A Brief History of Acid House and Electronic Dance Music in the 80s
A brief history of acid house and electronic dance music in the 80s.
The Origins of Acid House
Acid house is a style of house music that was developed in the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined by its use of the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer, and it was named after the acid LSD that was popular among clubgoers at the time. The style quickly spread to the UK and Europe, and by the late 1980s, it was one of the most popular genres of dance music.
The Birth of House Music
In the early 1980s, a new style of music was born in the clubs of Chicago. It was called house music. This new style of music was a fusion of different genres, including disco, soul, funk, and electronic dance music. House music quickly became popular in the clubs of Chicago and soon spread to other parts of the United States and Europe.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a new subgenre of house music emerged, known as acid house. This new style of house music incorporated elements of techno and acid rock. Acid house became extremely popular in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. In 1988, acid house parties known as “rave parties” began to be held in warehouses and fields across the country. These parties often lasted for several days and nights and featured non-stop dancing to loud, fast-paced music.
The Influence of Disco
Disco’s popularity waned in the early 1980s, but the genre left an indelible mark on popular culture. One of the most significant was its influence on the development of electronic dance music, particularly a subgenre known as acid house.
Characterized by its use of the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer, acid house was defined by its squelchy, distorted sound. It was pioneered by producers like DJ Pierre and Phuture in Chicago in the mid-1980s. The style quickly spread to other parts of the US and Europe, where it found a receptive audience in clubs and warehouses.
Acid house was a key influence on the development of rave culture in the UK in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The style also had a significant impact on subsequent genres like techno and trance.
The Rise of Chicago House
In the early 1980s, a new form of electronic dance music began to emerge in the clubs of Chicago. This new sound, which came to be known as “house music,” was a product of the city’s black and Latino communities, who had long been underestimated and underserved by the mainstream music industry.
House music was born out of the desire for a new sound that was distinctly different from the disco music that had dominated the club scene in the 1970s. The sound of house music was inspired by a wide range of sources, including soul, funk, and disco. But it was also influenced by electronic dance music from Europe, particularly from Germany.
The first house music tracks were created using simple drum machines and synthesizers. These early tracks were often instrumental, and they were designed to be played on repeat for hours at a time. As house music became more popular, it began to evolve and incorporate elements of other genres, including hip-hop and techno.
In 1988, acid house emerged as a subgenre of house music. Acid house was characterized by its use of synthesized basslines and acidic melodies. The style quickly gained popularity in clubs across Europe and America.
Today, house music is one of the most popular genres in the world. It has spawned numerous subgenres and subcultures, and it continues to evolve with each passing year.
The Birth of Acid House
In the late 1980s, a new style of dance music called acid house began to emerge in the clubs of London and Chicago. This style of music was characterized by its use of synthesizers and electronic drums, as well as its heavy use of the “acid” sound. Acid house quickly became one of the most popular genres of dance music, and its influence can still be felt in many of today’s popular electronic music styles.
The First Acid House Parties
The first so-called acid house parties were held in Chicago in the mid-1980s, and the style of music soon spread to other cities like Detroit, London, and New York. The music was often played at all-night club events and illegal warehouse parties, and it became popular with clubgoers who were looking for a more intense experience than what was offered by traditional clubs.
The style of music that came to be known as acid house was characterized by its use of synthesizers and drum machines to create a repetitive, hypnotic sound. The name “acid house” is thought to come from the use of the drug LSD at some of these parties, as well as from the fact that the music often had a psychedelic quality.
Acid house parties were often associated with illegal drug use, particularly ecstasy, and they were sometimes shut down by police. However, the music continued to evolve and become more mainstream in the 1990s, with artists like The Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim helping to bring it into the mainstream consciousness.
The Spread of Acid House
In the mid- to late 1980s, house music became increasingly popular in Europe, especially in the United Kingdom and Germany. At the same time, a new style of electronic dance music emerged in the clubs of Chicago, called acid house. This new style was characterized by its use of a Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer to produce looping, hypnotic basslines. TheTB-303 was originally intended to be used as an automatic bass guitarist by mimicking the sound of a plucked string. However, producers began using it to create more experimental sounds, and it soon became an integral part of acid house.
