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The Underground Is Massive: How Electronic Dance Music Conquered America

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Joining the ranks of Please Kill Me and Can’t Stop Won’t Stop comes this definitive chronicle of one of the hottest trends in popular culture—electronic dance music—from the noted authority covering the scene.

It is the sound of the millennial generation, the music “defining youth culture of the 2010s” (Rolling Stone). Rooted in American techno/house and ’90s rave culture, electronic dance music has evolved into the biggest moneymaker on the concert circuit. Music journalist Michaelangelo Matos has been covering this beat since its genesis, and in The Underground Is Massive, charts for the first time the birth and rise of this last great outlaw musical subculture.

Drawing on a vast array of resources, including hundreds of interviews and a library of rare artifacts, from rave fanzines to online mailing-list archives, Matos reveals how EDM blossomed in tandem with the nascent Internet—message boards and chat lines connected partiers from town to town. In turn, these ravers, many early technology adopters, helped spearhead the information revolution. As tech was the tool, Ecstasy—(Molly, as it’s know today) an empathic drug that heightens sensory pleasure—was the narcotic fueling this alternative movement.

Full of unique insights, lively details, entertaining stories, dozens of photos, and unforgettable misfits and stars—from early break-in parties to Skrillex and Daft Punk—The Underground Is Massive captures this fascinating trend in American pop culture history, a grassroots movement that would help define the future of music and the modern tech world we live in.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dey Street Books; Reprint edition (April 5, 2016)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062271792
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062271792
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 1.1 x 5.3 x 8 inches

12 reviews for The Underground Is Massive: How Electronic Dance Music Conquered America

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    Jason Birchmeier

    Don’t let the EDM subtitle dissuade you; essential reading for 1980s/1990s techno heads
    I’d put off reading this book for a while because of the “EDM” subtitle, “How Electronic Dance Music Conquered America.” Call me old fashioned (or simply old), but I don’t care for the Skrillex/Deadmau5 generation of music. I like my dance music spun on vinyl w/ two turntables and a mixer. I come from the Detroit/Berlin school of techno and the Chicago/New York school of house, where the DJ doesn’t jump around on stage and act like a rock star. Needless to say, the subtitle of the book alone made me tentative about reading it. I’d enjoyed one of Michaelangelo Matos’ books before, however, his 33 1/3 book about Prince’s Sign of the Times, so I thought I’d give this new book of his a chance. After all, it’s not often a book of this scope comes along. Dan Sicko’s Techno Rebels had been published back in 1999. While still required reading for Detroit techno heads, the stories in that book have since been told time and time again. Simon Reynolds’ Energy Flash (aka Generation Ecstasy) is another touchstone, but it too has gone out of date. I tried reading it again recently, and the glamorization of Ecstasy there is off-putting, not to mention the championing of sub-sub-niche genres specific to the U.K. that anyone under age 30 has probably never heard of and never will. The other touchstone book in the “techno” cannon is Last Night a DJ Saved My Life, a great book but, again, focused on the distant past and New York-centric.Now along comes The Underground Is Massive, which spans the early Chicago/Detroit scene of the 1980s to the EDM era, wrapping up w/ Daft Punk’s Grammy win in 2014. The chapters are centered on specific events in history, generally a club, rave, or festival that ushered in a new era. The three chapters centered on Detroit – the Music Institute, November 24, 1989; Richie Hawtin’s Spastik party, August 13, 1994; and Detroit Electronic Music Festival, May 26-29, 2000 – were of particular interest to me. I was thrilled to see all the interviews that Matos drew from, particularly Rob Theakston and Joshua Glazer, two of the most bleeding-heart techno guys out there. As someone who was there (for the mid- to late ‘90s, at least), I can tell you that this is very much the true story, the Detroit part at least. Matos spoke to the right people, researched the right archives (i.e., the Hyperreal.org mailing lists were vital back in the day), and focuses on the right events. Plus, he rattles off discograpical information left and right – probably too much so for casual fans who don’t know Carl Craig from Derrick May, or Richie Hawtin from Plastikman, but on the other hand, record collectors and DJs should take notes while reading, as there’s wealth of information here. The appendix of DJ mixes itself is reason enough to keep this book on your shelf for reference. In the end, these three aforementioned chapters alone prove to be essential reading for Detroit techno historians.Of course, not everyone is into Detroit techno – precious few, in fact. As for those looking for the “EDM” angle as teased in the book’s subtitle, I suspect they may be disappointed to discover that the term doesn’t even come up until chapter 17 (page 340 of 382 in my Kindle edition), Electric Daisy Carnival, 2011. I must say, this pleased me (the glossing over of “trance” too). I’d read every page of the book to this point, and I wasn’t about to stop, so I pushed forward to the end. I’m glad I did because I understand the EDM phenomenon better now. Can’t say I’m itching to listen to Skrillex, but at least I have a better concept of why he’s as popular as he is. In any event, it was my sense that these last few chapters differ from the rest of the book. For one, the discographical minutia goes out the window. Matos breezes through post-2010 history (if it even counts as “history” yet) at a much faster clip than he does earlier in the book, and at times, there is a hint of dismissiveness. For instance, Daft Punk circa ’96 are framed as game-changing, whereas Daft Punk circa ’14 are framed with considerably less reverence. My sense was that this post-2010 part of the book wasn’t Matos’ favorite part either but rather the book publisher’s. In 2015, “EDM” is the new “electronica”; “techno” and “house” are passe, the province of old-school curmudgeons. In fairness to Matos, he uses the Introduction to pretty much say, this is my book (i.e., my subjective take on the subject matter), and if you don’t like it, write your own because I can only fit so much in this one. Hopefully others are motivated to take up the challenge because you can’t please everyone w/ books like this — too much music out there to cover in a 400-page book and tastes vary from region to region.I enthusiastically recommend The Underground Is Massive to anyone curious about the 1980s/1990s, especially anyone interested in the Chicago, Detroit, New York, and California scenes – or the Midwest raves scene, which gets far more attention here than I’ve ever seen elsewhere. The late-’90s “electronica” era also gets a fair examination, Moby in particular. Don’t let the EDM subtitle dissuade you; this is a history book for house/techno heads. Personally, I would have liked to see more discussion of the Detroit-Berlin connection. I suppose that’s another book, though (perhaps the recent Tresor oral history that to my knowledge hasn’t been translated to English yet). Selfishly, I’d like to see even more exploration of the Detroit scene, more quotes from guys like Dean Major (i.e., Syst3m), dare I say “shady” guys who were major players but never really came out from the shadows, presumably because what they were doing wasn’t entirely legal (surprise, surprise). That’s another book I’d be keen to read some day, a behind-the-scenes oral history about the most legendary rave parties described in Matos’ book, from the point of view of the promoters and DJs as well as the partiers and — now this would be cool — the police who had to go bust up those parties every weekend. Another angle might be the How Music Got Free approach, where the story is told from the perspective of a few choice insiders, some of whom were on the wrong side of the law. The chapter about Even Further ’96 is kind of like that, and it’s something of a horror show on several counts, a parent’s worst nightmare. As we await further books like this, The Underground Is Massive is a valuable addition to the cannon, up there w/ Techno Rebels, Last Night a DJ Saved My Life, and antiquated or not, Energy Flash. I’m already looking forward to a revised, extended edition in a few years’ time. This easily could have been double the length it is, probably triple if it were to drill down deeper into the post-2010 era.

