The Best Electronic Dance Music Albums
We’ve rounded up the best EDM albums of the year so far, featuring the likes of Disclosure, Flume, and more.
Best Electronic Dance Music Albums
If you’re looking for the best electronic dance music albums, look no further than this list. We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 EDM albums that you need to listen to. From the classic hits to the newest releases, these are the albums that should be at the top of your playlist.
Daft Punk – Homework
Daft Punk’s debut album, Homework, is one of the most influential and important electronic dance music albums of all time. Released in 1997, the album changed the sound of dance music and helped to launch the careers of a generation of EDM artists. Featuring a mix of funk, disco, techno and house music, Homework is a timeless classic that still sounds fresh today.
The Prodigy – The Fat of the Land
The Prodigy’s third album, released in 1997, was the culmination of a four-year period during which they transformed themselves from a rave act into one of the biggest rock bands in Britain. The Fat of the Land is an unrelenting assault of breakbeats, samples and riffs, with Liam Howlett’s mastery of sonic detail creating a dense and exhilarating listen. The singles “Smack My Bitch Up” and “Breathe” were huge hits, but there are no weak tracks here – from the eerie opener “Diesel Power” to the furious closer “Serial Thrilla”, this is one of the most exciting rock albums ever made.
The Chemical Brothers – Dig Your Own Hole
The Chemical Brothers’ second album announced them as the inheritors to the Prodigy’s throne as the UK’s leading big beat exponents. Certainly, there were moments on Dig Your Own Hole that equalled anything Liam Howlett had come up with – the sleek paranoia of ‘Block Rockin’ Beats’, the frenzied breakbeats of ‘Setting Sun’ (featuring Noel Gallagher on guitar) or the beautiful vocal track ‘Elektrobank’. The album also found them experimenting with more diverse sounds, most notably on ‘Piku’, which sounded like a lost Stereolab track.
Fatboy Slim – You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby
This album by Fatboy Slim was released in 1998 and is widely considered to be one of the best electronic dance music albums of all time. The album features the singles “Praise You” and “The Rockafeller Skank”, both of which were massive hits. You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby was a critical and commercial success, selling over three million copies worldwide.
The Crystal Method – Vegas
Vegas is the debut studio album by American electronic music duo The Crystal Method, released on August 26, 1997 by City of Angels and Outpost Recordings. It peaked at number 193 on the Billboard 200 and number two on the US Top Heatseekers. Vegas has sold more than three million copies worldwide.
Best Electronic Dance Music Albums
With so many great EDM albums released in the past year, it’s hard to keep track of them all. But no worries, we’ve compiled a list of the best EDM albums of the year for your listening pleasure. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the best EDM albums of the year.
Daft Punk – Homework
Daft Punk’s debut album is full of addictively catchy tracks that blend classic house with elements of techno, acid, and disco. The result is an essential record for any fan of dance music.
The Prodigy – The Fat of the Land
The Prodigy – The Fat of the Land is the third studio album by English electronic dance music group The Prodigy. It was first released on 1 July 1997 by XL Recordings in the United Kingdom and by Maverick Records in the United States. Production was handled by Liam Howlett, who also wrote all of the album’s tracks except for “Diesel Power” and “Funky Shit”, which were co-written by Maxim Reality.
The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, where it stayed for three weeks. In September 1997, it was certified 10× Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), indicating sales in excess of 2.6 million copies in the UK. In February 1998, it became the first dance album to topping the US Billboard 200 chart, where it spent four weeks. As of 2010, The Fat of the Land has sold more than 7 million copies worldwide.
Critical reception for The Fat of the Land was mostly positive with many critics praising its sound and its influence on electronic music as a whole. However, some reviewers found fault with certain tracks or elements such as Howlett’s vocals or MCS’s lyrics. NME included it among their list of “lp’s that changed your life”, while Q placed it at number 12 on their list of “The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever”. In 2012 Mixmag ranked The Fat of the Land at number 22 on their list of “The Greatest Dance Albums Of All Time”.
The Chemical Brothers – Dig Your Own Hole
The Chemical Brothers’ 1997 album is as close to a perfect electronic dance album as you can get, and it’s one of the big reasons why the duo’s Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons are seen as one of the best in the business. From the mind-bending opener “Block Rockin’ Beats” to the disgustingly catchy “Setting Sun” (which features Noel Gallagher on vocals), there’s not a weak track on Dig Your Own Hole. And while it may not have the same historical importance as The Prodigy’s Fat of the Land or Daft Punk’s Homework, it’s certainly their best album, and easily one of the greatest dance albums ever made.
Fatboy Slim – You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby
Released in 1998, Fatboy Slim’s second album proved to be his most commercially successful, with the lead single “Praise You” becoming a worldwide hit. The album also features the singles “The Rockafeller Skank” and “Gangster Tripping”, as well as the fan-favorite “Don’t Let the Man Get You Down”. You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby is widely considered to be one of the best electronic dance music albums of all time.
The Crystal Method – Vegas
The Crystal Method’s debut album Vegas is often considered one of the best electronic dance music albums of all time. Released in 1997, it features a mix of big beat, breakbeat, and techno that was groundbreaking at the time. The album spawned the hits “Keep Hope Alive” and “Busy Child,” and it remains a favorite among EDM fans to this day.