Acid house quickly spread from Chicago to other parts of the United States, and then to Europe. By the early 1990s, it had become one of the most popular genres of electronic dance music. Today, acid house is considered one of the foundational genres of electronic dance music.
The Impact of Acid House
The impact of acid house upon popular culture was immediate and can still be felt today, almost three decades later. The cultural appropriation of the music by the mainstream media caused a moral panic amongst certain sectors of society, with fears that the music would lead to increased drug use and anti-social behaviour. In reality, acid house parties were often more peacef and love-filled than those involving other genres of music, with partygoers frequently sharing supplies of drugs like Ecstasy. The music also had a unifying effect amongst working class young people in Britain at a time when social divisions were at their sharpest.
The legacy of acid house can be seen in many aspects of popular culture today, from the popularity of electronic dance music to the use of Roland’s TB-303 bass synthesiser in contemporary music. The phenomenon also had a significant impact on fashion, with clubbers adopting brightly coloured clothes and iconic items like neon leg warmers and rubber gloves.
The Legacy of Acid House
It is hard to think about the origins of acid house and electronic dance music without thinking about the cultural and political climate of the late 1980s. Acid house emerged from the Chicago underground club scene in the mid-1980s, a time when the city was struggling with the aftermath of the poverty and violence of the 1970s. The music was created by DJs who were experimenting with new ways to use the synthesizers and drum machines that were becoming more affordable and available.
The Influence of Acid House on Electronic Dance Music
In the late 1980s, a new style of electronic dance music emerged from the London club scene that came to be known as acid house. This new style was characterized by its use of the Roland TB-303 bass synth, which was used to create a distinctive squelching sound that became the hallmark ofacid house tracks. The acid house sound quickly spread throughout Europe and helped to inspire the development of other popular electronic dance music genres, such as techno and trance.
Despite its underground origins, acid house music enjoyed a brief period of mainstream success in the UK in the late 1980s, with several chart-topping hits, including “Pump Up the Volume” by M|A|R|R|S and “Groove Is in the Heart” by Deee-Lite. However, by the early 1990s, acid house had largely fallen out of favor with the UK public and was replaced by other dance music styles, such as rave and jungle.
Despite its relatively short lifespan, acid house had a significant impact on electronic dance music and culture. The genre helped to popularize the use of synthesizers and drum machines in dance music andAlso inspired the development of other popular genres, such as techno, trance, and garage.
The Impact of Acid House on Popular Culture
In the late 1980s, a new type of music was born in the clubs of Chicago and Detroit. Acid house, a style of electronic dance music characterized by its squelching, synthesized basslines and acidic melodies, emerged from the creative experimentation of a handful of DJs and producers. These pioneers had started toying with the new Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer, repurposing it for use in dance music. The results were mind-bending – a new sound that was as danceable as it was weird, and which would go on to forever change club culture.
The impact of acid house on popular culture was immediate and profound. In the space of just a few years, this once-obscure style of music had taken over dancefloors across Europe and America. Young people were enthralled by the sounds of acid house, and the hedonistic rave culture that surrounded it. The music spawned a host of subgenres – from hard acid house to trance – and influenced generations of artists, from Madonna to Moby.
Today, acid house is enjoying something of a renaissance, with a new generation of producers rediscovering its unique sound. But its legacy remains – acid house changed the face of popular music, and paved the way for today’s global electronic dance music scene.
The Legacy of Acid House in the 21st Century
In the 21st century, the legacy of acid house can be felt in many aspects of popular culture. The sound and style of acid house played a significant role in the development of electronic dance music, and its influence can be heard in the music of today’s top DJs and producers. Acid house is also credited with inspiring the rave culture of the late 80s and early 90s, which had a major impact on youth culture in Britain and beyond.
