From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other "alternative" subgenres of non-rock genres, see
alternative.
Alternative dance (also referred to as underground dance in the US)[1] is a musical genre that mixes rock subgenres with electronic dance music. Although largely confined to the British Isles, the genre has gained American and worldwide exposure through acts such as New Order in the 1980s and The Prodigy in the 1990s.
Allmusic states that alternative dance mixes the "melodic song structure of alternative and indie rock with the electronic beats, synths and/or samples, and club orientation of post-disco dance music".[2] The Sacramento Bee calls it "postmodern–Eurosynth–technopop–new wave in a blender".[3] Cultural historian Piero Scaruffi suggests that electronic body music first witnessed in Belgium, and later in Canada, between 1980 and 1984 laid the foundations for the alternative dance saturation in the 90s.[4] The genre draws heavily on club culture for inspiration while incorporating other styles of music such as synthpop, acid house, and trip hop. The performers of alternative dance are closely identified with their music through a signature style, texture, or fusion of specific musical elements.[2] They are usually signed to small record labels.[5]
[edit] Notable scenes and artists
Most alternative dance artists are British, "owing to the greater prominence of the UK's club and rave scenes in underground musical culture". New Order are cited by Allmusic as the genre's first group because of their 1982–83 recordings, which merged post-punk with the synthpop in the style of German collective Kraftwerk. Alternative dance had a major impact on Britain's late-80s Madchester scene and 90s trip hop and rave scenes.[2] The Prodigy and The Chemical Brothers are two prominent examples of the 90s British scene,[6][7] while in the US, Chicago's Liquid Soul to San Francisco's Dubtribe expanded dance music "beyond its old identity as a singles-driven genre with no identifiable, long-term artists".[1] The American scene rarely received radio airplay and most of the innovative work continued underground or was imported.[5] The Prodigy's third studio album The Fat of the Land was the first international alternative dance hit after debuting at number one in 25 countries, including the US, in 1997.[6]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
