Electronic Music 101
This post is about electronic music and what you could be missing by ignoring it.
I listen to trance and progressive, which are subgenres of electronic music. There are two DJs who revolutionized trance - Tiesto and Paul van Dyk. Later on came Armin van Buuren and others, but Tiesto and PvD are the ones who did the pioneer work.
Tiesto is the most popular DJ in history. He was the official DJ for the 2004 Olympic Games in Greece and released Parade of the Athletes the same year. In the past four years, Tiesto has become too commercial and it’s hard work to distinguish the good from the BS. If you want to start off with some great quality Tiesto, listen to Summerbreeze, the best album he released.
Paul van Dyk (PvD) was voted the #1 DJ by fans worldwide for 5+ years in a row. (DJ Mag’s Top 100 is the most prestigious award in electronic music). PvD’s 2006 concert in Bucharest was the best I’ve ever attended. DMAO for 4+ hours! Paul van Dyk has the most energy infused live performances. He’s really great at building up the momentum and keeping you on your toes. If you want to experience the true “state of trance”, check out his tour schedule and be sure to see him live. If you don’t have the time/money/enthusiasm to do that, listen to some Vonyc Sessions from 2006/2007.
Armin van Buuren (AvB) is one of the en-vogue trance DJs of the younger generation. His masterpiece is A State of Trance, a weekly two hour mix released on radio stations across the globe (most notably Digitally Imported FM). If you want some earth-shattering AvB, look for these episodes of ASOT 234, 265, 285, 312, 325. His iTunes podcast is no good btw. I’ve seen Armin @ McCarren Pool in NYC, the show was not as good as PvD’s or Tiesto’s, but I had seen the last two in Eastern Europe, which might explain the better show.
Above and Beyond are the new guys around the block, ready to explode into a trance sensation. The group is formed of Brits and a Fin (check out their website). A & B release a weekly two-hour podcast called Trance Around the World (amazing jingle, check it out when you get a chance!). I wouldn’t be surprised if they topped the DJ charts in the near future. Currently DJ Mag ranks them 4th after Guetta (ewwww, having Guetta there makes me wonder why Lady Gaga is not part of the top). Their best podcasts are Anjunabeats Volume 6, Anjunabeats Volume 7 and TATW 200. Above and Beyond release top quality trance with deep house influences (see AnjunaDeep).
OK, so there you have it. Quality electronic music, that is where it’s at. Below you’ll find my ranked preferences. Thanks for reading this and I hope to hear from you if you have questions!
Best weekly show:
- ASOT (2006 & 2007) (AvB)
- Vonyc Sessions (PvD)
- Trance Around The World (Above and Beyond)
- Club Life (Tiesto, not that exciting)
Best DJ:
- Paul van Dyk
- Tiesto
- Armin van Buuren
- Above and Beyond
