Synth-pop (short for pop synthesizer , also called techno-pop ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s -an and synthesizer features as the dominant musical instrument. It was made earlier in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronics, rock art, disco, and especially "Krautrock" from bands like Kraftwerk. It emerged as a different genre in Japan and England in the post-punk era as part of the new wave movement of the late 1970s to the mid-1980s.
Early synth-pop pioneers include the Japanese group Yellow Magic Orchestra, and the English bands Ultravox, Human League and Berlin Blondes. The Human League uses a monophonic synthesizer to produce music in a simple and loud voice. After Gary Numan's breakthrough in the UK Singles Chart in 1979, a large number of artists began to enjoy success with sound-based synthesizers in the early 1980s, including late 1970s debutants such as Japanese and Orchestra Maneuver in Dark, and newcomers such as Depeche Mode and Eurythmics. In Japan, the success of the Yellow Magic Orchestra paved the way for synth-pop bands such as P-Model, Plastic, and Hikashu. The development of cheap polyphonic synthesizers, MIDI definitions and the use of tap dance, generates a more commercially sound and accessible for synth-pop. This, its adoption by the style conscious actions of the New Romance movement, along with the rise of MTV, led to the successful completion of a large number of British synth-pop acts (including Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet) in the United States.
"Synth-pop" is sometimes used interchangeably with "electropop", but "electropop" may also show a synth-pop variant that emphasizes more loud and more electronics. In the late 1980s duo like Erasure and Pet Shop Boys adopted a very successful style on the US dance charts, but by the end of the decade, the 'new wave' of synth-pop bands like A-Ha and Alphaville were giving way to house music and techno. Interest in the new wave of synth-pop began to rise again in the indietronica and electroclash movement in the late 1990s, and in the first decade of the 21st century synth-pop enjoyed widespread resurgence, with commercial success for action including Lady Gaga, Rihanna, La Roux , Owl City, M83 and Chvrches.
Genre has received criticism for its alleged lack of emotion and music; Leading artists have spoken out against critics who believe that the synthesizers themselves compose and play the songs. Synth-pop music has formed a place for synthesizers as a major element of pop and rock music, directly influencing subsequent genres (including house music and Detroit techno) and indirectly affecting many other genres, as well as individual recordings.
Video Synth-pop
Characteristics
Synth-pop is defined by the main use of synthesizers, drum machines and sequencers, sometimes using them to replace all other instruments. Borthwick and Moy have described various genres but "... are characterized by a set of values ​​that alienate the style of play, rhythm and rock structure," replaced by "synthetic textures" and "robotic stiffness," often defined by technological limitations new, including a monophonic synthesizer (only able to play one note at a time).
Many synth-pop musicians have limited musical skills, relying on technology to produce or reproduce music. The result is often minimalist, with the groove being "usually woven together from simple repetitive riffs often without harmonious 'progress' to speak of". Early synth-pop has been described as "scary, sterile, and vaguely threatening", using electronic droning with slight changes in inflection. The lyrical themes of common synth-pop songs are isolation, urban anomie, and cold and empty emotional feelings.
In the second phase of the 1980s, the introduction of more conventional rock dance and rock instrumentation made the music warmer and catchier and contained in a three-minute pop convention. Synthesizers are increasingly being used to mimic the sound of orchestras and conventional horns and cliches. Thin, treble-dominant, synthesized melodies and simple drum programs give way for thicker production, and compression, and more conventional drum sounds. Lyrics are generally more optimistic, dealing with more traditional lesson materials for pop music such as romance, escape and aspiration. According to music writer Simon Reynolds, the synth-pop character of the 1980s was "an emotional, sometimes opera-like singer" like Marc Almond, Alison Moyet and Annie Lennox. Because synthesizers eliminate the need for large groups of musicians, the singer often becomes a duo where their partner plays all the instrumentation.
Although synth-pop partially emerged from punk rock, it abandoned punk emphasis on authenticity and often pursued accidental mischief, drawing on critical betrayed forms such as disco and glam rock. It owes relatively little to the early foundations of popular music in jazz, folk or blues music, rather than looking to America, at an early stage, consciously focusing on European and especially Eastern European influences, reflected in band names like Spandau Ballet and songs - like "Vienna" Ultravox. Then synth-pop sees a shift to a style more influenced by other genres, such as soul music.
