182-544: Freestyle , or Latin freestyle (initially called Latin hip hop ) is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in the New York metropolitan area , Philadelphia , and Miami , primarily among Hispanic Americans and Italian Americans in the 1980s. It experienced its greatest popularity from the late 1980s until the early 1990s. A common theme of freestyle lyricism originated as heartbreak in an urban environment typified by New York City . An important precursor to freestyle
364-432: A paywall by the end of the year. It abandoned experiments with Pitchfork paywalls following criticism from readers. In 2020, Condé Nast laid off the executive editor Matthew Schnipper and the features editor and union chair Stacey Anderson. In 2022 and 2023, Pitchfork had about three million unique visitors a month, down by about 36% from 2021. On January 17, 2024, Wintour announced that Pitchfork would merge with
546-452: A skeleton crew continuing its mission, and said he was pleased with the work it had published since the announcement. On July 2, 2024, Pitchfork named Mano Sundaresan, the founder of the music blog No Bells , as the new head of editorial content. Sundaresan denied that Pitchfork was "going away", and said he aimed to adapt it to modern media and cater to more specialized audiences. That October, five former Pitchfork writers launched
728-542: A "creative partnership" with EDC organizers Insomniac Events in 2013 that would allow it to access its resources whilst remaining an independent company; Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino described EDM as the "[new] rock 'n' roll ". US radio conglomerate iHeartMedia, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Media and Entertainment) also made efforts to align itself with EDM. In January 2014 It hired noted British DJ and BBC Radio 1 personality Pete Tong to produce programming for its "Evolution" dance radio brand, and announced
910-617: A "distinguished digital property that brings a strong editorial voice, an enthusiastic and young audience, a growing video platform and a thriving events business". Kaskie said "our needs and wants were converging", and that Pitchfork needed capital and expertise to expand its publication and festivals. The sale boosted Pitchfork's value to advertisers. Pitchfork relocated to the Condé Nast offices in One World Trade Center , Manhattan. Previously, Pitchfork 's independence had been
1092-484: A Spanish version of the song was released with the title "No Te Vayas". By 1987, freestyle began getting more airplay on American pop radio stations. Songs such as " Come Go with Me " by Exposé , " Show Me " by the Cover Girls , " Fascinated " by Company B , " Silent Morning " by Noel , and " Catch Me (I'm Falling) " by Pretty Poison , brought freestyle into the mainstream. House music , based partly on disco rhythms,
1274-517: A celebrity status. Other major acts that gained prominence, including Avicii and Swedish House Mafia , toured major venues such as arenas and stadiums rather than playing clubs; in December 2011, Swedish House Mafia became the first electronic music act to sell out New York City's Madison Square Garden . In 2011, Spin declared a "new rave generation" led by acts like David Guetta, Deadmau5 , and Skrillex . In January 2013, Billboard introduced
1456-468: A comeback in the cities where the music originally experienced its greatest success. New York City impresario Steve Sylvester and producer Sal Abbatiello of Fever Records launched Stevie Sly's Freestyle Party show at the Manhattan live music venue, Coda on April 1, 2004. The show featured Judy Torres, Cynthia, and the Cover Girls and was attended by several celebrity guests. The Coda show was successful, and
1638-399: A computer running a digital audio workstation (DAW), with various plug-ins installed such as software synthesizers and effects units, which are controlled with a MIDI controller such as a MIDI keyboard . This setup is generally sufficient to complete entire productions, which are then ready for mastering . A ghost producer is a hired music producer in a business arrangement who produces
1820-456: A consistent content strategy, and packaging a love of music in a compelling way", according to its founder, Alex Young. The critic Carl Wilson said Pitchfork drove a "feeding frenzy about band discovery" in North American music journalism, with publications vying to discover new acts. In the 2000s, Pitchfork was credited with "making or breaking" musical careers, a phenomenon known as
2002-548: A critical review. Itzkoff argued that the obtuse and confrontational style was part of the Pitchfork business model and made their reviews memorable. He suggested that the writers' lack of training or experience, and the fact that they worked for low or no pay, created a sense of authenticity and undermined the authority of traditional media. Schreiber conceded that Pitchfork had a reputation for snobbery, but said its writers were "really just honest, opinionated music fans". In
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#17328944071502184-444: A difference to social causes. In July 2010, Pitchfork launched Altered Zones , a blog aggregator devoted to underground and DIY music . In 2011, Pitchfork relocated to Brooklyn , New York. On May 21, Pitchfork announced a partnership with the website Kill Screen , in which Pitchfork would publish some of their articles. Altered Zones closed on November 30. On December 26, 2012, Pitchfork launched Nothing Major ,
2366-520: A few headliner dudes that can play 3,000–4,000-capacity venues, but DJs play the same venues, they turn the crowd over two times, people buy drinks all night long at higher prices—it's a win-win." Electronic music festivals, such as Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) in Las Vegas and Ultra Music Festival in Miami also grew in size, placing an increased emphasis on visual experiences, and DJs who had begun to attain
2548-478: A fistful of water". In the UK, "dance music" or "dance" are more common terms for EDM. What is widely perceived to be "club music" has changed over time; it now includes different genres and may not always encompass EDM. Similarly, "electronic dance music" can mean different things to different people. Both "club music" and "EDM" seem vague, but the terms are sometimes used to refer to distinct and unrelated genres (club music
2730-641: A freestyle production on " Temptation " by Corina and " Together Forever " by Lisette Melendez . The songs were released in 1991, almost simultaneously, and caused a resurgence in the style when they were embraced by Top 40 radio. "Temptation" reached the number 6 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. These hits were followed by the success of Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam , who had been one of the earliest freestyle acts. Their records were produced by Full Force , who had also worked with UTFO and James Brown . Several primarily freestyle artists released ballads during
2912-425: A gap in the market for faster-moving publication that emphasized new acts. Pitchfork could publish several articles a day, greatly outpacing print media. New technologies such as MP3 , the iPod and the file-sharing service Napster created greater access to music, and music blogs became an important resource, creating further opportunity for Pitchfork. The contributors Mark Richardson and Eric Harvey said this
3094-538: A home studio. Unlike in traditional recording studios, bedroom producers typically use low-cost, accessible software and equipment which can lead to music being created completely "in the box", with no external hardware. Afro-EDM depicts African electronic dance music genres and styles that blend elements of traditional African music with electronic dance music. It incorporates various African rhythms, instruments, and vocal styles, merging them with modern EDM production techniques. Afro EDM had existed for decades. However, it
3276-469: A key aspect of its image. Schreiber said it would continue to have "creative independence". The acquisition triggered concern; the New York Observer wrote that was a "death knell for indie rock". The Condé Nast chief digital officer, Fred Santarpia, was criticized when he said the acquisition would bring "a very passionate audience of millennial males into our roster". The Atlantic connected
3458-537: A limited-edition quarterly publication of about 10,000 copies of each issue, printed on glossy, high-quality paper. About two thirds of the content would be original, with the remaining reused from the Pitchfork website. The International Business Times likened the literary aspirations to The New Yorker and the Paris Review . The Pitchfork Review ended after 11 issues in November 2016. As of 2014, Pitchfork
3640-464: A new EDM-focused Dance/Electronic Songs chart, tracking the top 50 electronic songs based on sales, radio airplay, club play, and online streaming . According to Eventbrite, EDM fans are more likely to use social media to discover and share events or gigs. They also discovered that 78% of fans say they are more likely to attend an event if their peers do, compared to 43% of fans in general. EDM has many young and social fans. By late 2011, Music Trades
3822-410: A new means for listeners to discover music. Pitchfork staff conflicted with Condé Nast over its attempts to monetize Pitchfork Music Festival by making it into a "luxury" experience. Santarpia left Condé Nast in 2018, leaving Pitchfork under the purview of Anna Wintour , the chief content officer. Two former Pitchfork staffers told The Verge that Wintour did not care about music or understand
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#17328944071504004-530: A notable following in California, especially Los Angeles, the Central Valley, San Francisco Bay, and San Diego. California's large Latino community enjoyed the sounds of America's East Coast club scene, and a number of California artists became popular with East Coast freestyle enthusiasts. In Northern California, primarily San Francisco and San Jose, they leaned toward a similar rhythm dance to hi-NRG , so most of
4186-474: A number, these albums were given fixed scores. In the 2000s, Pitchfork reviews were criticized as pretentious, verbose and inaccurate. Itzkoff wrote that Pitchfork was overwrought and sometimes hard to understand, with an abundance of adjectives, adverbs and misused words. Shaer identified examples of "verbose and unreadable writing ... dense without being insightful, personal without being interesting". In City Pages , Thomas Lindsay wrote that its prose
