WTF happened to the term "techno"?

[Acid Mitch]

Are you actually saying that I got it all upside down. That the first link posted really was techno and the others were not?

No I'm saying I didn't think any of the links in the first post were techno.
I guess the orbital thing is the closest.

[IncarnateX]

One seemed a bit of a mish mash I'd call rave or typical old UK breakbeat stuff , one was DnB (that's drum and bass to all you old folks out there, lol) , one is electronica/pop .

Well, for me, none of the music you linked to is techno.

1st link to me, screams "EDM" or "electro" (not specific genre terms in this context)

2nd link - Orbital? I'd classify this as "Electronica" (a bit vague term I know but still)

3rd link - Breakbeat?

4th link - I'd again list this as "Electronica" or even "Pop"

Well at least you have some shared definitions here with regard to the breakbeat and the pop thing (calling Leftfield "pop" like it was Britney we are listening to, you bastards . Then I'll rather accept electronica but without the slash pop thing) but it doesn't seem like subjectivity is all wiped out yet.

Likewise with regard to the euro-cheese thing it seems like Tetsuneko and Zenpunkthippy would refuse this as techno as well. That leaves some plasticity to the term by which we could uphold some artistic decency.

[dark_virus]

I was reading about IDM on Wikipedia, and it says that "IDM" and "Electronica" were most used as generic terms for various flavours of electronic music in US. People need these generic terms, since it makes classification more easy to them. Actually, the first time I've read the word "techno" it was printed on an Eurodance compilation sleeve, back in the 90s. Now we have EDM.

If you want to find new music in a given genre, you're better off searching for artist names instead. You may find other related (or even better) tracks/artists. It's not an easy task, but you may be rewarded with awesome undiscovered music. And, of course, be sure to go beyond the 3rd or 4th result page.

Remember that anyone can call their music whatever they wish. So, it's somewhat pointless to care about genres, specially on sites like Youtube.

[Acid Mitch]

Likewise with regard to the euro-cheese thing it seems like Tetsuneko and Zenpunkthippy would refuse this as techno as well.

I think you'll find there is cheesy Euro stuff they would accept as being part of techno, just not techno they'd want to listen to.

[Acid Mitch]

That leaves some plasticity to the term by which we could uphold some artistic decency.

You should just make music and let everyone else argue over what genre it is .

It's not like techno is held in high regard by society and as for musicians, the majority snigger at it.
I know many people who would never have "techno " and "artistic decency" in the same sentence, except for to be sarcastic towards DJ's . So seems a bit pointless to worry about weather the term you use conveys artistic decency or not.
Best to let the music speak for itself.

[Krzysztof Oktalski]

If you had to label them, I'd choose :
1) shite 2) breakbeat techno 3) proto-braindance 4) dub techno

...but I'd like to explain why I think this is extremely unhelpful.

It seems fair to me to label all music that involves technology as Techno, but such a broad definition could encompasses pretty much everything - the Pianoforte, for example, is a tremendous step forward in techno, as was the acoustic guitar. So, when we say techno we know that really we mean post-Detroit strands, because a Northern Soul DJ (Neil Rushton) spent considerable time and money in the late eighties successfully convincing people of that idea. This Detroit definition predicated Techno on urban decay, automation as a form of oppression, dystopianism, the Third Wave, etc; and these have since become the attributes of what we now think of as "proper" techno, so the term has many prejudices. The Detroit guys cite the Krautrockers, esp. Kraftwerk, obviously; check out the Hi Tech Soul documentary.

Music is mislabelled all the time, one man's techno is another's generic EDM.

IMO EDM (like IDM before it) is a marketing term that nobody used before about 5 years ago, it has no use outside of marketing and by virtue of the meaning of the words constructs a very limited analogous framework. EDM falls to pieces because it needs dancing to explain itself, but much of techno isn't necessarily made for dancing - it's merely technological music, and that's the only definition it needs. EDM is a construct for the modern American marketplace, which was made in order to lower the overall production costs of popular music over the past 10 years in order to facilitate a transition to a lower cost distribution model and music as a medium for upselling tangible product. Basically, it's cheaper to get some guy with a computer to make the hits and to stick some girl over the top than it is to pay real musicians...I'm sure that's not what Neil Rushton had in mind when he named those compilations....hmmm...

