Electronic body music
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox music genre
Electronic body music (EBM) is a genre of electronic music that combines elements of industrial music and synth-punk with elements of dance music. It developed in the early 1980s in Western Europe, as an outgrowth of both the punk and the industrial music cultures.<ref>Eva Fischer: Audio-visuelle Tendenzen. Entwicklungen in der Visualisierung elektronischer Musik und in der Clubkultur. Universität Wien, 2009, p. 18.</ref> It combines sequenced repetitive basslines, programmed disco rhythms, and mostly undistorted vocals and command-like shouts with confrontational or provocative themes.<ref name="SeanAlbiez">Template:Cite book</ref>
The evolution of the genre reflected "a general shift towards more song-oriented structures in industrial as to a general turn towards the dancefloor by many musicians and genres in the era of post-punk."<ref>Timor Kaul: Some Thoughts on EBM as a transitional genre., Academia.edu, 2016, p. 1.</ref><ref name="Kaul">Timor Kaul: Electronic Body Music. In: Thomas Hecken, Marcus S. Kleiner: Handbook Popculture. J.B. Metzler Verlag 2017, Template:ISBN, p. 102–104.</ref> It was considered a part of the European new wave and post-punk movement and the first style that blended synthesized sounds with an ecstatic style of dancing (e.g. pogo).<ref>Renaat Vandepapeliere: R & S Records Belgium, Localizer 1.0, Die Gestalten Verlag 1995, Template:ISBN</ref>
EBM gained a stable following in the second half of the 1980s.<ref name="sicko">Dan Sicko, Techno Rebels: The Renegades of Electronic Funk, Billboard Books, 1999, p. 142.</ref> Around that period, a youth-cultural scene emerged from EBM<ref>Martin Pesch, Markus Weisbeck: History of Techno and House music. In: Techno Style. Musik, Grafik, Mode und Partykultur der Techno-Bewegung. Edition Olms, Hombrechtikon / Zürich 1996, Template:ISBN, p. 11.
"1986/87: New bands like Nitzer Ebb, The Klinik and Vomito Negro appear on the scene and gain a large audience of mainly young males."</ref> whose followers describe themselves as EBM-heads or (in North America) as rivetheads.<ref>Kate Stevens: Freak Nation. A Field Guide to 101 of the Most Odd, Extreme, and Outrageous American Subcultures, Adams Media, 2010, Template:ISBN, p. 108.</ref>
Etymology
[edit]The term electronic body music was first used by Ralf Hütter of the German electronic band Kraftwerk in an interview with British music newspaper Sounds in November 1977.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In June 1978 Hütter reused the phrase in an interview with WKSU radio (Kent, Ohio) to explain the more physical character of the Kraftwerk album The Man-Machine.<ref name="technopop">(2007-11-25) Klein, MJ WSKU Radio (Kent - Ohio) - Ralf Hütter - 19/06/1978 Template:Webarchive kraftwerk.technopop.com.br (retrieved on 28 January 2008)</ref> Although the term originated in the late 1970s, it was not until the 1980s when it reappeared and started to come into popular use.<ref name=Esch2016>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1981, DAF from Germany employed the term "Körpermusik" (body music) to describe their danceable electronic punk sound.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> The term "electronic body music" was later used by Belgian band Front 242 in 1984<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to describe the music of their EP of that year titled No Comment.<ref name="iafrica">(2004-06-20) Monsoon, Jon EBM - A revolution in progress Template:Webarchive iAfrica.com (retrieved on 3 August 2007)</ref><ref name="rideout">Ernie Rideout, interview with Front 242, Keyboard Presents the Best of the '80s, Backbeat, 2008, p. 57.</ref>
Characteristics
[edit]Described as an outgrowth of "electronically generated punk [music] intertwined with industrial sounds,"<ref>Oerter, Rolf (2005). Spezielle Musikpsychologie. Hogrefe Publishing Group. Template:ISBN, p. 443. Quote: "Punk mit elektronischen Elementen und industriellen Gerauschen gemischt -, die sich Mitte der 80er Jahre insbesondere in den Benelux-Ländern zur Electronic Body Music (EBM) erweiterte (zu den bekannten Gruppen zählen Front 242 und Nitzer Ebb)"</ref> EBM has been characterized as a composite of programmed drum beats, repetitive basslines, and clear or slightly distorted vocals, instructional shouts or growls<ref>Judith Platz: Electronic Body Music (EBM). In: Axel Schmidt, Klaus Neumann-Braun: Die Welt der Gothics. Spielräume düster konnotierter Transzendenz. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden, Dezember 2004, Template:ISBN, p. 271.
