It’s official.  EDM is here to stay.  It’s bigger than ever, and Austin City Limits even recently lifted their no-electronica restrictions this year.

Why EDM has become so popular is anyone’s guess.  Perhaps it’s just the inevitable result of the genre growing from the New Wave era onwards.  After all, it took jazz decades to go mainstream too.   Music trends take awhile to build.

However, what we’re looking at now is a genre in transition.  There have been so many entries into the field, from so many different backgrounds, that it’s (finally) stopped being nothing but melody-less broski beats.  

So what’s coming next?  Here are a few observations.

1. Disco Is Undead, Baby

Those who claimed disco never died might turn out to be vindicated.  It lived on under the guise of “house” in Europe for a decade, then slowly started to creep back out into the light somewhere around the time Daft Punk came off the assembly line.

Why did I link to some classic funk-fusion above?  Given the rapid embrace of R&B and disco themes in EDM, a spread to fusion is virtually inevitable.  Get to sampling! 

2.  EDM as BGM? 

Here’s something no one’s talking about, possibly because it’s worrisome: A lot of people streaming radio are using it as background music, and EDM has a Brian Eno-like quality of fitting into a room as indistinct mood music.

The combined music trends of EDM and streaming radio suggest some electronic bands might do well embracing a slightly more ambient style and make a pitch for inclusion on long-play radio tracklists.

3.  More Genre-Mashing

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to stand out, right now, EDM + (Other Genre) is a good starting point. As we tend to recommend, keep expanding your musical horizons and keep adding new genres to your musical idea bag.    

Music trends are novelty-driven, and there’s no way of telling what bizarre mashup will catch people’s ears.  

Are you in EDM?  What are your plans for the new year?