Electropop

Electropop is a music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Usually, it is described as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre saw a revival of popularity and major influence in the 2000s.[1]

"Electronic pop" redirects here. For the related genre, see synth-pop. For popular electronic music, see Electronic music § Late 1960s to early 1980s.

For other uses, see Electropop (disambiguation).

Electropop
Stylistic origins	Electronic pop synth-pop[1]
Cultural origins	Early 1980s, United Kingdom, United States, West Germany
Typical instruments	Synthesizer electronic drums[1]
Derivative forms	Chillwave[2] Italo disco Europop uplifting trance[3] bubblegum bass
Other topics
Alternative dance bitpop chill-out K-pop J-pop C-pop post-disco nu-disco electro electroclash electro-industrial electro house indie electronic indie pop progressive house

History

Early 1980s

Main articles: Synth-pop and Electro (music)

See also: Electronics in rock music

During the early 1980s, British artists such as Gary Numan, the Human League, Soft Cell, John Foxx and Visage helped pioneer a new synth-pop style that drew more heavily from electronic music and emphasized primary usage of synthesizers,[4] while the electro style was largely developed by Afrika Bambaataa, who was heavily influenced by Yellow Magic Orchestra and Kraftwerk, and in turn influenced the 1980s pop-music style of Madonna.[5]

Some fascinating new music began arriving on these shores; it was dubbed electropop, because electronic instrumentation — mainly synthesizers and syndrums — was used to craft pop songs. "Pop Muzik" by M was one of the first. There was a gradual accumulation of worthy electropop discs, though they were still mostly heard only in rock discos. But in 1981, the floodgates opened, and "new music" at last made a mighty splash. The breakthrough song was "Don't You Want Me" by the Human League.

— Anglomania: The Second British Invasion, by Parke Puterbaugh for Rolling Stone, November 1983.[6]

21st century

See also: Synth-pop § 21st-century revival

The media in 2009 ran articles proclaiming a new era of different electropop stars and indeed, the times saw a rise in popularity of several electropop artists. In the Sound of 2009 poll of 130 music experts conducted for the BBC, ten of the top fifteen artists named were of the electropop genre.[7] Lady Gaga had major commercial success from 2008 with her debut album The Fame. Music writer Simon Reynolds noted that "Everything about Gaga came from electroclash, except the music, which wasn't particularly 1980s".[8] The Korean pop music scene has also become dominated and influenced by electropop, particularly with boy bands and girl groups such as Super Junior, SHINee, f(x) and Girls' Generation.[9]

Singer Michael Angelakos of Passion Pit said in a 2009 interview that while playing electropop was not his intention, the limitations of dorm life made the genre more accessible.[10]

In 2009 The Guardian quoted James Oldham—head of artists and repertoire at A&M Records—as saying "All A&R departments have been saying to managers and lawyers: 'Don't give us any more bands because we're not going to sign them and they're not going to sell records.' So everything we've been put on to is electronic in nature."[11][12]

In 2019 Kenneth Womack wrote that singer and songwriter Billie Eilish had "staked her claim as the reigning queen of electropop" with her critical and commercial hit album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?.[13]

See also

• Dance-pop
• Minimal wave
• Vaporwave
• Futurepop
• Teen pop

References

1. Jones 2006, p. 107.
2. Jon Pareles (March 21, 2010). "Spilling Beyond a Festival's Main Courses". The New York Times.
3. "Spilling Beyond a Festival's Main Courses". The New York Times. 22 March 2010 – via New York Times.
4. Reynolds 2005, pp. 296-308. sfn error: no target: CITEREFReynolds2005 (help)
5. David Toop (March 1996), "A-Z Of Electro", The Wire (145), retrieved 2011-05-29
6. "Anglomania: The Second British Invasion". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
7. UK gaga for electro-pop, guitar bands fight back Archived 2009-07-23 at the Wayback Machine, The Kuwait Times, January 28, 2009
8. The 1980s revival that lasted an entire decade by Simon Reynolds for The Guardian, 22 January 2010.
9. Mullins, Michelle (15 January 2012). "K-pop splashes into the west". The Purdue University Calumet Chronicle. Archived from the original on 4 June 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
10. "Interview: Michael Angelakos of Passion Pit Boston Phoenix October 1, 2009".
11. "Gaga for girl power". smh.com.au.
12. Neil McCormick (5 August 2009). "La Roux, Lady Gaga, Mika, Little Boots: the 80s are back". Telegraph.co.uk.
13. Womack, Kenneth (May 10, 2019). "Billie Eilish is the new pop intelligentsia". Salon. Retrieved February 2, 2020.

Bibliography

• Jones, Hollin (2006). Music Projects with Propellerhead Reason: Grooves, Beats and Styles from Trip Hop to Techno. PC Publishing. ISBN 978-1-870775-14-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyMXHJxkVlfGGsSjqjiSBfXSRBui-y_Aw