"Am ehesten lässt sich der Vokaleinsatz als Sprechgesang bezeichnen: Die Worte und Textzeilen werden deutlich gesprochen oder geschrien. Neben der tiefen, männlichen Hauptstimme, die meist trotz möglicher Echo-Effekte oder leichter Verzerrung gut verständlich ist, kommt oft noch ein so genannter ‚Shouter' zum Einsatz."</ref> complemented with reverberation and echo effects.<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> Typical EBM rhythms rely on the 4/4 disco beat or rock-oriented backbeats,<ref name="Bloomsbury" /> (featuring kick drum, snare and hi-hat) and some minor syncopation.<ref name=Reed165>S. Alexander Reed: Assimilate. A Critical History of Industrial Music. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2013, Template:ISBN, p. 165.
"Rhythmically, EBM is based around an incessant quarter-note kick drum pattern, often with a backbeat snare. Drum machine hi-hats fill in the rhythmic gaps, but percussive ornamentation varies from artist to artist. […] Drum sounds were often samples of drums, car crashes, door slamming or environmental percussion."</ref><ref name="SeanAlbiez" />
Environmental samples, e.g. hammer blow, machine and alert sounds, are often used to create a "factory ambiance". Other samples include political speeches and excerpts from science fiction movies,<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> cf. Front 242 – Funkahdafi.<ref name=Reed165 />
History
[edit]Precursors
[edit]EBM evolved from a combination of post-punk, industrial and post-industrial music sources, including The Normal, Suicide, DAF, Die Krupps, Killing Joke, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> and Test Dept. but also krautrock and Berlin school<ref name="Adelt181">Ulrich Adelt: Krautrock. German Music in the Seventies. University of Michigan Press, 2016, Template:ISBN, p. 181.</ref> artists such as Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream (who had used electronic bass sequences as a basic feature in their productions).<ref name=hillveld/><ref name="SeanAlbiez" />
Other influences include the synth-pop music of The Human League and Fad Gadget; and the krautrock-inspired dance hit "I Feel Love" by Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer.<ref>Ulrich Adelt: Krautrock. German Music in the Seventies. University of Michigan Press, 2016, Template:ISBN, p. 135.
"Moroder first experimented with krautrock-oriented synthesizer sounds on his solo album ‚Einzelgänger' (1975), an artistic and commercial failure. It is remarkable that he not only felt the necessity to experiment with synthesizer sounds reminiscent of Berlin School artists like Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze but that these experiments would help him to develop a unique German Disco sound with Summer's 1977 hit ‚I Feel Love'."</ref><ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> Daniel Bressanutti (Front 242), who helped establish the term EBM, named the soundscapes of Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze as additional influences along Kraftwerk, Throbbing Gristle, the sequencer-based electro-disco of Giorgio Moroder,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the punk movement.<ref name=Fact />
1981–1987
[edit]Emerging in the early 1980s in Germany and Belgium,<ref>Judith Platz: Electronic Body Music (EBM). In: Axel Schmidt, Klaus Neumann-Braun: Die Welt der Gothics. Spielräume düster konnotierter Transzendenz. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden, Dezember 2004, Template:ISBN, p. 270.
"Seinen Ursprung hat das Genre Anfang der 1980er-Jahre in Deutschland und Belgien."</ref> bands such as DAF, Die Krupps,<ref>Release Magazine: Die Krupps - Too Much History</ref> Liaisons Dangereuses,<ref name="Thoughts2" /> and Front 242 started to blend danceable rhythms and repetitive sequencer lines.<ref name=Esch>Template:Cite book</ref> At the time the genre arose, style-defining synthesizers included Korg MS-20,<ref name=Esch /> Roland SH-101,<ref>S. Alexander Reed: Assimilate. A Critical History of Industrial Music. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2013, Template:ISBN, p. 153.</ref> ARP Odyssey,<ref name=Esch /> Emulator II,<ref name=Reed165/> along with several Oberheim and Yamaha models.<ref name=Esch />
Archetypical songs are Verschwende deine Jugend, Alle gegen alle and Der Mussolini by DAF; Wahre Arbeit, wahrer Lohn, Goldfinger and Für einen Augenblick by Die Krupps; Etre assis ou danser, Los niños del parque and Avant-après mars by Liaisons Dangereuses, and Body to Body, U-Men and He Runs Too Fast for Us by Front 242.