4368-540: A partnership with SFX to co-produce live concerts and EDM-oriented original programming for its top 40 radio stations. iHeartMedia president John Sykes explained that he wanted his company's properties to be the "best destination [for EDM]". Major brands have also used the EDM phenomena as a means of targeting millennials and EDM songs and artists have increasingly been featured in television commercials and programs. Avicii's manager Ash Pournouri compared these practices to
4550-477: A performance instrument. They also foregrounded spatial effects such as reverb and delay by using auxiliary send routings creatively. The Roland Space Echo , manufactured by Roland Corporation , was widely used by dub producers in the 1970s to produce echo and delay effects. Despite the limited electronic equipment available to dub pioneers such as King Tubby and Lee "Scratch" Perry, their experiments in remix culture were musically cutting-edge. Ambient dub
4732-461: A plethora of trap remixes of popular EDM songs, and 1/3 dub (low-frequency focus and strong emphasis on repetitiveness throughout a song)". Some of the artists that popularized this genre, along with several others, are producers such as RL Grime with the tracks "Core" and "Scylla" released in 2014, Flosstradamus with their Hdynation Radio album released in 2015 and Carnage with his track "Turn Up" released in 2012. Trap music in this connotation
4914-602: A question about being credited with coining the term New Romantic Burgess has stated that: "Initially I was using three terms – Futurist, Electronic Dance Music (the Landscape singles have EDM printed on them) and New Romantic." Writing in The Guardian , journalist Simon Reynolds noted that the American music industry's adoption of the term EDM in the late 2000s was an attempt to re-brand US "rave culture" and differentiate it from
5096-538: A recording studio with specialized equipment such as samplers , synthesizers, effects units and MIDI controllers all set up to interact with one another using the MIDI protocol. In the genre's early days, hardware electronic musical instruments were used and the focus in production was mainly on manipulating MIDI data as opposed to manipulating audio signals. Since the late 1990s, the use of software has increased. A modern electronic music production studio generally consists of
5278-442: A reliable source of recommendations. Without the limitations of print media, Pitchfork was able to champion emerging independent acts that major print magazines, which had to sell millions of copies every year, could not. Schreiber felt the magazines were "not even trying to discover new music ... Publications used to take more chances on artists, putting bands on the cover that they thought deserved to be there." He said Pitchfork
5460-471: A review or $ 40 for a feature. In 2004, following staff tensions about Schreiber's advertising income, Pitchfork started paying writers from their first articles at a slightly improved rate. That year, Pitchfork published a positive review of the debut album by Arcade Fire , Funeral . The album became a bestseller and is cited as the first major example of Pitchfork 's influence on independent music, attracting coverage of Pitchfork from outlets such as
5642-475: A signature 10-point scale with punitive zeal." Schreiber said the site's early period "was about really laying into people who really deserved it", and defended the importance of honesty in arts criticism. In 1999, Schreiber relocated Pitchfork to Chicago. He estimated that Pitchfork had published 1,000 reviews by this point. Around the turn of the millennium, the American music press was dominated by monthly print magazines such as Rolling Stone , creating
Freestyle music - Misplaced Pages Continue
5824-627: A simple and austere sound. After the breakthrough of Gary Numan in the UK Singles Chart in 1979, large numbers of artists began to enjoy success with a synthesizer-based sound in the early 1980s, including late-1970s debutants like Japan and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark , and newcomers such as Depeche Mode and Eurythmics . In Japan, Yellow Magic Orchestra's success opened the way for synth-pop bands such as P-Model , Plastics , and Hikashu . The development of inexpensive polyphonic synthesizers,
6006-488: A snare or high hat on the second, fourth, or eighth notes. In the mid-1980s house music thrived on the small Balearic Island of Ibiza, Spain . The Balearic sound was the spirit of the music emerging from the island at that time; the combination of old vinyl rock, pop, reggae, and disco records paired with an "anything goes" attitude made Ibiza a hub of drug-induced musical experimentation. A club called Amnesia, whose resident DJ, Alfredo Fiorito , pioneered Balearic house ,
6188-441: A solo artist. Such non-disclosure agreements are often noted as predatory because ghost producers, especially teenage producers, do not have an understanding of the music industry. London producer Mat Zo has alleged that DJs who hire ghost producers "have pretended to make their own music and [left] us actual producers to struggle". A bedroom producer is an independent musician who creates electronic music on their laptop or in
6370-432: A song for another DJ/artist that releases it as their own, typically under a contract which prevents them from identifying themselves as a personnel of the song. Ghost producers receive a simple fee or royalty payments for their work and are often able to work in their preference of not having the intense pressure of fame and the lifestyle of an internationally recognized DJ. A ghost producer may increase their notability in
6552-416: A specific EDM brand, the acronym remains in use as an umbrella term for multiple genres, including dance-pop , house , techno , electro and trance , as well as their respective subgenres, which all predate the acronym. Various EDM genres have evolved over the last 40 years, for example; house , techno , drum and bass , dance-pop etc. Stylistic variation within an established EDM genre can lead to
6734-492: A syncopated drum-machine sound. In March 2013, Radio City Music Hall hosted a freestyle concert. Top freestyle artists included in the line-up were TKA, Safire, Judy Torres, Cynthia, Cover Girls, Lisa Lisa, Shannon, Noel, and Lisette Melendez. Originally scheduled as a one-night event, a second night was added shortly after the first night was sold out in a matter of days. Radio stations nationwide began to play hits by artists like TKA , Sweet Sensation , Exposé, and Sa-Fire on
6916-475: A time when music has proven to be one of our culture's most beautifully progressive spaces". In The Guardian , Laura Snapes wrote that Pitchfork had provided a vital "leading example" and doubted that specialist music journalism could survive without it. She lamented the job losses, saying that Pitchfork had been one of the last stable employers of freelance music writers. Schreiber said that commentators were "premature to eulogize Pitchfork ", as it retained
7098-414: A traditional verse/chorus structure. Structured vocal form in trance music forms the basis of the vocal trance subgenre, which has been described as "grand, soaring, and operatic" and "ethereal female leads floating amongst the synths". Trance music is broken into a number of subgenres including acid trance , classic trance, hard trance , progressive trance, and uplifting trance . Uplifting trance
7280-561: A website that covered visual arts, which closed in October 2013. Pitchfork launched a film website, The Dissolve , in 2013. It closed in 2015, citing "financial challenges". In 2017, Kaskie said he remained proud of The Dissolve and that it was "a huge success from the creative and editorial, design and everything else". In 2013, Pitchfork won the National Magazine Award for general excellence in digital media. That year,
7462-486: A whole and gave it a score of 6.8. The music blog Idolator ran a feature asking readers to guess which lines came from Pitchfork reviews and which were fabricated. In 2010, the writer David Shapiro started a Tumblr blog, "Pitchfork Reviews Reviews", which reviewed Pitchfork reviews and assessed their arguments. It attracted more than 100,000 followers and a profile in the New York Times . Spencer Kornhaber of
Freestyle music - Misplaced Pages Continue
7644-561: A wide range of subgenres. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, following the emergence of raving , pirate radio , Party crews , underground festivals and an upsurge of interest in club culture , EDM achieved mainstream popularity in Europe. However, rave culture was not as broadly popular in the United States; it was not typically seen outside of the regional scenes in New York City, Florida,
7826-505: Is Euro-trance , which has become a general term for a wide variety of highly commercialized European dance music. Several subgenres are crossovers with other major genres of electronic music. For instance, Tech trance is a mixture of trance and techno, and Vocal trance "combines [trance's] progressive elements with pop music". The dream trance genre originated in the mid-1990s, with its popularity then led by Robert Miles . AllMusic states on progressive trance: "the progressive wing of
8008-644: Is 1982's " Planet Rock " by Afrika Bambaataa & Soul Sonic Force . Shannon 's 1983 hit " Let the Music Play " is often considered the first freestyle song and the first major song recorded by a Latin American artist is " Please Don't Go " by Nayobe from 1984. From there, freestyle gained a large presence in American clubs, especially in New York and Miami. Radio airplay followed in the mid-1980s. Performers such as Exposé , Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam , Stevie B and Sweet Sensation gained mainstream chart success with
8190-559: Is Nigerian Afro-EDM which emerged in the 2020s encompassing afrobeats, Nigerian afro-house and afroelectro. Gqom originated around 2009-2010 in Durban , through the pioneering efforts of local record producers. Gqom blends elements of techno, broken beats, and house music. Unlike traditional house music, gqom diverges by eschewing the typical four-on-the-floor rhythm. Gqom is categorized as both EDM and house music, characterized by diverse production techniques and variations. Initially,
8372-436: Is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs , raves , and festivals . It is generally produced for playback by DJs who create seamless selections of tracks, called a DJ mix , by segueing from one recording to another. EDM producers also perform their music live in a concert or festival setting in what is sometimes called a live PA . Since its inception EDM has expanded to include
8554-435: Is a form of house music characterized by a prominent bassline or kick drum and a tempo between 125 and 135 beats per minute, usually 128. Its origins were influenced by electro . The term has been used to describe the music of many DJ Mag Top 100 DJs , including Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike , Hardwell , Skrillex , and Steve Aoki . Italian DJ Benny Benassi , with his track " Satisfaction " released in 2002,