So, herein lies the truth - us older guys state what we believe to be techno are doing so for the exact same reasons younger folks use the term EDM, it's because these ideas have been marketed to us, and instead of ignoring it we're trying to rigidly define a type of music by a set of attribute...just like they wanted us to! Silly thing to do, it'll just lead you to the classic misnomers such as "techno is repetitive" or "industrial" without seeing why we think that...because UK/US Northerners told us it was so and we bought it! I've met a load of the people that are intrinsic to this discussion and they don't really have a better explanation, and you can hear some of the Detroit guys say it themselves (naming Rushton) in Hi-Tech Soul. To me, all music is techno of some description and there's only good and bad techno, all other sub-categorisation is merely to market it into niches so people can feel like they're individual and special, because these are the impulses that drive consumption!

"It's so easy to decide on a name, it's a name-callers game" - Robert Wyatt

http://www.dummymag.com/features/the-du ... first-wave
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A3070603
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Rushton - (this is full of holes/inaccuracies)

TL:DR William Oneyeabor was a techno artist, he never cared about any of these things and I think he had a lot of it right before anyone else really started :

[DSmolken]

So when 2 Unlimited included the lyrics "I'm making techno and I am proud" in "No Limit", was that a lie?

[Blue-eyed Blonde Ape]

EDM is a construct for the modern American marketplace, which was made in order to lower the overall production costs of popular music over the past 10 years in order to facilitate a transition to a lower cost distribution model and music as a medium for upselling tangible product. Basically, it's cheaper to get some guy with a computer to make the hits and to stick some girl over the top than it is to pay real musicians...I'm sure that's not what Neil Rushton had in mind when he named those compilations....hmmm...

That whole "sticking girls over the top" thing renders countless young girls into brainless sheep. Not that I care though. haha Just couldn't help noticing relation between someone watching those videos and and how it shapes one's perception.

[SODDI]

I heard that Target trademarked the term "Techno" and used it to market a line of little girls' activewear back in 2002.

[ZenPunkHippy]

Free glow stick with every purchase?

[Sendy]

What's this, mediocre music? Slap some tits and arse on it.

[ericj23]

TL:DR William Oneyeabor was a techno artist, he never cared about any of these things and I think he had a lot of it right before anyone else really started :

I love this too - real 303 trance from 1982



And this is a bit later - but just as superb (if a bit slow)

[tapper mike]

I'm from Detroit and I remember the House movement coming out of Chicago then landing in Detroit. In Chicago there were a lot of abandoned houses and people used to run power lines to them and throw parties. "House" because it was played in a house. It was any cheap sequencer not specifically 909 drums just something affordable. Setups varied. While some material did play hard four on the floor there were equal amounts of syncopated Hi-hat and shaker sounds on the backbeat.

When it came to Detroit the media called it Techno and a lot of techno was getting out via public radio WDET. Those in the scene referred to the music as "Acid" Underground performers wanting to come above ground also called it acid originally but switched camps and called it techno as to get airplay. The biggest difference was in the quality of the equipment. However if you were at one of these events you really couldn't tell because the PA was always for shit and loud as hell. Not to mention all the reflection from concrete walls and floors. It wasn't that great music or that great a sound. It was only as the music matured enough to go above ground then things got kicking.

[ZenPunkHippy]

Not to mention all the reflection from concrete walls and floors.

This is part of what defines the sound of techno for me. Some of the best parties I've been to have were held in quite unusual places e.g. underground bunkers, abandoned train station. Reverb heaven!

Peace,
Andy.

[awol9000]

When I come to power the incorrect use of the word Techno will be punishable by death.

Please add Funky to your list.