Tag Archives: Electronic dance music

13Sep/26

The Radical Innovation of 1980s Pop Culture

September 13, 2026MediaAfrican-American culture, African-American music, Beyoncé, Biz Markie, Chicago, Chicago house, Culture, Decades, Duran Duran, Dylan Jones, Electronic dance music, Eric B. Is, Eric B. Rakim, Frankie Knuckles, Haim, Hip hop, Hip hop music, Hip hop production, House music, Hugh Padgham, Jamaica, Janet Jackson, Kodwo Eshun, London, Marley Marl, Marlon Williams, Music, New York, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Reagan, Records Inc., Roland, Ron Hardy, Roy C, Simon Reynolds, Steve Dahl, Techno, United States, warner brosadmin

Studio Alchemy and the Technological Architecture of the 1980s

Sun 13 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —The sonic landscape of 1980s pop music was fundamentally reshaped by studio experimentation and technological breakthroughs, most famously exemplified by the discovery of gated reverb. In late 1979 at Virgin’s Townhouse Studios in London, during sessions for Peter Gabriel’s third solo album, drummer Phil Collins was instructed to play without cymbals while experimenting with rhythms for the song “Intruder”. Recording engineer Hugh Padgham accidentally activated the Solid State Logic (SSL) 4000 console’s heavily compressed reverse-talkback listen microphone hanging in the reflective “Stone Room”. The resulting explosive room ambience was gated and triggered by the close-mic drum signal, causing the dense reverberation to slam shut into immediate silence the moment the signal dropped. This artificial, punchy drum sound became the signature acoustic signature of the decade, catapulted into mainstream culture by Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” and subsequently emulated via digital hardware like the AMS RMX16 processor. The technique defined 1980s pop production and has experienced periodic modern revivals by contemporary artists such as Haim, Lorde, and Beyoncé. Continue reading →

14Aug/23

Hip-hop at 50: how the sights, sounds and moves of the music spread across the world

August 14, 2023MusicAdam de Paor-Evans, African-American culture, Afrika Bambaataa, Break, Chuck D, Cindy, Creative Commons, Disc jockey, Disco, DJ Kool Herc, DJ Mean Gene, Electronic dance music, Grandmaster Flash, GrandWizzard Theodore, HERC, Hip hop, Hip hop production, Kendrick Lamar, Kool Herc, Kurtis Blow, Louis Farrakhan, M.C. G.L.O.B.E., Malcolm McLaren, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Melle Mel, New York, New York City, Rapping, Sedgwick Avenue, Street dance, Sugarhill Gang, Tim III, Travis Scott, United States, Worms Aliadmin

Adam de Paor-Evans, University of Plymouth

On August 11 1973, DJ Kool Herc and his sister Cindy threw the now legendary Back To School jam in the recreation room of 1520 Sedgewick Avenue in The Bronx, New York.

Herc’s party represented a coming together of music and the start of something new. The Bronx crowd did not want the dancehall sounds Herc had begun to play. They wanted soul and the tough percussion of funk. So, Herc changed up the sound and used the main switch for the lights like a strobe-light to add atmosphere. Little did they know, that his event would be commonly accepted by the hip-hop fraternity worldwide as the starting point of what was to become one of the most important creative movements of the last century.

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06May/23

DJ Shinki

May 6, 2023EntertainmentAudio mixing, Culture, Disc jockey, Disco, DJ mix, Electronic dance music, Hip hop, Hip hop production, Music, Shinki, Singapore, Sound, Turntablismadmin

DJ Shinki is a popular DJ and producer from Singapore. He is known for his unique mixing style, which often combines elements of hip hop, R&B, and electronic music. Continue reading →