8736-522: Is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the late 1990s. It is generally characterized by sparse, syncopated rhythmic patterns with bass lines that contain prominent sub-bass frequencies. The style emerged as an offshoot of UK garage , drawing on a lineage of related styles such as 2-step , dub reggae , jungle , broken beat , and grime . In the United Kingdom,
8918-606: Is also known as "anthem trance", "epic trance", "commercial trance", "stadium trance", or "euphoric trance", and has been strongly influenced by classical music in the 1990s and 2000s by leading artists such as Ferry Corsten , Armin Van Buuren , Tiësto , Push , Rank 1 and at present with the development of the subgenre "orchestral uplifting trance" or "uplifting trance with symphonic orchestra" by such artists as Andy Blueman , Ciro Visone, Soundlift, Arctic Moon, Sergey Nevone&Simon O'Shine etc. Closely related to Uplifting Trance
9100-458: Is credited as one of the first persons to create a hit record entirely on a computer, and produced Stevie B's "Party Your Body", "In My Eyes" and "Dreamin' of Love". Katas' record label Futura Records was an incubator for artists such as Linear, who achieved international success after a move from Futura to Atlantic Records. The groundbreaking "Nightime" by Pretty Poison featuring red headed diva Jade Starling in 1984 initially put Philadelphia on
9282-421: Is defined by what is popular, whereas EDM is distinguished by musical attributes). Though Billboard debuted a "dance" chart in 1974, the larger US music industry did not create music charts until the late 1990s. In July 1995, Nervous Records and Project X Magazine hosted the first awards ceremony, calling it the "Electronic Dance Music Awards". Electronic dance music is generally composed and produced in
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#17328944071509464-430: Is important to note when discussing the history of drum & bass that prior to jungle, rave music was getting faster and more experimental. By 1994, jungle had begun to gain mainstream popularity, and fans of the music (often referred to as junglists ) became a more recognisable part of youth subculture. The genre further developed, incorporating and fusing elements from a wide range of existing musical genres, including
9646-454: Is now Live Nation —re-launched SFX Entertainment as an EDM conglomerate, and announced his plan to invest $ 1 billion to acquire EDM businesses. His acquisitions included regional promoters and festivals (including ID&T , which organises Tomorrowland ), two nightclub operators in Miami, and Beatport , an online music store which focuses on electronic music. Live Nation also acquired Cream Holdings and Hard Events , and announced
9828-453: Is seen as the forerunner of electro-house who brought it to the mainstream. By the mid-2000s, electro-house saw an increase in popularity, with hits such as the Tom Neville remix of Studio B 's "I See Girls" in 2005 (UK #11). In November 2006, electroGq-house tracks " Put Your Hands Up for Detroit " by Fedde Le Grand and the D. Ramirez remix of " Yeah Yeah " by Bodyrox and Luciana held
10010-628: The Atlantic described Pitchfork as the most influential music publication to emerge in the internet age . Itzkoff, a former editor for Spin , described the Spin staff checking Pitchfork regularly: "If it was lavishing attention on a new band, we at least had to ask ourselves why we weren't doing the same: by then, our value as a trustworthy and consistent filter had waned." The online magazine Consequence of Sound emulated Pitchfork early on, "especially as it came to creating an editorial voice, developing
10192-649: The Los Angeles Times . The contributor Jess Weiss said the review "changed everything". By 2005, Pitchfork was attracting around one million readers a month, with an annual revenue of around $ 5 million. That year, Schreiber said he was uninterested in selling Pitchfork: "It would change into the antithesis of the reason I started it. This is something I am so in love with—this is my entire adult life's work." By 2006, traditional music media, such as print magazines, music video channels and radio stations, had declined or changed focus, but music listeners still sought
10374-641: The Balearic party vibe associated with Ibiza's DJ Alfredo was transported to London, when Danny Rampling and Paul Oakenfold opened the clubs Shoom and Spectrum, respectively. Both places became synonymous with acid house, and it was during this period that MDMA gained prominence as a party drug. Other important UK clubs included Back to Basics in Leeds , Sheffield's Leadmill and Music Factory, and The Haçienda in Manchester, where Mike Pickering and Graeme Park's spot, Nude,
10556-663: The Bee Gees , who also adopted the freestyle sound in his 1984 album Secret Agent , having worked with producer Chris Barbosa . Several British new wave and synthpop bands also teamed up with freestyle producers or were influenced by the genre, and released freestyle songs or remixes. These include Duran Duran whose song " Notorious " was remixed by the Latin Rascals, and whose album Big Thing contained several freestyle inspired songs such as " All She Wants Is "; New Order who teamed up with Arthur Baker , producing and co-writing
10738-502: The Flaming Lips , NYC Ghosts & Flowers (2000) by Sonic Youth , Liz Phair (2003) by Liz Phair and Shine On (2006) by Jet . The Jet review consisted entirely of a video of a chimp urinating into its own mouth and was widely shared. The authors of the Phair and Sonic Youth reviews later changed their opinions and apologized to the artists. In Slate , Amos Barshad cited
10920-637: The Italian-American communities in Brooklyn , the Bronx, other boroughs of New York City , New Jersey , Westchester County and Long Island . It initially was a fusion of synthetic instrumentation and syncopated percussion of 1980s electro , as favored by fans of breakdancing . Sampling , as found in synth-pop music and hip-hop , was incorporated. Key influences include Afrika Bambaataa & Soul Sonic Force 's " Planet Rock " (1982) and Shannon 's " Let
11102-486: The Mudd Club and clear the floor". By the late 1980s interest in house, acid house and techno escalated in the club scene and MDMA-fueled club-goers, who were faced with a 2 a.m. closing time in the UK, started to seek after-hours refuge at all-night warehouse parties. Within a year, in summer 1989, up to 25,000 people at a time were attending commercially organised underground parties called raves. Trance emerged from
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#173289440715011284-482: The Village People helped define the late 1970s disco sound. Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte produced " I Feel Love " for Donna Summer in 1977. It became the first well-known disco hit to have a completely synthesized backing track. Other disco producers, most famously American producer Tom Moulton , grabbed ideas and techniques from dub music (which came with the increased Jamaican migration to New York City in
11466-447: The raggamuffin sound, dancehall , MC chants, dub basslines, and increasingly complex, heavily edited breakbeat percussion. Despite the affiliation with the ecstasy-fuelled rave scene, Jungle also inherited some associations with violence and criminal activity, both from the gang culture that had affected the UK's hip-hop scene and as a consequence of jungle's often aggressive or menacing sound and themes of violence (usually reflected in
11648-594: The rave scene in the United Kingdom in the late 1980s and developed further during the early 1990s in Germany before spreading throughout the rest of Europe, as a more melodic offshoot from techno and house. At the same time trance music was developing in Europe, the genre was also gathering a following in the Indian state of Goa . Trance is mostly instrumental , although vocals can be mixed in: typically they are performed by mezzo-soprano to soprano female soloists, often without
11830-568: The " Pitchfork effect". In 2006, the Washington Post described Schreiber as an "indie-rock kingmaker" and wrote that "an endorsement from Pitchfork ... is very valuable, indeed". Megan Jasper, the CEO of the record label Sub Pop , said favorable Pitchfork reviews would boost sales and that it became normal for indie rock bands to sell 100,000 records, exceeding expectations. Poorly reviewed albums made no impact. After Pitchfork awarded 9.7 to
12012-414: The "Forward" night (sometimes stylised as FWD>>), which went on to be considered influential to the development of dubstep. The term "dubstep" in reference to a genre of music began to be used around 2002 by labels such as Big Apple, Ammunition, and Tempa, by which time stylistic trends used in creating these remixes started to become more noticeable and distinct from 2-step and grime . Electro house
12194-428: The 1970s) to provide alternatives to the four-on-the-floor style that dominated. During the early 1980s, the popularity of disco music sharply declined in the United States, abandoned by major US record labels and producers. Euro disco continued evolving within the broad mainstream pop music scene. Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop ; also called techno-pop ) is a music genre that first became prominent in
12376-451: The 1970s. Inspired by Jamaican sound system culture Jamaican-American DJ Kool Herc introduced large bass heavy speaker rigs to the Bronx . His parties are credited with having kick-started the New York City hip-hop movement in 1973. A technique developed by DJ Kool Herc that became popular in hip hop culture was playing two copies of the same record on two turntables, in alternation, and at
12558-565: The 1980s and early 1990s that crossed over to the pop charts and charted higher than their previous work. These include " Seasons Change " by Exposé, " Thinking of You " by Sa-Fire , " One More Try " by Timmy T , " Because I Love You (The Postman Song) " by Stevie B, and " If Wishes Came True " by Sweet Sensation. Brenda K. Starr reached the Hot 100 with her ballad " I Still Believe ". Freestyle shortly thereafter gave way to mainstream pop artists such as MC Hammer , Paula Abdul , Bobby Brown , New Kids on
12740-529: The 1980s was shaped by the development of several new electronic musical instruments , particularly those from the Japanese Roland Corporation . The Roland TR-808 (often abbreviated as the "808") notably played an important role in the evolution of dance music, after Afrika Bambaataa 's " Planet Rock " (1982), made it very popular on dancefloors. The track, which also featured the melody line from Riot In Lagos (1980) of Ryuichi Sakamoto, informed