Front 242 characterized their approach as somewhere between Throbbing Gristle and Kraftwerk.<ref name="rideout" /> Nitzer Ebb and Portion Control, influenced by DAF<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> and Cabaret Voltaire, followed soon after. Groups from this era often applied socialist realist aesthetics, with ironic intent.<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> Other prominent artists were Pankow,<ref>Andi Harriman: Italian EBM progenitors Pankow, 23 August 2017.</ref> Vomito Negro, Borghesia, The Neon Judgement,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> à;GRUMH...,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref><ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> A Split-Second,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> The Klinik, and Signal Aout 42.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1988–1993
[edit]In the second half of the 1980s, the genre became popular in Canada (Front Line Assembly<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref>) and the U.S. (Ministry,<ref>"...Template:Nbspthis album probably owes more to Front 242 than anything." Template:AllMusic</ref> Revolting Cocks,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> Schnitt Acht<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref>)<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> as well as in Sweden (Inside Treatment, Pouppée Fabrikk, Cat Rapes Dog) and Japan (2nd Communication, DRP, Soft Ballet). North American bands started to use EBM-typical bass sequences and combined them with the roughness of (hardcore) punk and thrash metal (cf. industrial metal). Nine Inch Nails continued the cross-pollination between EBM and rock music<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> resulting in the album Pretty Hate Machine (1989).<ref name="SeanAlbiez" />
Meanwhile, EBM became successful in the underground club scene, particularly in Europe. In this period the most important labels were the Belgian Play It Again Sam and Antler-Subway, the German Zoth Ommog, the North American Wax Trax! and the Swedish Energy Rekords. Notable acts at that time included And One,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> Armageddon Dildos,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> Bigod 20,<ref>Template:AllMusic</ref> Insekt,<ref>Insekt. Retrieved 15 December 2014.</ref> Scapa Flow,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Orange Sector,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Paranoid,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Electro Assassin.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Between the early and mid-1990s, many EBM artists ceased activities or changed their musical direction, incorporating more elements of rock, heavy metal and electronica. The album 06:21:03:11 Up Evil by Front 242 initiated the end of the EBM era of the 1980s. Nitzer Ebb, one of the most important purveyors of the genre, turned into an alternative rock band. Without the strength of its figureheads, electronic body music as a discernable music style faded by the mid-1990s.<ref name="SeanAlbiez" />
Revival
[edit]
In the late 1990s and after the millennium, Belgian, Swedish and German artists such as Ionic Vision, Tyske Ludder, and Spetsnaz<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> had reactivated the style. Based on this revival, Sweden and East Germany then became the centre of the movement<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> spawning a variety of newcomers. Primarily as a counteracting force against the expanding futurepop scene,<ref name="Vorndran">Daniela Vorndran: Spetsnaz, Reflections of Darkness: A Dark Music webzine, 6 March 2006.</ref> these artists followed a neo-traditionalistic path, often referred to as "old school EBM".<ref name="Kaul" />
Simultaneously, a number of European techno producers started incorporating elements of EBM into their sound. This tendency grew in parallel with the emerging electroclash scene<ref name="SeanAlbiez" /> and, as that scene started to decline, artists partly associated with it, such as The Hacker, DJ Hell,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Green Velvet, Black Strobe,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and David Carretta, moved towards this techno/EBM crossover style.
There has been increasing convergence between this scene and the old school EBM scene. Some artists have remixed each other. Most notably, Terence Fixmer joined with Nitzer Ebb's Douglas McCarthy to form Fixmer/McCarthy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Aesthetics
[edit]Template:See EBM follows the transgressive approach of punk and industrial music (e.g. "demystification of symbols"<ref>Bennett A, Guerra P (2018). DIY Cultures and Underground Music Scenes, Routledge, Template:ISBN. Quote: "[T]he dark symbolism of industrial music, the typically crude appearance associated with the punk era and, above all, underground collages and drawings oriented towards alternative contemporary art. While very particular aesthetic principles may be shared in some extreme subgenres such as power electronics or old-school noise, following the path of industrial music and its demystification of symbols (Obodda, 2002), the aesthetic judgements embraced by labels and listeners often demonstrate the rejection of imagery that is considered unoriginal."</ref>) and the use of provocative extreme imagery is common (e.g. Nazi paraphernalia;<ref>Kingsepp, Eva (2011). "Nazi Symbolism in Black Metal/National Socialist Black Metal", Stockholm University, Faculty of Humanities, Department of Journalism, Media and Communication (JMK). (English). urn:nbn:se:su:diva-68780</ref> reminiscent of punk's use of the swastika<ref name=Rammstein>Rammstein on Fire: New Perspectives on the Music and Performances edited by John T. Littlejohn and Michael T. Putnam Template:ISBN (2013, McFarland</ref>).