IDM is more intellectual than other genres of dance music is somewhat controversial, its use even having been denounced by prominent musicians in the so-called IDM scene. Despite this, the name is still widely used today in the media as well as by fans.
|
|
Synthpop developed as a branch of rock music in the United Kingdom in the 1970s and eventually became one of, if not the first, genre of music in which electronics became more important than acoustic instruments. Over the course of the 1980s synthpop grew to be a mainstay of popular music, though by the end of the decade it gradually lost its mainstream appeal. The late 2000s saw synthpop once again make a comeback with a resurgence of new synthpop bands as well as synthpop elements being incorporated in other genres of music.
|
|
Breakcore can be difficult to define in terms of musical elements, though it typically combines influences from industrial, IDM, drum and bass, noise, techno and other related genres at high BPMs. Many argue that the atmosphere of chaos and aggression present in breakcore tracks is the main feature that holds the genre together, since stylistically, breakcore artists range across all extremes of the musical spectrum.
|
|
Industrial rock came into being around the end of the 1970s as a number of rock and post-punk bands began incorporating synthesizers and industrial elements into their music. The genre combines influences from noise music and electro-industrial on one side with post-punk and traditional rock music on the other. The genre is often confused with industrial metal, which came about nearly a decade later and was directly influenced by early industrial rock.
|
|
Combining elements of punk music and electronica, digital hardcore developed in the beginning of the 1990s, mostly in Germany. Early on, the classic digital hardcore sound was defined by the work of Atari Teenage Riot, their frontman Alec Empire and the record label they formed in 1994, Digital Hardcore Recordings. Politicized lyrics and high-tempo drums were common in early digital hardcore; the latter would subsequently be taken to an extreme in breakcore, which was heavily influenced by digital hardcore.
|
|
|
Electro-industrial established itself as a separate genre of music shortly following the rise of EBM in the early 1980s. Electro-industrial distinguishes itself from EBM in that it makes heavier use of distorted sounds and distances itself from EBM's more techno-influenced elements.
|
|
Rhythmic noise fuses noise music with other (primarily electronic) industrial subgenres. It's also commonly referred to as "Power Noise," which is derived from the Noisex song, "United (Power Noise Movement)." Rhythmic noise should, however, not be confused with Power Electronics, which is more closely related to noise music. Highly distorted and otherwise processed electronic rhythms are common elements of rhythmic noise.
|
|
Dark ambient is a subgenre of ambient music, which, in contrast to other styles of music, focuses less on creating rhythms and melodies and more on the tonal and atmospheric qualities of sound. The more obscure, less accessible and experimental elements of ambient tones and soundscapes are the focal point of dark ambient music. Many parallels can be drawn between dark ambient and noise, as both push the boundaries of what is generally considered as music. In contrast to noise, dark ambient tends to use little to no percussion or rhythm sounds.
|
|
With influences ranging from heavy metal to electro-industrial and noise, industrial metal blends the experimental aspects of industrial music while usually remaining within the constraints of rock conventions and song structures. Industrial metal has been both critically acclaimed by fans, with several platinum-selling albums having been released in the genre, and denounced by critics as a watered-down version of “true” industrial music.
|
|
Noise music is a form of so-called “anti-music” featuring a number of artists whose work can best be described as sound art. Noise transcends the boundaries and constraints of traditional genres of music and is often considered unlistenable to those unfamiliar with the genre. Defining noise can be difficult, though most describe it as being an “unwanted” sound or a sound which is inappropriate for a given situation. As such, the definition of noise has changed over time and also varies from culture to culture.
|
|