12922-455: The 1980s, Detroit DJs Juan Atkins , Derrick May , and Kevin Saunderson laid the foundation for a new style of music which would dubbed techno. They fused Chicago house influenced electronic and Detroit (including Motown) influenced funk sounds with the mechanical vibes of the post-industrial city, creating the techno sound of four-on-the-floor beat driven by a kick drum on the quarter notes and
13104-413: The 1990s rave scene. It has been described as an era of electronic music, being described in a MixMag article as being "the drop-heavy, stadium-filling, fist-pumping, chart-topping, massively commercial main stage sound that conquered America...possibly somewhere between electro and progressive house, directed by Michael Bay, and like many music genres, trying to pin it down exactly is like trying to grab
13286-454: The 1990s, with acts such as Cynthia and Rockell scoring minor hits on the Billboard Hot 100 as late as 1998. As this new music style took over many big cities in America, the labels that signed these artists such as Columbia , Warner Bros , and other labels did not know how to market these artists originally. Instead of pushing this style of music as a solidified sound, the labels separated
13468-399: The 2000s, Pitchfork was criticized for focusing on music made by white men. In its early years, its staff comprised almost entirely white men. In 2007, the rapper M.I.A. criticized Pitchfork for assuming that her album Kala had been produced entirely by the male producer Diplo . Another Pitchfork writer described the error as "perpetuating the male-led ingenue myth". M.I.A. and
13650-471: The 2001 Tool album Lateralus consisted mostly of a list of the equipment used by the drummer. Some reviews consist only of single images or videos, implying the record is beneath critical analysis. Shaer wrote in 2006 that Pitchfork typically triumphed acts it had "discovered" and attacked beloved legacy acts and bands popular on music blogs. Some believed that Pitchfork deliberately waited for excitement to build around an act before dismissing it with
13832-533: The Block , and Milli Vanilli (with some artists utilizing elements of freestyle beginning in the 1980s) using hip hop beats and electro samples in a mainstream form with slicker production and MTV -friendly videos. These artists were successful on crossover stations as well as R&B stations, and freestyle was replaced as an underground genre by newer styles such as new jack swing , trance and Eurodance . Despite this, some freestyle acts managed to garner hits well into
14014-569: The Californian freestyle emerged from the southern regions of the Bay Area and Los Angeles. Timmy T , Bernadette, Caleb-B, SF Spanish Fly, Angelina, One Voice , M:G, Stephanie Fastro and The S Factor were from the Bay Area, and from San Diego were Gustavo Campain, Alex Campain, Jose (Jojo) Santos, Robert Romo of the group Internal Affairs, F. Felix, Leticia and Frankie J. The Filipino American community in California also embraced freestyle music during
14196-457: The House " by Coldcut (1988) entered the pop charts. The electronic instrumentation and minimal arrangement of Charanjit Singh 's Synthesizing: Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat (1982), an album of Indian ragas performed in a disco style, anticipated the sounds of acid house music, but it is not known to have had any influence on the genre prior to the album's rediscovery in the 21st century. In
14378-504: The Midwest, and California. Although the pioneer genres of electro , Chicago house and Detroit techno were influential both in Europe and the United States, mainstream media outlets and the record industry in the United States remained openly hostile to it until the 1990s and beyond. There was also a perceived association between EDM and drug culture , which led governments at state and city levels to enact laws and policies intended to halt
14560-496: The Music Play " (1983), the latter was a top-ten Billboard Hot 100 hit. In 1984, a Latin presence was established when the first song recorded in the genre by a Latin American artist, " Please Don't Go ", by newcomer Nayobe (a singer from Brooklyn and of Afro-Cuban descent) was recorded and released. The song became a success, reaching No. 23 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. In 1985,
14742-645: The Trail of Dead and Wilco . According to Harvilla, a perfect score given to an album on release "qualifies as a seismic event for the rock-critic universe as a whole". Some reviews experimented with the score system. The 2005 Robert Pollard album Relaxation of the Asshole received a simultaneous 10 and 0; the review for the 2007 Radiohead album In Rainbows , which allowed fans to pay what they wanted to download, allowed readers to enter their own score. After Pitchfork changed its content management system to require
14924-471: The annual Pitchfork Music Festival , launched in Chicago in 2006; the video site Pitchfork.tv and book, The Pitchfork 500 , both launched in 2008; and a print publication, The Pitchfork Review , published between 2013 and 2016. In later years, Pitchfork became less antagonistic and more professional in style, and began covering more mainstream music and issues of gender, race and identity. As of 2014, it
15106-419: The avalanche of other major label signings from the expanding freestyle scene. Several freestyle acts followed on the heels of Pretty Poison emerging from the metropolitan Philadelphia, PA area in the early 1990s, benefiting from both the clubs and the overnight success of then-Dance friendly Rhythmic Top 40 WIOQ . Artists such as T.P.E. (The Philadelphia Experiment) enjoyed regional success. Freestyle had
15288-573: The band Black Kids as the most infamous example of Pitchfork "at its most deleterious". Pitchfork 's review of their debut EP, Wizard of Ahhhs , boosted the Black Kids' career; however, it collapsed when Pitchfork gave their debut album, Partie Traumatic (2008), a score of 3.3, with a review consisting entirely of a photograph of two frowning dogs and a frowning emoticon . Plagenhoef said Pitchfork later became more cautious in publishing negative reviews, as they were no longer "little guys on
15470-703: The birth of electro. As the electronic sound developed, instruments such as the bass guitar and drums were replaced by synthesizers and most notably by iconic drum machines , particularly the Roland TR-808 and the Yamaha DX7 . Early uses of the TR-808 include several Yellow Magic Orchestra tracks in 1980–1981, the 1982 track " Planet Rock " by Afrika Bambaataa , and the 1982 song " Sexual Healing " by Marvin Gaye . In 1982, producer Arthur Baker , with Afrika Bambaataa , released
15652-499: The choice of samples). However, this developed in tandem with the often positive reputation of the music as part of the wider rave scene and dance hall-based Jamaican music culture prevalent in London. By 1995, whether as a reaction to, or independently of this cultural schism, some jungle producers began to move away from the ragga-influenced style and create what would become collectively labelled, for convenience, as drum and bass. Dubstep
15834-452: The cities. This caused the Miami sound of freestyle music to be more popularized through the radio compared to NYC's sound at the time. The labels who pushed out low quality tracks ended up hurting themselves, instead of making the track a quality piece of music. This is part of the reason freestyle music never reached its full potential. Freestyle remained a largely underground genre with a sizable following in New York, but has recently seen
16016-420: The comedian David Cross to write a list of his favorite albums. Cross wrote that he was surprised by the invitation, citing several insulting Pitchfork reviews of his comedy albums, and instead wrote a "withering and absurdist" article titled "Albums to listen to while reading overwrought Pitchfork reviews". In 2007, the satirical website The Onion published a piece in which Pitchfork reviewed music as
16198-722: The comment to a 2014 Nielsen report that found that millennial men were heavy music listeners and were more interested in streaming services than other demographics. In 2012, a Pitchfork poll asking readers to vote for their favorite music found that 88% of respondents were male, and statistics recorded by Quantcast in 2015 found that 82% of Pitchfork readers were men, most aged 18–34. Schreiber responded on Twitter that women were "a huge part of Pitchfork's staff and readership" and that Pitchfork aimed to reach "all music fans everywhere". On March 13, 2016, Pitchfork launched its first new design since 2011. That October, Pitchfork had 4.1 million unique visitors, up from 2.7 million
16380-645: The commercialization of hip-hop in the early 2000s. Heineken has a marketing relationship with the Ultra Music Festival, and has incorporated Dutch producers Armin van Buuren and Tiësto into its ad campaigns. Anheuser-Busch has a similar relationship as beer sponsor of SFX Entertainment events. In 2014, 7 Up launched "7x7Up"—a multi-platform EDM-based campaign that included digital content, advertising featuring producers, and branded stages at both Ultra and Electric Daisy Carnival. Wireless carrier T-Mobile US entered into an agreement with SFX to become
16562-501: The contributor Nate Patrin said Pitchfork had become "what publications like the Village Voice used to be in terms of letting writers go deep without feeling pressured to talk down to readers", with long-form articles and documentaries. By 2017, according to Bloomberg , its reviews had become "as erudite as those of the music magazines that Pitchfork had all but eclipsed in influence". The critic Ann Powers wrote in 2024 that "in
16744-647: The country, with New York City Italian-American DJs such as Bad Boy Joe and Louie DeVito helping to maintain an active freestyle scene in the NYC metro area. In cities like New York, Miami, and Los Angeles, recent concerts by freestyle artists have been extremely successful, with many events selling out. As Latin freestyle in the late 1980s and early 1990s gradually became superseded with house music, dance-pop, and regular hip hop on one front and Spanish-language pop music with marginal Latin freestyle influences on another, "harder strain" of house music originating in New York City
16926-621: The debut album by Arcade Fire , Funeral (2004), it became the fastest-selling record in the history of Merge Records . Other acts whose careers were boosted by Pitchfork in the 2000s include the Dismemberment Plan , Clap Your Hands Say Yeah , Modest Mouse , Broken Social Scene , Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens . Schreiber said they wanted to create a roster of artists whom people discovered with Pitchfork and became associated them. The managing editor, Scott Plagenhoef, downplayed their influence, saying Pitchfork merely "accelerated
