House is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by a repetitive four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120-130 beats per minute as a re-emergence of 1970s disco. It was created by DJs and music producers from Chicago's underground club culture and evolved slowly in the early/mid 1980s as DJs began altering disco songs to give them a more mechanical beat. By early 1988, House became mainstream and supplanted the typical 80s music beat.
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to refer to electronic music generally.
Industrial rock is a fusion genre that fuses industrial music and rock music. It initially originated in the 1970s, and drew influence from early experimental and industrial acts such as Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten and Chrome. Industrial rock became more prominent in the 1980s with the success of artists such as Killing Joke, Swans, and partially Skinny Puppy, and later spawned the offshoot genre known as industrial metal. The genre was made more accessible to mainstream audiences in the 1990s with the aid of acts such as Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson, both of which have released platinum-selling records.
Acid jazz is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul, and hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1980s with the rare groove movement and spread to the United States, Western Europe, Latin America and Japan. Acts included The Brand New Heavies, Incognito, James Taylor Quartet, Us3, and Jamiroquai from the UK, and Guru, Buckshot LeFonque and Digable Planets from the U.S. The rise of electronic club music in the middle to late 1990s led to a decline in interest, and in the twenty-first century, acid jazz became indistinct as a genre. Many acts that might have been defined as acid jazz are seen as jazz-funk, or nu jazz.
Michael Robert Paradinas, better known by his stage name μ-Ziq, is an English electronic musician from Wimbledon, London. He was associated with the electronic style intelligent dance music (IDM) during the 1990s, and recorded on Rephlex Records and Reflective Records. His critically acclaimed 1997 album, Lunatic Harness, helped define the drill 'n' bass subgenre and was also his most successful release, selling over 100,000 copies. Paradinas founded the record label Planet Mu, begun in 1995, where he has championed genres such as juke, IDM and footwork.
Mephisto Odyssey is an American house music group from San Francisco, California, United States, who have been credited with helping to pioneer the San Francisco house music sound. The group went on to release a number of self-released singles until doing tenures at City of Angels and Warner Bros. Records from the mid-1990s into the early 2000s. Mephisto Odyssey are also credited with being the only group to officially remix Jane's Addiction for the maxi single "So What!". The group released many singles and remixes as well as an EP and two albums during the life of the band. This included the song "Crash" which was co-written with Wayne Static of Static-X and "Some Kinda Freak" which was featured in the horror film Hostel.
Positiva Records is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group and concentrates on releasing dance music in the UK. The record label was set up in 1993, by Nick Halkes, who previously ran XL Recordings. Its headquarters are at the Universal UK offices, where it is the only large dance music label under the EMI banner.
K-Ci & JoJo is an American R&B duo, consisting of brothers Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey and Joel "JoJo" Hailey. Natives of Charlotte, North Carolina, they are also the lead singers of the chart-topping R&B group Jodeci with the DeGrate brothers—Donald and Mr. Dalvin. They are known for the 1998 smash hit "All My Life" which was the No.1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks and received multiple Grammy nominations. They were also featured artists on another No.1 Billboard Hot 100 hit single, 2Pac’s 1996 song "How Do U Want It", which also received a Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group Grammy nomination in 1997. K-Ci & JoJo also achieved mainstream success with the 1999 hit "Tell Me It's Real", which peaked at No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Their 2001 song "Crazy" was included on the Save the Last Dance soundtrack and peaked at No.11 on the Billboard Hot 100.
B12 are a British electronic music duo consisting of Mike Golding and Steve Rutter. First appearing in the early 1990s under a variety of monikers, including Musicology, Redcell and Cmetric, the duo were often mistaken as hailing from Detroit, their sound being comparable to the so-called second wave of Detroit techno. This was compounded by the signature style of their initial releases on their own imprint B12 Records, limited editions on coloured 12" vinyl with cryptic messages etched into the run-out grooves, and the fact that Golding and Rutter tended to shy away from the press, and rarely gave interviews, which added to the mystery of their identities.
