Trends in music, especially dance music, are nothing new. Artists from relatively recent breakout genres, like dubstep, big room, trap, future bass, and more, are commonplace among festival lineups and charts from Beatport, iTunes, and more. The quality of these rapidly rising genres is, like all music, completely subjective. Despite that fact, the burst of popularity that these genres utilize creates a large number of detractors. We’re of the opinion that, if you don’t like it, don’t listen to it. Lately, we haven’t been able to resist listening to what is quickly becoming the next breakout genre in dance music: nightcore.
Defining nightcore is fun, because everyone does it a little differently, but it’s generally constituted by a few common things. It’s similar to bubblegum bass and happy hardcore, with the usage of pitched-up vocals, heart-pounding BPMS (160-180), and non-stop energy. Mainstream pop songs, and the vocals from those songs, are often ‘Nightcored’, with the previously mentioned adjustments made to the original tune. Nightcore and similar dance-pop sub-genres are the love-child of pop and trance, with a spin that manages to drive the music past your ear drums and into your soul, begging to be danced to. Others call it annoying, noise, “not real music”, and everything else that similarly growing genres have gone through in the past.
Regardless of how we describe it, nightcore and the like seem to be consistently inching their way into the mainstream dance music consciousness. We welcome this growth, and expect it to continue. The foundation is there, with labels and artists releasing more tunes every day, and radio shows and podcasts spreading those tunes like wildfire.
[pullquote]The label’s called PC Music, which alludes to how the computer is a really crucial tool, not just for making electronic music but for making amateur music that is also potentially very slick, where the difference between bedroom and professional studio production can be very ambiguous. – A.G. Cook (Tank Interview)[/pullquote]
A big reason for this growth is London-based label PC Music. Garnering plenty of attention in their first few years of existence, PC Music has been leading the push for bubblegum bass and dance-pop since founder A.G. Cook created the label in 2013. Home to the likes of Hannah Diamond, GFOTY, easyFun, and more, PC Music has created a legitimized way for nightcore and similar dance-pop sub-genres to be released. Perusing Soundcloud and finding tunes from unknown artists is great, but for a genre to truly breakout, legitimacy on an industry level is a necessity.
Recent sub-genres that have found their way into the mainstream dance music consciousness often do so with the help of labels. Like big room and deep house with Spinnin’, dubstep with Circus Records, and many more, labels play an important role in the growth of genres and styles. The more we’re getting to know about PC Music, the more we’re liking the moderately-mysterious music collective. With a legitimate base for these artists to expand their reach and release their music, the genre’s growth is more likely than not.
Yet, a label can only release music. That doesn’t necessarily mean that people will listen to (or pay for) it. But, similar to the previously mentioned breakout genres, fans and followers of these dance-pop genres are some of the most passionate. Like all genres before they become commonplace, these fans have had to search and scour the Internet to fulfill their lust for high-energy, personality-filled, pop-centric dance music. The community is tightly knit, and regardless of labels releasing music, has already created safe places for new and young artists to share their tunes. Sound familiar, dubstep?
All of the pieces are there, and as artists like GFOTY, Hannah Diamond, GRRL, and more are find their way into more and more earbuds, dance-pop and its sub-genres will continue to grow. We’ll be following, and listening, every step of the way as nightcore becomes the next big genre to breakout in dance music. Bubblegum bass, happy hardcore, nightcore, and the like are too catchy, too danceable, and far too much fun to not welcome into the dance music mainstream.
Let us know what you think of nightcore, PC Music, and the incessantly growing number of genres within dance music! Comment below, on Facebook, or reply on Twitter!
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