17108-470: The definition of MIDI and the use of dance beats, led to a more commercial and accessible sound for synth-pop. This, its adoption by the style-conscious acts from the New Romantic movement, together with the rise of MTV , led to success for large numbers of British synth-pop acts (including Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet ) in the United States. The use of digital sampling and looping in popular music
17290-467: The development of electronic dance music, and subgenres including Miami bass and Detroit techno , and popularized the 808 as a "fundamental element of futuristic sound". According to Slate , "Planet Rock" "didn't so much put the 808 on the map so much as reorient an entire world of post-disco dance music around it". The Roland TR-909 , TB-303 and Juno-60 similarly influenced electronic dance music such as techno , house and acid . During
17472-399: The early 1990s British rave scene. The genre was recognized as a subgenre of hip-hop in the mid-1980s. It was dominated by "hard" electro beats of the type used primarily at the time in hip-hop music. Freestyle was more appreciated in larger cities. " Let the Music Play " by Shannon , is often named as the genre's first hit, and its sound, called "The Shannon Sound", as the foundation of
17654-634: The early house sound, such as the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer and minimal vocals as well as a Roland (specifically TR-808 ) drum machine and Korg (specifically Poly-61 ) synthesizer . "On and On" is sometimes cited as the 'first house record', though other examples from around that time, such as J.M. Silk 's " Music is the Key " (1985), have also been cited. House music quickly spread to American cities including New York City, and Newark , and Detroit—all of which developed their own regional scenes. In
17836-405: The emergence of what is called a subgenre . Hybridization, where elements of two or more genres are combined, can lead to the emergence of an entirely new genre of EDM. In the late 1960s bands such as Silver Apples created electronic music intended for dancing. Other early examples of music that influenced later electronic dance music include Jamaican dub music during the late 1960s to 1970s,
18018-468: The end of the 2000s, Pitchfork had become influential in the music industry, credited for launching acts such as Arcade Fire and Bon Iver . Employees at record labels and record stores would use it to anticipate interest in acts. It was also attracting large sponsors such as American Express and Apple . The influence of Pitchfork on music careers declined around the turn of the decade, as streaming and social media fractured audiences and reduced
18200-473: The end of the 20th century, which were publishing content about Star Wars , nu metal and pop punk. He characterized the Pitchfork voice as that of the outsider mocking the mainstream. In The Verge , Elizabeth Lopatto wrote that early reviews were unpolished and sometimes unprofessional, and "brash, sometimes bizarre, often typo-ridden", but that this distinguished Pitchfork from traditional media and made it fun to read. Pitchfork contributors said it
18382-403: The first Detroit productions to receive wider attention was Derrick May's " Strings of Life " (1987), which, together with May's previous release, "Nude Photo" (1987), helped raise techno's profile in Europe, especially the UK and Germany, during the 1987–1988 house music boom (see Second Summer of Love ). It became May's best-known track, which, according to Frankie Knuckles, "just exploded. It
18564-545: The first-ever Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart. By 2005, the prominence of dance music in North American popular culture had markedly increased. According to Spin , Daft Punk 's performance at Coachella in 2006 was the "tipping point" for EDM—it introduced the duo to a new generation of "rock kids". As noted by Entertainment Weekly , Justin Timberlake 's " SexyBack " helped introduce EDM sounds to top 40 radio , as it brought together variations of electronic dance music with
18746-513: The following decade, Pitchfork shifted its editorial range and style. It began running news and features alongside reviews, coming to resemble a more conventional music publication. It also diversified from indie rock to cover mainstream music including pop, rap and metal, and began covering issues of gender, race and identity in music, influenced by movements such as MeToo and Black Lives Matter . Schreiber said that "our tastes broadened with age and experience", and that Pitchfork could make
18928-535: The freestyle map. Their follow-up "Catch Me I'm Falling" was a worldwide hit and brought freestyle to American Bandstand , Soul Train , Solid Gold and the Arsenio Hall Show . "Catch Me I'm Falling" broke on the street during the summer of 1987 and was the #1 single at WCAU (98 Hot Hits) and #2 at WUSL (Power 99) during the first two weeks of July. Virgin Records was quick to sign Pretty Poison helping to usher in
19110-523: The genre in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but its popularity largely faded by the end of the decade. Both classic and newer freestyle output remain popular as a niche genre in Brazil (where it is an influence on funk carioca ), Germany and Canada. Freestyle music developed in the early 1980s, primarily simultaneously in the Hispanic (mainly Puerto Rican ) communities of Upper Manhattan and The Bronx and in
19292-428: The genre, although also known as the beginnings of the electro genre which then gave birth to techno. Afrika Bambaataa 's " Planet Rock " was arguably the first freestyle song produced. "Let the Music Play" eventually became freestyle's biggest hit, and still receives frequent airplay. Its producers Chris Barbosa and Mark Liggett changed and redefined the electro funk sound with the addition of Latin-American rhythms and
19474-515: The grand tradition of rock criticism, joining the ranks of imperious and opinionated writers". Schreiber described the reviews of one early Pitchfork writer, Brent DiCrescenzo, as dense with dialogue and pop culture references, "exploring outlandish scenarios". Pitchfork 's style changed in the 2010s as it broadened its scope and audience, shifting to poptimism . The contributor Craig Jenkins said Pitchfork had needed to change its "walled-in" perspective, and that it had been "antagonistic toward
19656-689: The impression of a "forward-facing, vibrant title". Unlike other music publications, which typically assign scores out of five or ten, Pitchfork uses a decimal scale of 0.0 to 10.0. The system has drawn mockery as arbitrary and overprecise. DiCrescenzo described it as "knowingly silly", and in 2021 Pitchfork wrote that it was an "admittedly absurd and subjective" signature element. Schreiber said he liked its absurdity and how "it felt kind of scientific without any actual science to it". Early reviews used percentages rather than decimals. By 2021, Pitchfork had published more than 28,000 reviews. Pitchfork reviews do not represent an editorial consensus but
19838-523: The innovative techniques of electronic dance music onto the American pop charts" By the mid-2000s, Dutch producer Tiësto was bringing worldwide popular attention to EDM after providing a soundtrack to the entry of athletes during the opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics — an event which The Guardian deemed as one of the 50 most important events in dance music. In 2003, the influence of dance music on American radio resulted in Billboard creating
20020-458: The internet. Schreiber announced his departure on January 8, 2019, saying he wanted to "keep pushing boundaries and exploring new things". The Los Angeles Times said the departure came at a time of "existential change" for the media industries, citing the rise of streaming services and social media and the downsizing of many major music publications. That month, Condé Nast announced it would put all its publications, including Pitchfork , behind
20202-481: The journalistic form and temperament of the time". While it was widely mocked, it boosted Pitchfork 's profile. Schreiber said he understood the review would make Pitchfork subject to ridicule, but "wanted Pitchfork to be daring and to surprise people". In 2001, Pitchfork had 30,000 daily readers. In 2004, Pitchfork hired its first full-time employee, Chris Kaskie, formerly of the satirical website The Onion , to run business operations. Kaskie later became
20384-540: The late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock , electronic , art rock , disco . Early synth-pop pioneers included Japanese group Yellow Magic Orchestra , and British bands Ultravox , the Human League and Berlin Blondes . The Human League used monophonic synthesizers to produce music with
20566-484: The late 1980s and early 1990s. Jaya was one of the first Filipino-American freestyle singers, reaching number 44 in 1990 with "If You Leave Me Now". Later Filipino-American freestyle artists include Jocelyn Enriquez , Buffy, Korell, Damien Bautista, One Voice, Kuya, Sharyn Maceren, and others. Freestyle's popularity spread outward from the Greater Toronto Area 's Italian, Hispanic/Latino and Greek populations in
20748-480: The late 1980s and early 1990s. It was showcased alongside house music in various Toronto nightclubs, but by the mid-1990s was replaced almost entirely by house music. Lil' Suzy released several 12-inch singles and performed live on the Canadian live dance music television program Electric Circus . Montreal singer Nancy Martinez 's 1986 single "For Tonight" would become the first Canadian freestyle single to reach
20930-593: The margins of the US industry . In 1998, Madonna 's album Ray of Light —heavily influenced by club music trends and produced with British producer William Orbit —brought dance music to the attention of popular music listeners. In the late 1990s, despite US media interest in dance music re-branded as electronica, American house and techno producers continued to travel abroad to establish their careers as DJs and producers. According to New York Times journalist Kelefa Sanneh, Aaliyah 's 2000 single " Try Again " "helped smuggle
21112-559: The market, and the first in their influential Technics series of turntables. The most influential turntable was the Technics SL-1200 , which was developed in 1971 by a team led by Shuichi Obata at Matsushita, which then released it onto the market in 1972. In the 1980s and 1990s hip-hop DJs used turntables as musical instruments in their own right and virtuosic use developed into a creative practice called turntablism. In 1974, George McCrae 's early disco hit " Rock Your Baby "
21294-586: The men's magazine GQ , resulting in layoffs. The merge drew criticism and triggered concern about the implications for music journalism. Pitchfork was created in February 1996 by Ryan Schreiber, a high school graduate living in his parents' home in Minneapolis . Schreiber grew up listening to indie rock acts such as Fugazi , Jawbox and Guided by Voices . He was influenced by fanzine culture and had no previous writing experience. Schreiber initially named