<ref>Timor Kaul: Some Thoughts on EBM as a transitional genre., Academia.edu, 2016, p. 4.</ref> Appropriating totalitarian, Socialist and Fascist references, symbols, and signifiers has been a recurring topic of debate between fans and outsiders to the genre alike due to its stylistical ambiguity that stems from industrial music's contrarian nature.<ref name=Assimilate>Template:Cite book. Principal quote: "Regarding the emergence of the dance-driven EBM from the industrial scene, a;GRUMPH...'s Jacques Meurrens says, "In [1985], the people who liked industrial and the people who liked EBM were mostly the same crowd," but even by the time, audiences were starting to form subgenre-based expectations."</ref> In one instance, military-themed band Laibach "ma[de] no attempt to subvert this image [so] it has the aura of authenticity" so "[m]any Laibach fans began to revel in the evils of the band and to take their stage act at face value."<ref name=Assimilate/>
The military style of EBM has a "part-human part-machine" gestalt typical of transhumanist or cyberpunk movements. EBM asserts a hyper-masculine image of "triumphalism, combat postures, and paranoia,"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and is known for its "tough-guy" or machismo attitudes displayed by both men and women.<ref>Martina O, Ernst W (2008). Performativität und Performance: Geschlecht in Musik, Theater und MedienKunst, LIT Verlag Münster, Template:ISBN, p. 124.</ref> According to Gabi Delgado-López of Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft, the duo who adopted an aesthetic of black leather and military paraphernalia in the early 1980s was inspired by the male homosexual sado-masochistic scene and is not meant to represent "machismo ideology" but part of a "role."<ref name=DJ>Template:Cite book</ref>
Derivatives and alternative terms
[edit]Electro-industrial
[edit]Template:Main Electro-industrial is an outgrowth of the EBM and industrial music that developed in the mid-1980s. While EBM has minimal structures and a clean production, electro-industrial draws on deep, complex and layered sounds, incorporating elements of ambient industrial. Electro-industrial was pioneered by Skinny Puppy, Numb and Mentallo & The Fixer. In the early 1990s, the style spawned the dark electro genre and, in the end of the decade, a strongly techno- and hard-trance-inspired style called "hellektro" or "aggrotech."
Industrial dance
[edit]Industrial dance is a North American umbrella term for electronic body music and electro-industrial music. Fans associated with these genres call themselves rivetheads.
In general, industrial dance is characterized by its "electronic beats, symphonic keyboard lines, pile-driver rhythms, angst-ridden or sampled vocals, and cyberpunk imagery".<ref name="cyber">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="lollapalooza"/>
Since the mid-1980s,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> the term industrial dance has been used to describe the music of Cabaret Voltaire (early 1980s),<ref>Holly George-Warren / Patricia Romanowski / Jon Pareles: The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Fireside, 2001, Template:ISBN, p. 140.</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> early Die Krupps,<ref name="Nobahkt">David Nobahkt: Suicide: No Compromise SAF Publishing Ltd., 2004, Template:ISBN, p. 166.</ref> Portion Control,<ref>The Wire, Volume 269-274, C. Parker, 2006, p. 32.</ref> The Neon Judgement,<ref name="Nobahkt" /> Clock DVA,<ref name="Mondo 2000" /> Nitzer Ebb,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Zingales">Christian Zingales: Electronica Giunti Gruppo Editoriale, 2002, Template:ISBN, p. 59.</ref> KMFDM,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Amy Sciarretto: Wax Trax! / TVT Offers KMFDM's Final Statement with „Adios", CMJ New Music Report, 5. April 1999, p. 1.</ref><ref>Amy Sciarretto: Review of the album „MDFMK" by MDFMK, CMJ New Music Report, 14. February 2000, p. 22</ref> Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly,<ref>David Jarman: Review of the album „Flavour of the Weak" by Front Line Assembly, CMJ New Music Monthly, April 1998, p. 50.</ref><ref>David Jarman: Review of the album „Implode" by Front Line Assembly, CMJ New Music Monthly, August 1999, p. 44.</ref><ref>Vladimir Bogdanov / Chris Woodstra / Stephen Thomas Erlewine: All Music Guide to Electronica: The Definitive Guide to Electronic Music, Backbeat Books, 2001, Template:ISBN, p. 198.</ref> Front 242,<ref name="lollapalooza">Tony Fletcher: Let's Go - Lollapalooza '93, SPIN magazine, July 1993, p. 44.</ref><ref name="Nobahkt" /><ref name="Zingales" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Ministry,<ref name="DeRogatis-2003-p95">Template:Cite book</ref> Nine Inch Nails,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="DeRogatis-2003-p95"/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Manufacture,<ref name="John Leland 1989, p. 78">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Yeht Mae,<ref name="Mondo 2000">Rudy von Bitter Rucker / R. U. Sirius / Queen Mu: Mondo 2000: A User's Guide to the New Edge, HarperPerennial, 1992, Template:ISBN</ref> My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Leæther Strip<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> or early Spahn Ranch.<ref>David Jarman: Review of the album „Beat Noir" by Spahn Ranch, CMJ New Music Monthly, January 1999, p. 51.</ref> In March 1989, Spin Magazine presented a two-paged special report about the industrial dance movement in Canada and the U.S.<ref name="John Leland 1989, p. 78"/>
See also
[edit]- List of electronic music genres
- List of industrial music festivals
- Post-industrial developments
- Electronic dance music (EDM)