Maps Synth-pop
History
Precursors
Electronic music synthesizers that could be used practically in the recording studio became available in the mid-1960s, around the same time as rock music began to emerge as different genres of music. Mellotron, electro-mechanic, polyphonic sample-playback keyboard followed by the Moog synthesizer, invented by Robert Moog in 1964, which produces electronically generated sounds. The portable minimoog, which allows easier use, especially in live performances is widely adopted by progressive rock musicians like Richard Wright of Pink Floyd and Rick Wakeman of Yes. Instrumental prog rock is very significant on the European continent, allowing bands like Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Can and Faust to avoid language barriers. Their heavy "Kraut rock" synthesizer, along with the work of Brian Eno (for a while a keyboard player with Roxy Music), will be a major influence on the next synth rock.
In 1971 the English film A Clockwork Orange was released with a synth soundtrack by American Wendy Carlos. This is the first time many people in the UK hear electronic music. Philip Oakey of Human League and Richard H. Kirk of Cabaret Voltaire, and music journalist Simon Reynolds, have called the soundtrack as inspiration. Electronic music sometimes moves into the mainstream, with Stan Free jazz musician, under the pseudonym Hot Butter, having top 10 hits in the United States and Britain in 1972, with cover of 1969 Gershon Kingsley song "Popcorn" using Moog synthesizer, pioneer for synth-pop and disco.
The mid-1970s witnessed the emergence of electronic artists such as Jean Michel Jarre, Vangelis, and Tomita. Tomita's album Electric Samurai: Switched on Rock (1972) features electronic songs from contemporary rock and pop songs, while utilizing speech synthesis and analogue music sequencers. In 1975, Kraftwerk played their first British show and inspired concert participants Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys (who later discovered the Orchestra Maneuver in Dark) to 'dump their guitar' and became a synth action. Kraftwerk has a British first hit record at the end of the year with "Autobahn", which reached number 11 in British Singles Chart. This group is described by the BBC Four Synth Britannia program as the key to the future of synth-pop there. Italian Giorgio Moroder teamed up with Donna Summer in 1977 to release an electronic disco song "I Feel Love", and his programmed beat would be a big influence on the synth-pop sound later. David Bowie Berlin Trilogy, consisting of albums Low (1977), "Heroes" (1977), and Lodger (1979), all featuring Brian Eno, will also be very influential.
Origins (1977-80)
The early guitar-based punk rock that became famous in the 1976-77 period was initially hostile to the "un authentic" sound of the synthesizer, but many new wave bands and post-punk emerging from the movement began to adopt it as a major part of their voices. British punk and new wave clubs are open to what is then considered an "alternative" sound. How to do it yourself punk punk breaks the norm of progressive rock era that takes years of experience before waking up on stage to play synthesizer. The American duo Suicide, which emerged from the post-punk scene in New York, used drum machines and synthesizers in a hybrid between electronic and post-punk on their same 1977 album.
The Cat Stevens album Izitso , released in April 1977, updated his pop rock style with the extensive use of synthesizers, giving a more synth-pop style; "Was Dog a Donut" in particular is an early techno-pop fusion path, which makes early use of music sequencers. Izitso reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200 chart, while the track "(Remember the Days of the) Old Schoolyard" is a top 40 hit. That same month, Beach Boys released their album Love You, almost entirely by bandleader Brian Wilson with Moog and ARP synthesizers, and with a somewhat inspired setting by Wendy Carlos Switched-On Bach i> (1968). Although highly praised by several critics and musicians (including Patti Smith and Lester Bangs), the album met with poor commercial reception. The album is considered revolutionary in the use of synthesizers, while others describe Wilson's extensive use of the Moog synthesizer as "crazy funhouse ambience" and early examples of synth-pop. In July 1977, Donna Summer released "I Feel Love", written and produced by Giorgio Moroder, pioneered the Hi-NRG genre, and influenced subsequent synth-pop acts such as Divine and Dead or Alive. Around this time, Ultravox member Warren Cann purchased the Roland TR-77 drum machine, which was first shown in their single release in October 1977 "Hiroshima Mon Amour".
Be-Bop Deluxe released Drastic Plastic in February 1978, leading with single "Electrical Language" with Bill Nelson on guitar synthesizer and Andy Clark on synthesizer. The Japanese band Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) with their self-titled albums (1978) and Solid State Survivor (1979), developed a "fun-loving and breezy" sound, with a strong emphasis on melody. They introduced the TR-808 rhythm machine to popular music, and the band would be a major influence on the early British synth-pop action. 1978 also saw the release of the UK band Human League's dà © Å © but the single "Being Boiled", while American post-punk band Devo began to move towards a more electronic sound. At this point synth-pop gets critical attention, but little impact on commercial graphics.