21476-509: The men's magazine GQ . Staff including Patel were laid off, leaving around a dozen editorial staff, including some working on multiple Condé Nast publications. Max Tani of Semafor reported that the remaining staff were "depressed and embarrassed" by the merge. One writer who was laid off, Andy Cush, said "there was this real sense of despair ... about ever having a place to do the kind of work you feel like you're good at and that you're interested in again". As of that month, Pitchfork had
21658-566: The mid-to-late 1980s, house music became popular in Europe as well as major cities in South America, and Australia. Chicago House experienced some commercial success in Europe with releases such as "House Nation" by House Master Boyz and the Rude Boy of House (1987). Following this, a number of house inspired releases such as " Pump Up The Volume " by M|A|R|R|S (1987), " Theme from S'Express " by S'Express (1988), and " Doctorin'
21840-419: The most daily active users of any Condé Nast publication. Journalists reacted with sadness and concern for the future of music journalism. Tani and The Washington Post 's Chris Richards expressed disgust that Pitchfork , once independent and provocative, would be absorbed into an establishment men's magazine. The music critic Ann Powers wrote that the merge felt "like a highly conservative move at
22022-625: The most influential music publications to have emerged in the internet age . In the 2000s, Pitchfork distinguished itself from print media through its unusual editorial style, frequent updates and coverage of emerging acts. It was praised as passionate, authentic and unique, but criticized as pretentious, mean-spirited and elitist, playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster . It is credited with popularizing acts such as Arcade Fire , Broken Social Scene , Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens . Pitchfork relocated to Chicago in 1999 and Brooklyn , New York, in 2011. It expanded with projects including
22204-588: The music industry by acquainting with established "big name" DJs and producers. Producers like Martin Garrix and Porter Robinson are often noted for their ghost production work for other producers while David Guetta and Steve Aoki are noted for their usage of ghost producers in their songs whereas DJs like Tiësto have been openly crediting their producers in an attempt to avoid censure and for transparency. Many ghost producers sign agreements that prevent them from working for anyone else or establishing themselves as
22386-532: The music site Hearing Things , which aims to "capture the original independent spirit" of Pitchfork . In November, Pitchfork announced that it had canceled Pitchfork Music Festival but would continue to produce events and "create spaces where music, culture, and community intersect". Pitchfork's unusual, passionate and stylized reviews differentiated it from the more scholarly and formal style of print magazines such as Rolling Stone . The critic Steven Hyden said it offered an alternative to music magazines at
22568-436: The music, playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster . In 2018, the music journalist Robert Christgau described the early years of Pitchfork as "a snotty boys' club open to many 'critics' ... Too many amateur wise-asses and self-appointed aesthetes throwing their weight around." Many scathing early reviews were by Brent DiCrescenzo, who wrote lengthy reviews that rarely addressed the music. For example, his review of
22750-507: The need for gatekeepers. Streaming services began to fulfill Pitchfork 's function of helping new artists find audiences, and independent music criticism moved to podcasts and YouTube . Declining music industry revenues reduced advertising spending, and Pitchfork faced competition from advertisers such as Facebook . According to the Los Angeles Times , "The internet era that birthed Pitchfork 's blend of saucy writing, outre tastes and massive popularity [was] by and large over." Over
22932-689: The number one and number two spots, respectively, on the UK top 40 singles chart. Since then, electro-house producers such as Feed Me , Knife Party , The M Machine , Porter Robinson , Yasutaka Nakata and Dada Life have emerged. Trap music originated from techno , dub, and Dutch house , but also from the original off-shoot of Southern hip hop in the late 2000s and early 2010s. This form of trap music can be simplified by these three features: "1/3 hip hop (tempo and song structure are similar, most tracks are usually between 70 and 110 bpm) – with vocals sometimes being pitched down, 1/3 dance music – high-pitched Dutch synth work, hardstyle sampling, as well as
23114-427: The official wireless sponsor of its events, and partnered with Above & Beyond to sponsor its 2015 tour. In August 2015, SFX began to experience declines in its value, and a failed bid by CEO Sillerman to take the company private. The company began looking into strategic alternatives that could have resulted in the sale of the company. In October 2015, Forbes declared the possibility of an EDM " bubble ", in
23296-953: The opinion of the individual reviewer. Writers who did not want to use their names, or failed to include bylines with their submissions, were credited as Ray Suzuki, similarly to the filmmaker pseudonym Alan Smithee . In The Ringer , Rob Harvilla wrote that a 10.0 from Pitchfork "carries all the historical weight of five stars in Rolling Stone or five mics in The Source ... with its maddening and theoretically precise approach to decimal places, such that an ocean of feeling separates an 8.1 from an 8.9". Pitchfork has awarded perfect scores to more than 50 albums, most of them in its "Sunday Reviews" feature, which publishes retrospective reviews of classic albums. Artists who have received perfect scores on release include Radiohead, Fiona Apple , Kanye West , Bonnie "Prince" Billy , And You Will Know Us by
23478-601: The origins of the genre can be traced back to the growth of the Jamaican sound system party scene in the early 1980s. The earliest known dubstep releases date back to 1998, and were usually featured as B-sides of 2-step garage single releases. These tracks were darker, more experimental remixes with less emphasis on vocals, and attempted to incorporate elements of breakbeat and drum and bass into 2-step. In 2001, this and other strains of dark garage music began to be showcased and promoted at London's nightclub Plastic People, at
23660-514: The past decade Pitchfork had nurtured many of the best and most influential writers working today". She felt that "great music writing messes with productivity by creating a space to slow down and really immerse in someone else's creative work ... The best writing at Pitchfork or anywhere reflects that process and is as variegated as the human experience itself." In 2015, The Guardian credited Pitchfork for pioneering design techniques that combined print design and technical innovation to create
23842-450: The point where a track featured a break . This technique was further used to manually loop a purely percussive break, leading to what was later called a break beat . Turntablism has origins in the invention of the direct-drive turntable , by Shuichi Obata, an engineer at Matsushita (now Panasonic ). In 1969, Matsushita released it as the SP-10 , the first direct-drive turntable on
24024-621: The popularization of electronic dance music was associated with European rave and club culture and it achieved limited popular exposure in the United States. By the mid-to-late 1990s this began to change as the American music industry made efforts to market a range of dance genres as " electronica ". At the time, a wave of electronic music bands from the United Kingdom, including The Prodigy , The Chemical Brothers , Fatboy Slim and Underworld , had been prematurely associated with an "American electronica revolution". But rather than finding mainstream success, many established EDM acts were relegated to
24206-559: The post-disco era include dance-pop , boogie , electro , Hi-NRG , Italo disco , house , and techno . In the early 1980s, electro (short for "electro-funk") emerged as a fusion of synth-pop , funk , and boogie . Also called electro-funk or electro-boogie, but later shortened to electro, cited pioneers include Ryuichi Sakamoto , Afrika Bambaataa , Zapp , D.Train , and Sinnamon . Early hip hop and rap combined white European electropop influences such as Giorgio Moroder, Dan Lacksman (Telex) and Yellow Magic Orchestra inspired
24388-544: The post-disco era that followed the backlash against " disco " which began in the mid to late 1979, which in the United States lead to civil unrest and a riot in Chicago known as the Disco Demolition Night , an underground movement of "stripped-down" disco inspired music featuring "radically different sounds" started to emerge on the East Coast . This new scene was seen primarily in the New York metropolitan area and
24570-589: The president and co-owner. Pitchfork 's first professional editor, Scott Plagenhoef, was hired shortly afterwards. Kaskie and Plagenhoef are credited for turning Pitchfork into a professional operation. It began to scale quickly, investing in the more money it made, the more resources it had for reviews and articles. As of 2004, Pitchfork had eight full-time employees and about 50 freelance staff members, most of whom worked remotely and co-ordinated through phone and internet. Writers were unpaid for their first six months, after which they could earn $ 10 or $ 20 for
24752-478: The previous October. With Schreiber aiming to make it the world's best repository for music content, Pitchfork began creating videos and retrospective articles, covering classic albums released before its founding. Kaskie announced his departure from Pitchfork in May 2017. He had been frustrated by his diminished role under Condé Nast and Pitchfork 's reduced autonomy. On September 18, 2018, Schreiber stepped down as
24934-479: The process". After Pitchfork awarded 0.0 to Travistan (2004), the debut solo album by the Dismemberment Plan singer Travis Morrison , his solo career effectively ended. Years later, Morrison described the experience as "frightening and awful". Schreiber said he felt bad for him, but that it was important for Pitchfork writers to be honest. Other albums to receive 0.0 include Zaireeka (1995) by
25116-408: The rapper Chief Keef was arrested for violating a probation sentence by using a rifle in a promotional video by Pitchfork . Staff later described the episode as a low point and an example of how Pitchfork mishandled hip-hop artists. In December, Pitchfork launched The Pitchfork Review , a quarterly print journal focused on long-form music writing and design-focused content. Pitchfork planned
