Any EDM listeners here?

[FaithRuir]

So I’ve been a fan of electronic music for the past 5 years now, some of my favorite artists are Illenium, Alan Walker, and Taska Black.

I wanna hear if any of you guys have any interest in these, or other artists.

I, personally, am a really big fan of the melodies these 3 artists have made. Something with Illenium, in particular, is found in (some of) his songs. There is a rawness and emotion in it, where he makes songs about things like his past issues with drugs, and even in the non-vocal parts you can feel the pain he’s been feeling as well.
His most recent album, however, has raised a brow from me, I didn’t like his song Crashing because of its lyrics and there is another song which as a title that is downright blasphemous.
But one that caught my eye was called “Pray”, a song about a man who is despairing, saying he has “no luck with the man upstairs”, and that “she don’t hear me like she hears you Pray”, asking someone to pray for him, they sound a little offputting to me, but the song, again, feels like one of despair, a cry for help, I’m still trying to decide whether or not it’s ok to listen to.

Anyway, enough about me, I wanna hear about you guys and your experiences with such a vast set of genres for music.

 

[drac16]

Yeah, I listen to trance and occasionally dubstep. I go to Digitally Imported, which is a set of EDM radio stations. You can find it at di.fm

I like trance and dubstep for very different reasons, though. I like the melodies in trance and the hard beats of dubstep. EDM is such a diverse genre of music that it’s hard to list what each subgenre brings to the table.

 

[Wm777]

I write and produce EDM.

Been trying to think if there could be a Catholic/prayerful sense to it, and some people actually are doing it with some degree of success, but - while it can sound very beautiful in its own new-ageish sort of way - it’s very hard to really compare it to traditional music. I think that’s one of the reasons I started writing it - simply to understand it, so I could see what there could be to it… plus I just like to record on the computer anyway…

Some (not all) of the beats and production techniques I take issue with. It’s possible some of the binaural beats, isochronic tones, ambiences, etc., can play with your mind, so - I wonder (comparatively) about the ethics of such music and whether it interferes with prayer… sometimes I think it seems to help… sometimes it seems a hindrance… I’m on the fence about it…

As for particular EDM musicians, I know of a few, and some of it is very cool… But, at 50, I am not terribly interested in acts like D3admaus, Skrillex and Marshmellow, etc… I might listen to a piece of their’s once or twice, and even like it, but then I am ready to move on…

I try to keep in touch with the younger generation, but prefer the classics anymore…

 

[FaithRuir]

Ooh I agree with you there, drac. EDM is such a wide genre, my favorites within it however have to be progressive house, trap, melodic dubstep, and most of all future bass.

That’s really cool, Wm, I’ve heard of Christian EDM before but never really decided to listen to some, could be a really good experience.

Most of my music comes from more obscure (but still relatively popular) artists. The kinds you would find on Proximity or MrSuicideSheep on YouTube.

 

[Wm777]

MrSuicideSheep

Eh… not sure why anyone would want to liken themselves to a SuicidalSheep…

I’d stick more to stuff that promotes a culture of life…

Seriously…

The reason is, if you add up how that music is often connected to raves, psychological “trances” and altered states, possibly drugs and so on… You’ll want to stay grounded in some life-giving, prayerful retreat - a sort of “escape hatch” from it - in case you hit a train wreck in the course of your life…

I hate to sound like an old stick in the mud, but I’ve played everything from heavy rock to classical to sacred to (now most recently) EDM for 35 years… and I’ve seen the inside of every possible dive, concert hall and Cathedral I could find…

Everyone hits bumps in life… My advice is just to make sure that you are finding music that feeds your soul… which is obviously why you’re here now, which is a sign you do care and have noble intentions… Again, just take care to feed your soul with life-giving work…

For when we sing - we pray twice…

 

[Finn]

It’s possible some of the binaural beats, isochronic tones, ambiences, etc., can play with your mind,

Can they, in your experience? I’ve seen lots of claims re binaural & isochronic, mostly in relation to mental conditioning, but I’ve never seen any hard data on whether they can influence brainwaves / effect entrainment.