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    Chris K

    this will give a glimpse of what it was like.
    United States pop culture has had a very different view of dance music than the rest of the world. Despite it’s origins in this country and despite being about the same age as hip-hop, the many variants of electronic music have never really broken through to the mainstream, until recently. Now every major festival seems to have an EDM element to it even if it’s not entirely dedicated to the sound. Matos takes us from the roots of the sound and the parties up to some of the most recent festivals, introducing us along the way to many of the movers, shakers and originators that got us to this point. Maybe you were at one of the parties documented, or one similar, you’ll be transported back to the dancefloor. You’ll hear the beat of the songs mentioned, and feel that familiar shiver up your spine remembering the first time a track really touched you. Maybe you’ve never been to a rave, festival or nightclub where this music lives, but heard about this counter culture, this will give a glimpse of what it was like.

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    Georgie

    and love, love
    This is a magnificent chronicle of music history that expounds upon the enigmatic world of underground music and its evolution in an interesting, respectful and thought-provoking manner. I am an old-head raver (and always one of the oldest in the crowd jumping up and down) who started as a house-music freak, and love, love, love all of the sub-genres. I am so appreciative to the pioneers and this book pays homage and give props. A must read for all EDM fans! If you don’t know where it started, you’ll fall for anything!

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    Philip Fazioli

    An incredible amount of details and information surrounding the expanding world of EDM
    I was extremely impressed with the amount of work that Matos must have done to put this book together. Over 300 interviews…this book is full of fun and crazy stories about underground parties, full fledged raves, festivals, DJ culture, music labels, etc. I am an EDM fanatic, and I was very curious about the start of electronic dance music. This book didn’t disappoint…and honestly, I was actually overwhelmed by the amount of info in it. I am looking forward to the reread one day. There is so much to learn from this book, and it opens up a world of potential research you can do to dive further into the people and events mentioned in it. Highly recommend.

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    K. Ryborz

    My book arrived perfect. Clean cover
    My book arrived perfect. Clean cover, no bends or frays. I was hooked upon reading the first few page excerpts.I loved the photos included and the in-depth history and knowledge by the author in regards to house music, EDM, techno, and legendary DJs and producers.I was honestly wishing the book would never end.

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    Brian Karp

    Great book!
    As both fan of the scene since 1991 and editor for Massive Magazine (mentioned many times within the book) for several years, I have read many books that try to capture an always changing movement and The Underground is Massive is the best out there! A solid read that you can’t put down.

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    Kevin S. Gootee

    Four Stars
    Great

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    wmc

    EDM still isn’t, and probably never will be, …
    EDM still isn’t, and probably never will be, a family of musics that sing to my soul, but this is a fantastically well-written account of its infancy and development.

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    Asoupec

    Très bon état à l’arrivée et conformité à l’annonce.

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    William Blackstock PhD

    thank you

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    Andrea

    Lettura davvero consigliata ed approfondita, consigliatissimo l’acquisto!

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    Customer

    Really informed. The author knows his stuff. In my personal opinion too much techno. But then I did not write it. Worth adding to your collection.

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    The Underground Is Massive: How Electronic Dance Music Conquered America

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