The punk-influenced British band Tubeway Army, intended their debut album to be a guitar driven. In 1978, Gary Numan, a member of the group, discovered the minimoog left in the studio by another band, and began experimenting with it. This caused a change in the sound of the album into a new wave of electronics. Numan later described his work on this album as a keyboard-playing guitarist, who turned "punk songs into electronic songs". A single from the album, "What is Electrical Friend?", Topped the UK charts in the summer of 1979. The discovery that the synthesizer can be used in a way different from that used in progressive rock or disco, prompted Numan to go solo. On his futuristic album The Pleasure Principle (1979), he only plays the synth, but retains the bass guitarist and drummer for the rhythm section. One from the album, "Car" topped the charts.
Giorgio Moroder collaborated with the band Sparks on their album No. 1 In Heaven (1979). In the same year in Japan, the band synth-pop P-Model debuted with the album In a Model Room . Other Japanese synth-pop groups that appeared around the same time included Plastic and Hikashu. The Zeitgeist revolution in electronic music and recording/production was packed by record producer Trevor Horn of the Buggles in the international hit "Video Killed the Radio Star" (1979).
1980 also saw the release where "Video Killed the Radio Star" came from, the debut album Buggles The Age of Plastic , which some writers labeled as the first landmark of another electropop era, as well as what for many is the album defining the Devo career, which is openly synth-pop Freedom of Choice .
Commercial success (1981-85)
The emergence of synth-pop has been described as "probably the single most significant event in melodic music since the Mersey-beat". In the 1980s synthesizers became much cheaper and easier to use. After the definition of MIDI in 1982 and the development of digital audio, the creation of pure electronic sound and their manipulation became much simpler. Synthesizers dominated pop music in the early 1980s, mainly through their adoption by New Romance bands.
New Romantic scene has been developed in London nightclubs Billy and Blitz and is associated with bands like Duran Duran, Visage, and Spandau Ballet. They adopted a complex visual style that combines elements of glam rock, science fiction, and romance. Duran Duran has been credited with combining the beat of dance to the synth-pop to produce a more catchy and warmer sound, which gives them a series of hit singles. They will soon be followed into English charts by a large number of bands that use synthesizers to create exciting three-minute pop songs. A new line-up for the Human League along with new producers and a more commercial voice led to the album Dare (1981), which resulted in a series of hit singles. These include "Do not You Want Me", which reached number one in the UK at the end of 1981.
Synth-pop reached its commercial peak in the UK in the winter of 1981-2, with bands like the Orchestra Maneuver in Dark, Japan, Ultravox, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode and even Kraftwerk, enjoying the top ten hits. In early 1982 the synthesizer was so dominant that the Union of Musicians tried to limit its use. By the end of 1982, these acts had been combined in the charts by synthesized singles from Thomas Dolby, Blancmange and Tears for Fears. Proliferation of actions causes an anti-synth reaction, with groups including Spandau Ballet, Human League, Soft Cell and ABC incorporating more influence and conventional instruments into their voices.
In the US, where synth-pop was regarded as a new wave subgenre and described as "technopop" or "electropop" by the press at the time, the genre became popular due to the MTV cable channel, which reached the media capitals of New York City and Los Angeles in 1982. This made the use of the stylishly conscious New Style drama synthesizer, with "I Ran (So Far Away)" (1982) by A Flock of Seagulls generally regarded as the first hit by Britain acting to include the Big Ten Billboard as a result of the exposure through videos. The transition to "new music" format on US radio stations was also significant in the success of British bands. The success of synth-pop and other British acts will be seen as the Second British Invasion. Synth-pop is taken worldwide, with international hits for action including Men Without Hats and Trans-X from Canada, Telex from Belgium, Peter Schilling, Sandra, Modern Talking, Propaganda and Alphaville from Germany, Yello from Switzerland and Azul y Negro from Spanish.
In the mid-1980s, major artists included soloist Howard Jones, the S.T. Erlewine has claimed to have "combined the sound of intensive new wave technology with cheerful optimism of hippies and late-60s pop", (albeit with the exception of including the lyrics "What Is Love?") And Nik Kershaw, which "incorporates a good synth-pop" incorporates guitar and other more traditional pop influences that particularly attract the attention of the teen audience.The pursuit of a more dance-oriented sound is Bronski Beat whose album The Age of Consent (1984), dealing with issues of homophobia and alienation, reaching the top 20 in Britain and the top 40 in the US and Thompson Twins, whose popularity peaked in 1984 with the album Into The Gap, which reached No.1 in Britain and the top ten US and spawned some of the top ten singles, originally dismissed in the music press as "bope teeny sensation" is a Norwegian band a-ha, which uses real guitar and drums to produce a form that can be used ses synth-pop, which, along with the MTV-friendly video, took their 1985 single "Take On Me" to number two in the UK and number one in the US.
