Learn Evolution of Hip Hop As we approach rap’s 50th anniversary, Evolution of Hip Hop chronicles the history of the genre’s early days in New York City to its present day domination of the pop charts. In 2018, hip hop replaced rock music as the best-selling genre of music in America, marking an incredible rise in popularity that all started […] Written by @recordingarts 13 March 202019 April 2021
Learn Polykrome’s Guide to Producing Compelling Electronic Music Today I’m going to break down “Braindeath”, a song I recently released on Dack Janiels and Wenzday’s label 40 Oz Cult. I’ll go over my approach to producing compelling music in the absence of vocals or other dominant melodic voices, from establishing my sound palette, to composing and arranging my song, to the final mix. […] Written by @recordingarts 9 March 202015 July 2022
Learn How Auto-Tune Changed Music It’s a technology of perfection that’s been called both the electric guitar of our age and one of history’s worst inventions. Auto-Tune, and its underlying pitch-correction technology, have forever changed the music industry. Initially meant to help recording engineers and artists reduce the time needed to get the perfect take, pitch correction software has become […] Written by @recordingarts 6 March 202021 September 2022
Learn How MIDI Changed Music The music creation process has changed a lot over the past 50-odd years as music technology shifted from an analog reality to a digital one. Whereas sheet music, guitar tabs or even simpler notation is what is most often used by performers playing acoustic or electric instruments, MIDI offers a similar language for digital devices to play […] Written by @recordingarts 28 February 202015 July 2022
Learn Evolution of UK Drill/Trap History By the early 2010s, Chicago drill had exploded in popularity, and its influence would soon spread across the pond to UK rappers. Artists in English cities like Brixton and London would start to add their own regional flair to the sound, often giving tracks a darker and more menacing tone. Given the genre’s popularity […] Written by @recordingarts 26 February 202019 April 2021
Learn Evolution of Grime History UK garage producers like DJ Target and his Pay As U Go crew paved the way for grime by layering street-reporting lyrics over a garage-style, 140 BPM tempo that carried the energy of jungle music. Though the sound originated in London’s underground, grime artists like Dizzee Rascal managed to achieve commercial attention in the […] Written by @recordingarts 26 February 202031 August 2022
Learn Evolution of Drill (Trap style) History Whereas the ‘trap’ genre name first came from the drug world, ‘drill’ is a slang term that means to shoot someone. Unsurprisingly, drill music focuses more on violence for the sake of violence than trap’s drug dealing lyrics. The impetus for drill’s gritty violence first came from the streets of Chicago, a city that […] Written by @recordingarts 20 February 202019 April 2021
Learn Evolution of Emo Rap History Emo rap isn’t so much a genre as a collection of styles where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Inspired by the emotional lyrics of emo and the mid-tempo beats of trap, around the 2010s artists began blending these two influences with whatever else they were listening to. Despite some […] Written by @recordingarts 20 February 202019 April 2021
Learn Evolution of Trap History The word ‘trap’ originates from the term ‘trap house,’ run-down buildings used for drug dealing. However, the ‘trap’ that comes with them casts a much wider net. The rough streets of 1990s Atlanta produced a new generation of artists reflecting on the drugs and violence that caught so many. Their lyrics found a home […] Written by @recordingarts 20 February 202019 April 2021
Learn Evolution of Electro Hop History Before electro hop there was hip house. The hip house fusion genre first arose during the late 80s and combined radio-friendly pop rap with four-on-the-floor house beats (which were also usually accompanied by either a basic synth melody or upbeat sample). Electro hop evolved out of hip house towards the mid 2000s, now combining […] Written by @recordingarts 20 February 202029 March 2022
