Intelligent Dance Music - History

History

During the late 1980s, a number of UK based electronic musicians were inspired by the underground dance music of the time and started to explore experimental forms of EDM production. By the early 1990s, the music associated with this experimentation had gained prominence with releases on a variety of record labels including Warp Records (1989), Black Dog Productions (1989), R & S Records (1989), Carl Craig's Planet E, Rising High Records (1991), Richard James's Rephlex Records (1991), Kirk Degiorgio's Applied Rhythmic Technology (1991), Eevo Lute Muzique (1991), General Production Recordings (1989), Soma Quality Recordings (1991), Peacefrog Records (1991), and Metamorphic Recordings (1992).

Ambient house, a genre that fused house music (particularly acid house) with ambient music, was being produced in the United Kingdom around this time, by bands such as The Orb. A major influence on ambient house was Japan's Yellow Magic Orchestra, sometimes cited as one of the pioneers of ambient house.During the early 1990s, the term "ambient house" became synonymous with intelligent dance music in general, but was eventually replaced by several other terms. Following the lead of ambient house, ambient techno music was soon produced by artists such as Aphex Twin and Japan's Tetsu Inoue. Ambient techno distinguished itself with strong techno and electro influences, including more extensive use of Roland's TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines. The term "ambient techno" was eventually replaced by "intelligent techno" following the success of Warp's Artificial Intelligence series.

By 1992, Warp Records was marketing the musical output of the artists on its roster using the description electronic listening music, but this was quickly replaced by intelligent techno. In the same period (1992–93), other names were also used, such as armchair techno, ambient techno, and electronica, but all were attempts to describe an emerging offshoot of electronic dance music that was being enjoyed by the "sedentary and stay at home". Steve Beckett, co-owner of Warp, has said that the electronic music the label was releasing at that point was targeting a post-club, home-listening audience. In 1993 a number of new record labels emerged that were producing intelligent techno geared releases including New Electronica, Mille Plateaux, 100% Pure, and Ferox Records.

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