What is EDM? A complete guide for all EDM newcomers
If you have ever heard of music, you probably heard of EDM as well. A popular abbreviation used by many festival-oriented party animals and record-spinning producers. EDM has been around for decades. So, yeah, we do understand asking your peers what it actually stands for might feel a little overdue. Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered. And more so, we will share some fun facts and historical scoops with you so you can impress them all. How the turntables!
What does EDM stand for?
Electronic Dance Music. That’s what EDM stands for. Perhaps one of the most self-explanatory titles a genre was ever given, right? Wrong! This is where it gets tricky (already). EDM isn’t actually a genre. It is the combined term for all genres that can be categorized as being ‘dance music’. From the soothing summer sounds of tropical chill house to the fast-raging beats of uptempo hardcore. Check out a complete overview of electronic dance music genres in the article ‘The complete list of electronic dance music genres’.
What’s the history of EDM music?
Considering EDM embodies all ‘electronically produced danceable music’, we can trace its origin all the way back to the 1960s. In this period, the first commercial synthesizer was born and musicians started to arrange previously recorded sounds (or samples) into a new piece of music. This type of music was known as ‘dub music’ and became popular in nightclubs even before disco did. However, it was indeed thanks to disco music that EDM skyrocketed.
Disco is deeply rooted in African-American music culture, dancing to rhythms and vocal chants have always been a part of ancient rituals. Halfway through the 1960s, people were exploring different ways of celebrating newly won freedoms. Dancing to disco music was one of the ways to do so, sparking the immense popularity of the musical genre and the recognition of electronic dance music by the masses.
Just as you, an EDM enthusiast, like to pick up the pace while working out or take a breather with the sounds of lofi, our music lovin’ ancestors weren’t planning on sticking to disco for the rest of their days. House music became a counterstatement at the end of the 1970s. Visionary artists like Frankie Knuckles, Jesse Saunder, Farley Jackmaster Funk, and Marshall Jefferson helped the genre spread around the United States over a manner of years. With its booming popularity came the launch of many forms of electronic equipment like drum machines, synthesizers, and samples. This mass adoption of electronic music combined with the development of musical technology made the mid and late 1980s one of the most important eras in the history of EDM.
From the late 80s on, the slightly less conventional electronic dance music genres came into existence. The oil crisis of the 1970s caused the automotive industry in Detroit to collapse. Many hard-working people who were trying to build a better future for their children, lost their jobs. A sound that symbolized the socio-economic difference was born and given the name ‘techno’. Throughout the 10 years that followed, more underground sounds like hardcore, drum & bass and trance music started to find their way into the EDM spectrum.
Today, the number of genres being considered ‘EDM’ exceeds 50. In the last 20 years, electronic music genres have found their way into the mainstream charts. With 100.000 visitor-counting festivals and crossovers with today’s most respected pop artists, it is clear EDM is here to stay.
What does EDM sound like? (+ examples)
If you’ve paid attention to all of the above, you don’t expect us to show you examples from every piece of EDM (sub-)genre ever, right? Instead, we decided to show you a few recent EDM highlights to help you understand the current state of electronic dance music.
David Guetta - Family Affair (Dance For Me)
Three-time DJ Mag Top 100 winner David Guetta has dominated mainstages and has heard his tracks being played on thousands of radio stations worldwide. Not enough reason for him to stop now though, considering yet another tech house hit with his remake of the early 2000s R&B song ‘Family Affair’.
Reinier Zonneveld & Angerfist - Fist on Acid (Techno Mix)
Reinier Zonneveld only started performing in 2015 and has developed into one of the leading artists in techno. Hardcore legend Angerfist has been dominating this rough, underground genre for a long period of time, but proves he’s still up for an experiment by partnering up with Zonneveld for this amazing techno track.
Max Wassen - Get Naked
The Canadian/Swedish rapper Max Wassen combines his uplifting hip-hop vocals with bubbly electronic beats. His music can best be described as dance-pop. It is one of the countless examples showing that EDM has found its way into the more mainstream music culture.
Armin van Buuren & Wildstylez feat. PollyAnna - Typically Dutch (VIP Mix)
Trance legend Armin van Buuren and hardstyle mastermind Wildstylez join forces to bring the harder styles of dance music to the biggest mainstages. Typically Dutch premiered at the 2021 Tomorrowland mainstage and has since been highly anticipated. It forms a perfect combination between trance and euphoric hardstyle that surely gets many fists pumpin’.
Dukewood - Good Times
Dutch producers and long-time friends De Hofnar and Kav Verhouzer are never not together. They founded a label, make music and have an occasional beer or two together as well. Another project proving their solid friendship is Dukewood, a musical act that has recently released Good Times. A house banger that puts a smile on your face.
That concludes it from our side. We feel you should have a pretty solid idea by now.
Ready for some more research? We got your back! Check out ‘The complete list of electronic dance music genres’ or experience what EDM is ‘live’ at one of ‘The best electronic dance music festivals of 2023’.