Descending popularity (1986-2000)
Synth-pop continued into the late 1980s, with formats moving closer to dance music, including works such as British duo Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, and Communards. The main hits of Communard are the cover of the classic disco "Do not Leave Me This Way" (1986) and "Never Can Say Goodbye" (1987). After adding other elements to his voice, and with the help of gay audiences, several successful synth-pop acts on the US dance charts. Among these are the American Information Society action that has two top 10 singles in 1988, Anything Box, and Red Flag. The British band When In Rome scored a hit with their debut single "The Promise". Some of Germany's late 1980s synth-pop acts include Camouflage, Cetu Javu, CCCP, and Celebrate the Nun. Canadian duo Kon Kan was a huge success with their debut single, "I Beg Your Pardon" in 1989.
The American reaction to the European synth-pop has been seen as early in the mid-1980s with the emergence of heart stones and stone roots. In the UK the arrival of indie rock bands, especially Smiths, has been seen as a sign of the end of a new wave driven by synth and the beginning of guitar-based music that will dominate rock into the 1990s. In 1991, in the United States synth-pop lost its commercial ability as an alternative radio station that responded to the popularity of grunge. Exceptions that continue to pursue forms of synth-pop or rock in the 1990s were Savage Garden, the Rentals and Moog Cookbook. Electronic music was also explored from the early 1990s by indietronica bands such as Stereolab, EMF, Utah Saints, and Disco Inferno, which mixed different types of indie and synthesizers.
The rise of the 21st century
Indietronica began to take off in the new millennium as newly developed digital technology, with actions such as Broadcast from the UK, French Justice, Lali Puna of Germany, and Ratatat and the US Postal Service, mixing indie sounds with electronic music, mostly produced on small independent labels. Similarly, the electroclash subgenre began in New York in the late 1990s, combining synth-pop, techno, punk and performing arts. It was spearheaded by I-F with their song "Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass" (1998), and was pursued by artists including Felix da Housecat, Peaches, Chicks on Speed, and Fischerspooner. It gained international attention at the start of the new millennium and spread to scenes in London and Berlin, but quickly faded as a recognizable genre as an action began to experiment with various forms of music.
In the new millennium, renewed interest in electronic music and nostalgia for the 1980s led to the beginning of synth-pop revival, with actions including Adult and Fischerspooner. Between 2003 and 2004, it began to move into the mainstream with Ladytron, Postal Service, Cut Copy, The Bravery and The Killers all produced a recording that incorporated the sound of vintage synthesizers and styles that contrasted with the dominant genre of post-grunge and nu metal.. In particular, The Killers enjoy broadcasts and considerable exposure and their debut album Hot Fuss (2004) reached the top ten of Billboard 200. The Killers, The Bravery and the Stills are all left their synth-pop sounds after their debut album and began exploring classic 1970s rock, but this style was taken by a large number of artists, especially female solo artists. After Lady Gaga's breakthrough success with the single "Just Dance" (2008), Britain and other media proclaimed a new era of female synth-pop stars, citing artists such as Little Boots, La Roux, and Ladyhawke. Male deeds that emerged during the same period included Calvin Harris, the Sun's Empire, Frankmusic, Hurts, Swimming Pools Ou Est Le, Kaskade, LMFAO, and Owl City, whose single "Fireflies" (2009) occupied Billboard Hot 100 Chart. In 2009, the subgenre underground with the original style instantly became synth-pop became popular, cold wave. It spawned new stars in independent music such as Washed Out, Neon Indians, and Toro y Moi. Other 2010 synth-pop acts include The Naked and Famous, Chvrches, M83, and Shiny Toy Guns.
American singer Kesha has also been described as an electropop artist, with the debut single elektropop "Tik Tok" which topped the Hot 100 Billboard for nine weeks in 2010. He also used the genre on his comeback single "Die Muda ". The mainstream female recording artists who have experimented with genres in 2010 include Madonna, Katy Perry, Jessie J, Christina Aguilera, and Beyonce.