 

[Wm777]

I’ve seen lots of claims re binaural & isochronic, mostly in relation to mental conditioning, but I’ve never seen any hard data on whether they can influence brainwaves / effect entrainment.

Please accept this as gently and kindly intended, for that is truly how I respectfully mean it…

First, you have your terms mixed up…

Essentially, brainwave entrainment IS mental conditioning… the entire set of studies and theories behind psychoacoustic music is aimed at mental conditioning through brainwave entrainment (i.e. the manipulation of brainwaves)… the entire theory behind brainwave entrainment as an applied science (including isochronics and binaurals) is specifically to use sound to influence brainwaves in order to condition them…

Psychoacoustics - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

See the Music (and Music Therapy) section at the bottom, and then Applied Psychoacoustics beneath that… That should provide a good general understanding which might lead to some studies that might help you understand whatever it is youre seeking…

It’s hard to know how to answer your question about specific “data” when you dont seem to understand the more general problem of what the field is…

The surest and easiest proof would be that a loud enough sound will kill a person… I think it starts around 180db… Binaurals have been known to induce seizures and even kills some folks via idosing… The military uses psychoacoustics for defense purposes… Marketers use it in “neuromarketing” (see Morgan Spurlock’s “The Greatest Movie Ever Sold”)… and the list goes on… You could even just go to YouTube where there is plenty of testimony, actual hands-on technical demonstration and written material that would let you judge for yourself… I use isochronics all the time to wake up, go to sleep and stay alert at work… I am not a fan of binaurals much at all…

I apologize if this comes across as blunt, but I guess I just dont understand how you could have come to ask that question…

What do you mean by “data”? Proof? what are you looking for? fMRI studies? Hearing for yourself? Death records? Health studies? Market research? Military grade defense patents?

Please specify. It would be interesting to hear what you meant.

 

[Wm777]

And please state your background in this area… Are you a music therapist? A musician? A producer? A composer? A music fan?

It’s also hard to understand how to answer your question without knowing where you are coming from musically…

 

[Finn]

No, I understand binaurals & entrainment fairly well. I was using mental conditioning to describe positive state change - relaxation, stimulation - as opposed to the alternate altered states that binaural beats are often associated with - iDoser’s supposed drug replication effects, for example.

The field is interesting but there are many broad and imprecise claims made as to what can be and what has been achieved. I suppose a more precise way to frame my question is: have binaurals been demonstrably shown to shift brainwave frequencies? Everyone wants theta!

I wasn’t aware i-dosing had caused deaths - do you have a steer to any commentary on this?

 

[FaithRuir]

Oh forgive me. I should’ve elaborated more. The name is off-putting, yes, I agree. But the channel is actually just a music label, Seeking Blue Records. I have found a lot of my favorite artists through that channel. As the record name implies, it has a lot (not always) of sad music, which I can be kind of a sucker for. Not because it makes me sad (it often doesn’t) but because it often feels genuine, and the lyrics are often pretty good. A vast majority of songs do not really even talk about that issue of human life, it often talks about a wide variety of topics, love, heartbreak, hope, world problems, the joy they experience from those they love, etc. And if it says anything contrary to the dignity of life, and the principles of the Catholic faith I turn it off immediately, and I listen closely to make sure. The name either functions as a method of alliteration or hyperbole or both, or maybe it’s a name.

So what are you two discussing? Music’s effect on the brain? I always just saw it as a form of expression, I do often feel different after listening to it, but I do agree that it can have an effect on us even if we never intend for it.

I wholeheartedly agree with you guys that music does influence us without realizing, it is quite interesting. The songs on the channel I mentioned are (thankfully) not glorifications of the terribleness of suicide, but rather just a general music provider, I don’t even think about the channel name half the time, which could be a bad thing…

But I can see and feel the impact music has on others. If you love music enough, it becomes a part of you and it’s lyrics and melodies could define you.