Two More EDM Songs (Minus The ‘D’) [Free]

If the title left you scratching your beautiful little head, we’re sorry.

we're sorry

Please let us explain.

After stumbling upon both of these tracks in the very same day, we thought it proper to share them with you. The particular quality or motif that both of these songs share is a very simple concept to understand, however its role may be vitally important to the music industry as a whole. As stated in the title, both of these jams are EDM (Electronic Dance Music) without the ‘D’ or, more simply, Electronic Music.

Yeah, we get it. “EM,” as it shall be called, is most assuredly not a new concept in popular music. Hipsters have been doing it since they started making corduroy pants and fixed gear velocipedes (quintessentially indie way of saying “bicycles”)…and that’s a long time.

Trust us.

However, both of the tracks by artists AFK and Matchbox Orchestra incorporate particular qualities of Electronic Music that are more closely related to those heard in Electronic Dance Music. More and more these days we are begging to see these electronic sounds pop up in any and every other genre of already established popular music. Instead of boring you with the details of what we mean exactly, we figured it might be more fun if you just listened. Try and tease out these concepts yourself. See if you can understand exactly what we are talking about.

Both “I forget” by Matchbox Orchestra featuring CubeKin and AFK’s remix of “Bride Side” by Protohype and Ras feature a more minimalistic electronic approach than most EDM productions. We say this because both artists are EDM producers by trade.

If anything, the two songs sound more like regular old rock jams than anything. In our opinion, this method serves to make the individual breakdowns all the more dulcet and indicative of the emotion the vocalist is trying to convey in their lyrics. Instead of being stagnantly satiated with overwhelming electronic arrangements, they are saved for a time when the song truly NEEDS it.

Good luck getting either of these tunes out of your heads.

1. Protohype – Bright Side ft. Ras (AFK Remix ft. DKS)

2. Matchbox Orchestra – I Forget ft. CubeKin

…While We Were Away [Just A Couple Tracks]

We have been away for some time.

And for that we apologize.

However, everybody needs some chill time every once in a while. The past few weeks for us was exactly that. Cut us a bit of slack, will ya’?

We are back, baby. Here a just a few tracks we’ve kept on repeat throughout the break.

(no particular order)

1. DOPEST DOPE.

2. Beautiful drumstep track from JIKES and Nori.

3. Great remix to an already fantastic original.

4. Hard rock and even harder dub.

5. Nothing but Chi-Town love.

Spencer Brown | Ascension/Lockout EP [*Artists Spotlight*]

Interestingly enough, one of my colleague’s clairvoyant articles regarding “5 Songs To Remind Us Why EDM is the Future of Music” had indeed taken a gaze into a subsequent moment in time (now) and spotlighted this next artist, Spencer Brown, who is currently being championed by none other than EDM legend, Avicii.

Working closely with the Swedish progressive house master himself and the newly established record company founded by Ash Pournouri, PRMD (pronounced “pyramid”), Spencer Brown is certainly off on the right foot when it comes to developing his sound and exposing it to the world. We found Ash to be an especially compelling individual, making the Billboard’s list of Most Influential Dance Music Executives last year. Apparently the man owns a night club, manages artists, owns a new music label and is still working as an attorney by day. Damn, talk about motivated.

Spencer has always found a certain comfortability around music. Taking root in playing the drum and percussion, he eventually transition to the realm of music production, where his creativeness could firmly solidify and precipitate in the form of hip-hop and dubstep productions (inspired by the Dallas scene at that time).

At this point in time Mr. Brown was operating under the alias “Spenca”, garnering support from artists like Rusko, Bassnectar, Kill The Noise and Datsik. After releasing a few tracks on Firepower Records, Spencer Brown had a change of heart. For some time now, he had become increasingly interested with an entirely different and more subtle style of electronic dance music: House.

Determined to change the face of progressive house music, Spencer has said to have had a life-changing epiphany while experiencing a show by Eric Prydz in 2012. Spencer has now began to produce music under his full name with his premier release, “Echoes”, debuting on PRMD a few months ago. Today, with the help of Avicii, Spencer dropped his first EP under PRMD featuring two brand new tracks called “Ascension” and “Lockout.” Call this writer a fool, but it seems awfully coincidental that these were two of the greatest maps on the best FPS video game of all time: the Halo series.

Both tracks definitely bring about a slight Avicii-esque vibe, but they are whole-heartedly unique in their own right. We are particularly enamored with Spencer’s airy, stratospheric synthesizers. The first song “Ascension” has this funky feel throughout the intro that gracefully decays and slowly culminates into a beautiful build that regresses back to the introductory sounds. “Lockout” is assuredly our favorite of the two pieces. Here, Mr. Brown utilizes those resounding synthesizers we mentioned earlier to create a curiously euphoric aura set for some distant, deep-space planet. When this thing drops, every listener (and their mother) deserves to jump on board. It will be a wild ride.

We look forward to seeing what else this young talent from Dallas has to offer. With Ash and Tim by his side helping him along the way, there is absolutely no way Spencer Brown can go wrong.

Cheers mates.