25298-859: The same playlists as Michael Jackson and Madonna . "(You Are My) All and All" by Joyce Sims became the first freestyle record to cross over into the R&;B market, and was one of the first to reach the European market. Radio station WPOW /Power 96 was noted for exposing freestyle to South Florida in the mid-'80s through the early '90s, as well as mixing in some local Miami bass into its playlist. ' Pretty Tony ' Butler produced several hits on Miami's Jam-Packed Records, including Debbie Deb 's "When I Hear Music" and "Lookout Weekend", and Trinere's "I'll Be All You'll Ever Need" and " They're Playing Our Song ". Company B, Stevie B, Paris by Air , Linear , Will to Power and Exposé's later hits defined Miami freestyle. Tolga Katas
25480-1023: The same year. The early 1980s were electro's mainstream peak. According to author Steve Taylor, Afrika Bambaataa's Planet Rock serves as a "template for all interesting dance music since". In the early 1980s, Chicago radio jocks The Hot Mix 5 and club DJs Ron Hardy and Frankie Knuckles played various styles of dance music, including older disco records (mostly Philly disco and Salsoul tracks), Italo Disco, electro funk tracks by artists such as Afrika Bambaataa , newer Italo disco , B-Boy hip hop music by Man Parrish , Jellybean Benitez , Arthur Baker , and John Robie , and electronic pop music by Giorgio Moroder and Yellow Magic Orchestra . Some made and played their own edits of their favorite songs on reel-to-reel tape, and sometimes mixed in effects, drum machines, and other rhythmic electronic instrumentation. The hypnotic electronic dance song "On and On", produced in 1984 by Chicago DJ Jesse Saunders and co-written by Vince Lawrence , had elements that became staples of
25662-413: The seminal " Planet Rock ", which was influenced by Yellow Magic Orchestra (Ryuichi Sakamoto - Riot In Lagos 1980) and had drum beats supplied by the TR-808. Planet Rock was followed later that year by another breakthrough electro record, " Nunk " by Warp 9 . In 1983, Hashim created an electro-funk sound with "Al-Naafyish (The Soul)" that influenced Herbie Hancock , resulting in his hit single " Rockit "
25844-495: The singer Björk argued that this was part of a wider problem of journalists assuming that female artists do not write or produce their own music. In 2024, the Pitchfork contributor Andrew Nosnitsky argued that hip-hop, not indie rock, was the "defining music" of his generation, but that Pitchfork was viewed as the defining music publication for "purely mechanical and straight-up white-supremacy reasons". Pitchfork has attracted multiple parodies. In 2005, Pitchfork invited
26026-431: The singer's R&B sounds. In 2009, French house musician David Guetta began to gain prominence in mainstream pop music thanks to several crossover hits on Top 40 charts such as " When Love Takes Over " with Kelly Rowland , as well as his collaborations with US pop and hip hop acts such as Akon (" Sexy Bitch ") and The Black Eyed Peas (" I Gotta Feeling "). The music sharing website SoundCloud , as well as
26208-407: The size of their biggest show ever. That's the goal, man. To put fucking Titus Andronicus in front of 10,000 people." In April 2008, after acquiring the live music show Juan's Basement , Pitchfork launched Pitchfork.tv , a website displaying interviews, music videos and feature-length films. In November, it published a book, The Pitchfork 500 , covering the preceding 30 years of music. By
26390-402: The spread of rave culture. Subsequently, in the new millennium, the popularity of EDM increased globally, particularly in the United States and Australia. By the early 2010s, the term "electronic dance music" and the initialism "EDM" was being pushed by the American music industry and music press in an effort to rebrand American rave culture. Despite the industry's attempt to create
26572-398: The stuff that the average person would be appreciating". Plagenhoef felt that the inflammatory "stunt reviews" were limiting, and wanted Pitchfork to be seen as trustworthy and thoughtful. Snapes said some had lamented the change, suggesting that it made Pitchfork "a less specific proposition". However, she felt it reflected modern music consumption and found it heartening that Pitchfork
26754-569: The synthesizer-based disco music of Italian producer Giorgio Moroder in the late 1970s, and the electropop of Kraftwerk and Yellow Magic Orchestra in the mid-to-late 1970s. Author Michael Veal considers dub music , a Jamaican music stemming from roots reggae and sound system culture that flourished between 1968 and 1985, to be one of the important precursors to contemporary electronic dance music. Dub productions were remixed reggae tracks that emphasized rhythm, fragmented lyrical and melodic elements, and reverberant textures. The music
26936-666: The top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, while the Montreal girl group 11:30 reached the Canadian chart with "Ole Ole" in 2000. Performers and producers associated with the style also came from around the world, including Turkish-American Murat Konar (the writer of Information Society's "Running"), Paul Lekakis from Greece , Asian artist Leonard (Leon Youngboy) who released the song "Youngboys", and British musicians including Freeez , Paul Hardcastle , Samantha Fox , and even Robin Gibb of
27118-436: The top editor. He was replaced by Puja Patel, who had worked at Spin and Gawker Media , as editor-in-chief on October 15. Schreiber remained as a strategic advisor. He said he later realized that Condé Nast did not understand Pitchfork and had unrealistic expectations of its performance. Patel came under pressure to cut costs amid declining traffic from social media, and competition from streaming platforms, which offered
27300-599: The track " Confusion "; Erasure and the Der Deutsche mixes of their song " Blue Savannah "; and the Pet Shop Boys , whose song " Domino Dancing " was produced by Miami -based freestyle producer Lewis Martineé . Australian act I'm Talking utilized freestyle elements into their singles " Trust Me " and " Do You Wanna Be? ", both becoming top ten hits in their native Australia. Electronic dance music Electronic dance music ( EDM ), also referred to as club music ,
27482-488: The trance crowd led directly to a more commercial, chart-oriented sound since trance had never enjoyed much chart action in the first place. Emphasizing the smoother sound of Eurodance or house (and occasionally more reminiscent of Jean-Michel Jarre than Basement Jaxx ), Progressive Trance became the sound of the world's dance floors by the end of the millennium. Critics ridiculed its focus on predictable breakdowns and relative lack of skill to beat-mix, but progressive trance
27664-455: The use of digital sampling in popular music, as the first album consisting of mostly samples and loops . The album was produced using Toshiba-EMI 's LMD-649 digital PCM sampler , which engineer Kenji Murata custom-built for YMO. The LMD-649 was also used for sampling by other Japanese synthpop artists in the early 1980s, including YMO-associated acts such as Chiemi Manabe and Logic System . The emergence of electronic dance music in
27846-496: The video sharing website YouTube, also helped fuel interest in electronic music. Dubstep producer Skrillex popularized a harsher sound dubbed " Brostep ", which had drawn comparisons to the aggression and tone of heavy metal . With the increasing popularity of electronic dance music, promoters and venues realized that DJs could generate larger profits than traditional musicians; Diplo explained that "a band plays [for] 45 minutes; DJs can play for four hours. Rock bands—there's
28028-468: The wake of the declines at SFX Entertainment, slowing growth in revenue, the increasing costs of organizing festivals and booking talent, as well as an oversaturation of festivals in the eastern and western United States. Insomniac CEO Pasquale Rotella felt that the industry would weather the financial uncertainty of the overall market by focusing on "innovation" and entering into new markets. Despite forecasts that interest in popular EDM would wane, in 2015 it
28210-743: The website Turntable , but changed it after another website claimed the rights. The name Pitchfork was inspired by the tattoo on the assassin Tony Montana in the film Scarface . Schreiber chose it as it was concise and had "evilish overtones". The first review was of Pacer (1995) by the Amps , and the record store Insound was Pitchfork 's first advertiser. Early Pitchfork reviews focused on indie rock and were often critical. The Washington Post described them as "brutal" and "merciless", writing: "The site's stable of critics often seemed capricious, uninvested, sometimes spiteful, assigning low scores on
28392-470: Was able to take risks as it was not interested in appeasing bands, record labels or advertisers. In 2006, Pitchfork had 170,000 daily readers and was publishing five album reviews a day, with six full-time employees. Schreiber said that Pitchfork was able to sustain paid freelancers and eight employees, though they were "always cutting it close". He said he had attracted interest from investors, but wanted to retain control and that journalistic integrity
28574-551: Was an important part of Pitchfork 's early popularity, as music fans could share and listen to recordings while reading daily updates. In 2000, Pitchfork ' s 10.0/10.0 review of the highly anticipated Radiohead album Kid A , written by Brent DiCrescenzo, generated a surge in readership and was one of the first signs of Pitchfork becoming a major publication. One of the first Kid A reviews published, it attracted attention for its unusual style. Billboard described it as "extremely long-winded and brazenly unhinged from
28756-457: Was an important proving ground for American underground dance music. The success of house and acid house paved the way for Detroit Techno , a style that was initially supported by a handful of house music clubs in Chicago, New York, and Northern England, with Detroit clubs catching up later. The term Techno first came into use after a release of a 10 Records/Virgin Records compilation titled Techno: The Dance Sound of Detroit in 1988. One of
28938-521: Was by 1992 challenging the relatively upbeat, syncopated freestyle sound. Pitchfork considers the Miami Mix of ABC 's single " When Smokey Sings " to be proto-freestyle, despite that version being released in 1987. Many early or popular freestyle artists and DJs were of Hispanic or Italian descent, including Jellybean , Tony Torres, Raul Soto, Roman Ricardo, Mickey Garcia (who is of both Italian and Puerto Rican descent), Lil Suzy , and Nocera , which
