Electronic body music
Electronic body music (EBM) is a genre of electronic music that combines elements of industrial music and synth-punk with elements of dance music. It developed in the early 1980s in Western Europe, as an outgrowth of both the punk and the industrial music cultures.[10] It combines sequenced repetitive basslines, programmed dance music rhythms, and mostly undistorted vocals and command-like shouts with confrontational or provocative themes.[9]
EBM
Early 1980s, Western Europe (Germany, Belgium, Netherlands)
The evolution of the genre reflected "a general shift towards more song-oriented structures in industrial as to a general turn towards the dancefloor by many musicians and genres in the era of post-punk."[11][12] It was considered a part of the European new wave and post-punk movement and the first style that blended synthesized sounds with an ecstatic style of dancing (e.g. pogo).[13]
EBM gained a stable following in the second half of the 1980s.[14] Around that period, a youth-cultural scene emerged from EBM[15] whose followers describe themselves as EBM-heads or (in North America) as rivetheads.[16]
Characteristics[edit]
Described as an outgrowth of "electronically generated punk [music] intertwined with industrial sounds,"[25] EBM has been characterized as a composite of programmed drum beats, repetitive basslines, and clear or slightly distorted vocals, instructional shouts or growls[26] complemented with reverberation and echo effects.[9] Typical EBM rhythms rely on the 4/4 disco beat or rock-oriented backbeats,[8] (featuring kick drum, snare and hi-hat) and some minor syncopation.[27][9]
Environmental samples, e.g. hammer blow, machine and alert sounds, are often used to create a "factory ambiance". Other samples include political speeches and excerpts from science fiction movies,[9] cf. Front 242 – Funkahdafi.[27]
History[edit]
Precursors[edit]
EBM evolved from a combination of post-punk, industrial and post-industrial music sources, including The Normal, Suicide, DAF, Die Krupps, Killing Joke, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle[9] and Test Dept. but also krautrock and Berlin school[7] artists such as Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream (who had used electronic bass sequences as a basic feature in their productions).[4][9]