From ritchie Sent Sat, Mar 13th 1999, 06:04
From ritchie Sent Sat, Mar 13th 1999, 06:04
Here's something I've been wondering about for quite a while: Electronic music is rife with labels and categories for virtually every style, genre, and sub-sub-subgenre. While some argue (correctly) that over-categorization of music can be a dangerous thing, I often find that for me, having a name for something is a really big help - especially when you're "in the bizness" or just trying to explain something to somebody. That said, I've never heard a name applied to cover the spectrum of 90s electronica that features vocals and pop hooks. Sure, Portishead, Tricky and Lamb can be filed under trip hop, but what about Gusgus, Saint Etienne and Bjork? It's obvious to me that all these artists are riding in the same boat, but what do we call the boat? Strange that as popular as this stuff is, I've still never heard anyone attempt to coin a singular term to encompass it all. "Electro-pop" or "techno-pop" would make sense, but those have already been used many times to identify what I call "synthpop": Depeche Mode, New Order, etc. So I put it to the masses. Is there a popular name for this subgenre that has somehow eluded me? Can anyone recommend a name for it? Al.