In Japan, the girl group Perfume, along with producer Yasutaka Nakata capsule, produced technopop music combining 1980s synth-pop with chiptunes and electro house from 2003. Their breakthrough came in 2008 with the album Game, who leads to a renewed interest in technopop in Japanese mainstream pop music. Other Japanese female technopop artists soon followed, including Aira Mitsuki, immi, Mizca, SAWA, Saoriiiii and Sweet Vacation. Model-singer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu also shared the same success with Perfume's under Nakata production with Pamyu Pamyu Revolution's 2012 album, which topped the electronic charts on iTunes as well as the Japanese album charts. Similar to Japan, Korean pop music has also been dominated by synth-pop, especially with female groups such as f (x), Girls' Generation and Wonder Girls.
Criticism
Synth-pop has received much criticism and even encouraged animosity among musicians and the press. It has been described as "anemic" and "soulless". The first step of Synth-pop, and Gary Numan in particular, also underestimated the British music press in the late 1970s and early 1980s because of their German influence and was characterized by journalist Mick Farren as "Adolf Hitler Memorial Space Patrol". In 1983, Morrissey of Smiths stated that "there is nothing more repellent than a synthesizer". During this decade, objections have been raised for the limited quality of compositions and musicians. Gary Numan observes "hostility" and "a lot of ignorance" about synth-pop, with critics wrongly believing that "machines do it".
Dark Andy McCluskey's Orchestra maneuver attracts a lot of people "who thinks that songwriting equipment is for you", and affirms: "Believe me, if there's a button on the synth or drum machine that says 'hit single', I'll press it as often as others will have - but none.All of these are written by real humans, and they are all played by hand ".
According to Simon Reynolds, in some corners of the synthesizer is seen as an instrument for "effetes poseurs", in contrast to the phallic guitar. The synth-pop association with alternative sexuality is reinforced by images projected by synth-pop stars, seen as gender bending, including asymmetric hair of Phil Oakey and the use of eyeliner, the "pervy" Marc Almond leather jacket, the skirt worn by numbers including Martin Gore from Depeche Mode and early "dominatrix" images of Annie Lennox Eurythmics. In the US, this causes British synth-pop artists characterized as "English hair cut bands" or "fag" music, although many British synth-pop artists are very popular on American radio and MTV. Although some audiences are openly hostile to synth-pop, it achieves appeal among those alienated from the dominant heterosexuality of mainstream rock culture, particularly among gay and female audiences.
Influence
In the mid-1980s, synth-pop has helped form the synthesizer as the main instrument in mainstream pop music. It also affects the sound of many mainstream rock actions, such as Bruce Springsteen, ZZ Top and Van Halen. It was a major influence on house music, which grew out of the post-disco club culture of the early 1980s as some DJs attempted to make less pop-pop music that also incorporated influences from Latin souls, rank, rap music, and jazz.
American musicians such as Juan Atkins, using names including Model 500, Infinity and as part of Cybotron, developed an electronic dance style influenced by synth-pop and funk that led to the emergence of Detroit techno in the mid-1980s. The continued influence of synth-pop in the 1980s can be seen in various incarnations of 1990s dance music including trance. Hip-hop artists such as Mobb Deep have taken samples of synth-pop songs of the 1980s. Popular artists such as Rihanna, British stars Jay Sean and Taio Cruz, as well as British pop star Lily Allen on their second album, also embraced the genre.
Artist
See also
- Dance-pop
- Electropop
- Fashwave
- Schaffel defeats, triplets feel popularized in electronic music
- Synthwave
- Pop Wonky
References
Source:
- S. Borthwick and R. Moy (2004), Popular Music Genres: Introduction , Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press
- P. Bussy (2004), Kraftwerk: Man, Machine and Music (3rd ed.), London: SAF
- T. Cateforis (2011), Are We Not New Waves ?: Modern Pop at the turn of the 1980s , Ann Arbor MI: University of Michigan Press
- Collins, Nick; Schedel, Margaret; Wilson, Scott (2013). Electronic Music . Cambridge University Press. ISBN: 978-1-107-24454-2.
- Hoffmann, Frank (2004). Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound . Routledge. ISBN: 978-1-135-94950-1. *
- B. R. Parker (2009), Good Vibration: Music Physics , Boston MD: JHU Press
- Simon Reynolds (2005), Tear it and Start Again Postpunk 1978-1984 , London: Faber and Faber
- J. Stuessy and S. D. Lipscomb (2008), Rock and Roll: History and Personality Development (6th ed.), London: Pearson Prentice Hall
- Trynka, Paul; Bacon, Tony, eds. (1996). Stone Hardware . Book Balafon. ISBN: 978-0-87930-428-7.
External links
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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