29120-604: Was caned by the hottest DJ." By the early 1990s, a style of music developed within the rave scene that had an identity distinct from American house and techno. This music, much like hip-hop before it, combined sampled syncopated beats or breakbeats, other samples from a wide range of different musical genres, and, occasionally, samples of music, dialogue, and effects from films and television programmes. Relative to earlier styles of dance music such as house and techno, so-called 'rave music' tended to emphasise bass sounds and use faster tempos, or beats per minute (BPM). This subgenre
29302-492: Was characterized by "soulful synths, 808s, the pan flute, sharp snares and long, syrup-slurred vowels" which created dirty and aggressive beats resulting in "dark melodies". Trap is now mainly used to create remixes of already existing songs. In 1980 English producer Richard James Burgess , and his band Landscape , used the term on the sleeve of the single "European Man": "Electronic Dance Music... EDM; computer programmed to perfection for your listening pleasure." In response to
29484-413: Was describing electronic dance music as the fastest-growing genre in the world. Elements of electronic music also became increasingly prominent in pop music. Radio and television also contributed to dance music's mainstream acceptance. Corporate consolidation in the EDM industry began in 2012—especially in terms of live events. In June 2012, media executive Robert F. X. Sillerman —founder of what
29666-404: Was estimated to be a £5.5bn industry in the US, up by 60% compared to 2012 estimates. Pitchfork (website) Pitchfork (formerly Pitchfork Media ) is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis . It originally covered alternative and independent music , and expanded to cover genres including pop, hip hop, jazz and metal. Pitchfork is one of
29848-481: Was facing mounting financial problems, and Kaskie spent the year attempting to find funding. On October 13, 2015, the American mass media company Condé Nast announced that it had acquired Pitchfork . At this point, Pitchfork had about 50 employees, with editorial and video production staff in Brooklyn and advertising, sales and development staff in Chicago. The Condé Nast CEO, Bob Sauerberg, described Pitchfork as
30030-464: Was florid and sometimes impenetrable, and contained factual errors. Similar criticisms came from Rob Harvilla of the East Bay Express and Claire Suddath of Time . Responding to criticism in 2006, Schreiber said he trusted his writers' style and opinions. In its early years, Pitchfork was criticized as mean-spirited and elitist , and for publishing reviews that do not meaningfully discuss
30212-411: Was followed by a summer 2006 Madison Square Garden concert that showcased freestyle's most successful performers. New freestyle releases are popular with enthusiasts and newcomers alike. Miami rapper Pitbull collaborated with Miami freestyle artist Stevie B to create an updated version of Stevie B's hit, "Spring Love". Currently, freestyle music continues to have a thriving fanbase in certain parts of
30394-536: Was his priority. In August 2006, an internal Pitchfork server containing promotional copies of hundreds of albums was hacked, including the forthcoming Joanna Newsom album Ys . In the mid-2000s, Pitchfork expanded its operations. In 2006, it launched the annual Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. The first Paris Pitchfork Music Festival was held in 2011. Kaskie said it was exciting to see acts Pitchfork had championed playing to large crowds: "We start to see these bands playing in front of audiences 10 times
30576-680: Was immediately divisive among music fans. In the Washington Post , J. Freedom du Lac described Pitchfork as entertaining, "hilariously snarky" and "occasionally even enlightening". The Los Angeles Times writer August Brown described it as "raucous, passionate, sometimes blinkered but always evolving". In Slate , Matthew Shaer wrote that the best Pitchfork reviews were "cagey, fierce, witty and graceful". The journalist Dave Itzkoff described Pitchfork reviews as "defiantly passionate and frustratingly capricious" with an "aura of integrity and authenticity that made such pronouncements credible, even definitive, to fans ... insinuating themselves into
30758-535: Was initially led by the urban contemporary artists that were responding to the over-commercialization and subsequent demise of disco culture. The sound that emerged originated from P-Funk the electronic side of disco , dub music , and other genres. Much of the music produced during this time was, like disco, catering to a singles-driven market. At this time creative control started shifting to independent record companies, less established producers, and club DJs. Other dance styles that began to become popular during
30940-450: Was known as "hardcore" rave, but from as early as 1991, some musical tracks made up of these high-tempo breakbeats, with heavy basslines and samples of older Jamaican music, were referred to as "jungle techno ", a genre influenced by Jack Smooth and Basement Records, and later just "jungle", which became recognized as a separate musical genre popular at raves and on pirate radio in Britain. It
31122-422: Was known to incorporate elements of Latin freestyle and the old school hip hop sound. Principal architects of the genre were Todd Terry (early instances include "Alright Alright," and "Dum Dum Cry") and Nitro Deluxe. Deluxe's "This Brutal House," fusing Latin percussion and the New York electro sound of Man Parrish with brash house music, proved to have an impact on the United Kingdom's club music scene, presaging
31304-416: Was like something you can't imagine, the kind of power and energy people got off that record when it was first heard. Mike Dunn says he has no idea how people can accept a record that doesn't have a bassline." According to British DJ Mark Moore , "Strings of Life" led London club-goers to accept house: "because most people hated house music and it was all rare groove and hip hop...I'd play 'Strings of Life' at
31486-791: Was one of the first records to use a drum machine , an early Roland rhythm machine. The use of drum machines in disco production was influenced by Sly and the Family Stone 's " Family Affair " (1971), with its rhythm echoed in McCrae's "Rock Your Baby", and Timmy Thomas ' " Why Can't We Live Together " (1972). Disco producer Biddu used synthesizers in several disco songs from 1976 to 1977, including "Bionic Boogie" from Rain Forest (1976), "Soul Coaxing" (1977), and Eastern Man and Futuristic Journey (recorded from 1976 to 1977). Acts like Donna Summer , Chic , Earth, Wind & Fire , Heatwave , and
31668-610: Was one reason for the style's popularity among Hispanic Americans and Italian Americans in the New York City area and Philadelphia . Freestyle's Top 40 Radio airplay started to really take off by 1987, and it began to disappear from the airwaves in the early 1990s as radio stations moved to Top 40-only formats. Artists such as George Lamond , Exposé , Sweet Sensation , and Stevie B were still heard on mainstream radio, but other notable freestyle artists did not fare as well. Carlos Berrios and Platinum producer Frankie Cutlass used
31850-756: Was only with the advent of 21st-century technology that African EDM truly began to thrive. Popular contemporary millennium Afro-EDM genres and styles can be found within the gqom ( South Africa ) and Afrobeats ( Nigeria ) genres. Music scenes in other African countries exist such as in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (tekno kintueni). Pon Pon (also ADM or African Dance Music) emerged in Nigeria circa 2018 denoting EDM influences intermingled with Afrobeats, Nigerian Afropop, dancehall and highlife . A variant
32032-467: Was pioneered by Japanese electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). Their approach to sampling was a precursor to the contemporary approach of constructing music by cutting fragments of sounds and looping them using computer technology. " Computer Game/Firecracker " (1978) interpolated a Martin Denny melody, and sampled Space Invaders video game sounds . Technodelic (1981) introduced
32214-446: Was pioneered by King Tubby and other Jamaican sound artists, using DJ-inspired ambient electronics, complete with drop-outs, echo, equalization and psychedelic electronic effects. It featured layering techniques and incorporated elements of world music , deep bass lines and harmonic sounds. Techniques such as a long echo delay were also used. Hip hop music has had some influence in the development of electronic dance music since
32396-402: Was pioneered by studio engineers, such as Sylvan Morris, King Tubby , Errol Thompson , Lee "Scratch" Perry , and Scientist . Their productions included forms of tape editing and sound processing that Veal considers comparable to techniques used in musique concrète . Dub producers made improvised deconstructions of existing multi-track reggae mixes by using the studio mixing board as
32578-422: Was receiving around 6.2 million unique visitors and 40 million pageviews every month, with an expected annual revenue growth of 25 to 40 percent. Its primary revenue came from advertising. According to the media analytics firm Comscore , Pitchfork had 2.47 million unique visitors that August, more than the websites for Spin or Vibe but fewer than Rolling Stone 's 11 million. By this point, Pitchfork
32760-418: Was receiving around 6.2 million unique visitors every month. The influence of Pitchfork declined in the 2010s with the growth of streaming and social media . In 2015, it was acquired by the mass media company Condé Nast and moved to One World Trade Center . The Pitchfork president, Chris Kaskie, left in 2017, followed by Schreiber in 2019. In 2024, Condé Nast announced plans to merge Pitchfork into
32942-443: Was reviewing a variety of genres and artists. Under Puja Patel, who became the editor in 2018, Pitchfork covered more female, non-binary, queer and non-white artists. Pitchfork also switched to a more professional style. The editor Amy Phillips illustrated this by comparing her coverage of the announcement of two Radiohead albums, years apart; the first was excitable, whereas the second was more professional and factual. In 2014,
33124-600: Was the center of the scene. Amnesia became known across Europe and by the mid to late 1980s it was drawing people from all over the continent. By 1988, house music had become the most popular form of club music in Europe, with acid house developing as a notable trend in the United Kingdom and Germany in the same year. In the UK an established warehouse party subculture , centered on the British African-Caribbean sound system scene fueled underground after-parties that featured dance music exclusively. Also in 1988,
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