Jason Heinrichs, also known by his stage name Anomaly, was a Canadian-born musician and producer from Minneapolis. He worked primarily in dance music and hip-hop, and was notable for producing some of the earliest works by prominent Twin Cities rappers Atmosphere, Eyedea, P.O.S., and Oddjobs, as well as his own work with house-music duo Roomsa and solo efforts. He also played in Brother Sun Sister Moon, a side project of Information Society's Paul Robb.
Willie Lidell Townsell is a house-music artist from Chicago, Illinois. He originally released numerous singles on the Trax and D.J. International labels. He released one album, Harmony, on Mercury/PolyGram Records as Lidell Townsell in 1992. Two singles from the album were hits in the US, "Get with U" and "Nu Nu"; the latter featured the duo M.T.F., whose members were singer Martell and emcee Silk E.
Brian Tarquin is an American jazz fusion guitarist, recording artist, sound engineer, record producer, and composer. He is best known as a guitar instrumentalist with several Top 10 radio hits in various genres as Smooth Jazz, NACC Loud Rock & Jam Band charts. He also is an established composer having won Emmy awards for "Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series". Brian Tarquin He owns BHP Music-Guitar Trax Records and Jungle Room Studios which specializes in guitar instrumental music. He specializes in guitar instrumental music and smooth jazz. Throughout his career he has recorded with and produced projects with Larry Coryell, Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Jean-Luc Ponty, Robben Ford, Gary Hoey, Hal Lindes, Chuck Loeb, Steve Morse, Billy Sheehan, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Leslie West, and Mike Stern.
Peter Frank Adshead, better known as Baby Ford, is a British electronic music record producer, known particularly for his contributions to the birth of acid house. He has also released material under aliases with Mark Broom, Thomas Melchior, and Eon.
Secret Life was a British R&B/house and pop band active from 1991 to 1996, particularly popular in the UK and Europe.
S2S Pte. Ltd. was a Japanese record label founded by Ken Suzuki.
Ian Simmonds, also known as Juryman, is a Welsh-born electronic musician. He is one of a few talents "to successfully breach the chasm that keeps DJ culture from more tangible, organic realms." His complex musical landscapes are often accompanied by his deep calm voice, making poetic, political and social statements at the same time. He is a self-taught musician, singing and playing trumpet, bass guitar, piano and is a producer with numerous releases, contributions and co-productions.
Frederick Schmid, better known by his stage name Freddy Fresh, is an American DJ, musician, and electronic music producer. Fresh has recorded for over 100 independent record labels, including major labels Sony UK, Virgin, BMG UK, and Harthouse Germany. He is also founder of the record labels Howlin' Records, Electric Music Foundation, and Analog.
Robert Babicz is a Polish-born music producer, mastering engineer and live performer living in Malta. With a career spanning nearly three decades covering genres from techno to acid house to minimal, Robert has also been known under the pseudonyms Rob Acid, Acid Warrior, Department of Dance and Sontec amongst many others. He has released a number of well respected records on labels such as Kompakt, Systematic Recordings, Treibstoff, Bedrock, Intec Digital and Steve Bug's Audiomatique, as well his own labels, Junkfood, Babiczstyle and Dirtcut. He is well known as a live performer rather than a DJ, as he uses synths and live equipment and improvises in every set he plays.
Frankie ‘Bones’ Mitchell is a prominent figure in the development of dance music in the US. Bones is widely regarded as the "Godfather of American Rave Culture"and is credited with helping to establish the underground dance music scene in New York City in the 1980s and 1990s. Bones started his music career in the early 1980s, spinning at clubs and parties throughout NYC. He gained widespread recognition for his role in organizing the first outdoor electronic music party in the US, known as “Storm Rave" which took place in Williamsburg, Coney Island, & Plumb Beach. Throughout his career, Bones has produced, remixed, and released countless tracks, albums, EP's, and mixtapes. He has also performed at many large scale music festivals and events around the world such as the Love Parade in Berlin, Germany and Insomniac's Electric Daisy Carnival located in Las Vegas, Nevada. Today, Frankie continues to be an influential figure in the dance scene and remains active as a performer, producer, and author represented globally by Southfirst Talent.
Lem Springsteen is an American songwriter and dance and house music producer. He is best known as part of house production duo Mood II Swing.
