EDM is a $6.9 billion global industry as reported by the International Music Summit. Its massive rise in the last five years has been staggering, and fandom surrounding the culture is something that no one could have expected. Artists like David Guetta, Avicii, Calvin Harris and Hardwell have brought a new meaning to the phrase ‘Superstar DJ’ and according to Billboard Magazine, “Hardwell, in particular, quadrupled the fans he added per day year-over-year...Per Music Metric data, Hardwell saw as many as 70,000 new fans on social media a day during Ultra [Music Festival] 2014.”
For many new fans of Electronic Dance Music or EDM, there is often a lot of confusion on the topics of history and genres. What's a newb to do? Most fans don't have the time or patience to become "scholarly" about the subject, so what's your average fan supposed to do? Where can they get some quick and basic understanding of the origins of electronic music?
Just check out the response to our article Stop Calling EDM, EDM
How The Party Started is an interactive ‘auxploration’ of exactly that, it maps the past, present and future of Electronic Dance Music and shows those navigating the site a history of more than just the current phenomenon of EDM. It describes the history of House, Techno, Drum & Bass and more, it plays the music of over 100 artists, introducing you to new sounds and has comments from key influencers like Nice n Ripe Records affiliate Jeremy Sylvester, Trance artist Markus Schulz and more acquired specifically for the project.
How The Party Started aims to highlight the many genres that helped slingshot EDM into the limelight, the many artists of varying styles that perhaps provided inspiration and the plethora of sounds that culminated in what we hear in EDM today.
We love the idea of having a visual tool that not only shows the flow chart style history but also allows viewers to click on an artist and instantly here a sample of their music. Click on Carl Craig in the Techno section and you get a track off his legendary album Landcruising. The concept is cool, and we hope it's just the beginning of what looks to be a great resource for new fans of the genre.
“I am in an incredibly privileged position to help people connect worldwide through the love of music and melodies. When you receive correspondence from a fan who says that my productions or DJ sets has helped inspire them, aid them through difficult periods, or indeed changed their lives; it is incredibly gratifying and humbling. That to me is what trance is all about. Uniting us all.” Markus Schulz for How The Party Started.
“One of the things I love most about techno is how much room there is to maneuver within what’s generally considered a fairly rigid framework.” Tayyab Amin (contributor at Truants, Pitchfork, FACT and more) for How The Party Started.
This database is by no means a complete history, but it's the beginning of something important. HTPS understands that music is subjective, that there are many genres and artist that are not yet included, and even artists that fans will argue fall within a different genre type, but they aim to emphasize more than genre debate. HTPS aims to chart the development of a cultural movement called EDM and shine some much-needed light on the music that helped it to become the musical powerhouse it is today. You can access How the party started Here.