Electronica Bands/Artists?

BomanTheBear

Alright, H/A, you guys have been my saviors every time thus far. Let's see what you can do with this.

I've been into electronica for a while (along with some other stuff), but I'm not nearly well-versed enough to know good from bad from awesome. So I'm looking to get ahold of some really badass chill stuff. Below is a list of groups I currently think are awesome:

nujabes (easily my favorite)
fat jon
Gorillaz
Champion
Ken Ishii
Beck
UNKLE
MSTRKRFT
DJ Shadow (specifically Preemptive Strike)
edIT

I'm cool with rapping over a wicked sample (nujabes does that all the time) or stuff that's closer to techno. I just know you guys have never steered me wrong before. So what would H/A have me listen to?

CooterTKE

do you want vocals or can just music be ok?

BomanTheBear

It really can be either, I'm not too picky. If there's something good about it, I'll see value in it.

TaGuelle

Preemptive Strike? Entroducing is where its at.

I got tons of stuff to offer if you end up liking it. It runs the gambit of electronica from more Hip-Hop influenced, to Latin, to really fucked up stuff. I can't recommend Boards of Canada enough. I recommend ROYGBIV, Iced Cooley, and See Ya Later.

If you want individual song recommendations for anything listed just let me know.

Boards of Canada, words cant describe how good they are. They combine the genius of Bach and computers.
Thieverycorp
Ursula 1000
Karminsky Experience
Hot Chip
RJD2
Telefon Telaviv
Square Pusher
Sound Tribe Sector 9
Justice
Röyskopp
Krüder and Dorfmeister
The Spamallstars
De Phazz
Air
The Avalanches
Chemical Brothers
Daft Punk
Digitalism
Gotan Project
Kid Koala
Mr. Scruff
Mylo
Propeller Heads
Stephane Poumpougnac
Venetian Snares

Krikee

Boards of Canada
Explosions in the Sky
Fluke (good luck finding this)
The Higher Intelligence Agency
Late Night Alumni
The Lymbyc System
The Mercury Program (try the A Data Learn the Language album)
Royksopp (try the Melody AM album)
Telefon Tel Aviv
Yoshinori Sunahara
Zero 7

Krikee

hi5
quite a few of the things I skipped you mentioned. I support your taste in music.

Rook

Goldfrapp
Frou Frou


shhh.

TaGuelle

Thanks man, props to you as well. Any Boards of Canada fan is definatly a cool person. I don't know a lot of the people that you listed listed there, I gotta check them out.

BomanTheBear

I love you guys. Srsly. Just from the brief number I've gotten a chance to look at, it's already sounding like a gold mine. Will update with my favorites.

OremLK

I'll second Venetian Snares. Also try BT for more ambient (but still awesome) stuff, Massive Attack for more of a mainstream trip hop/electronic blend.

Albums:
Rossz Csillag Allat Szuletett
This Binary Universe
Mezzanine

deadonthestreet

The Prairie Cartel

Local H Jay

Anamanaguchi
"Helix Nebula" Live
Free album DL

Cut Copy
Lights and Music
New album "In Ghost Colors" is the SHIT

Lykke Li
I'm Good, I'm Gone

nexuscrawler

No mention of LCD Soundsystem?

Monolithic_Dome

Badass chill stuff?

Portishead.

Portishead is a fantastic album.
I haven't listened to third yet, but it's been getting pretty good reviews.

Grid System

BomanTheBear wrote: »

really badass chill stuff

Ulrich Schnauss: Goodbye
A Million Miles Away
Global Communication: I couldn't find anything on YouTube, so here's a last.fm page instead

Spooky:
Little Bullet
Future Sound of London:
Papua New Guinea

enderwiggin13

Looks like I'm gonna have to do some reaching to come up with a few that haven't been mentioned. I guess most of my interest in electro has been in the bit/chip/glitch genres.

Plone - only had one official album, also glitchy sort of music although I've heard it called bloop or twee pop

Console - side project for one member of the Notwist. chip/synth pop?

Nobukazu Takemura - I wanna say post 2000-2001 he's been doing glitch, although he's done classical, jazz, house, and D&B. I think he might currently be performing as Assembler. This is from his Signs EP and probably his most widely known song. Possibly NSFW in a part towards the end although its all animation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8VZ_JCNWsQ

amateurhour

Portishead and Massive attack

Classic, but still very, very good, and portishead just put out a new album

edit: beat'd

firewaterword

Here's my 2 cents - apologies to anyone who's already mentioned these, but I don't think I saw them:

- Express Rising (Most likely VERY hard to find, but my god, it's worth it)
- DJ Krush (I really like the album Jaku, for what it's worth)
- Pretty much anyone on the ESL Label (although I think TaGuelle did a pretty good job on that front! You have some fine taste in music, my friend!)
- Cinematic Orchestra (Specifically, Man With a Movie Camera)
- Skalpel

I'll try to think of some more, but man, you should be good for about a years worth of new music!

Best.

Echo

I'll keep pushing Haujobb and Destroid. :P

Daniel Myer (the brain behind both groups) is one of my favorite artists. iTMS has some samples.

Iruka

Theres a compilation album thing called Ninja Tune Has alot of great artists, you should check it out.

as for some artists I dont see mentioned:
Amon Tobin
Jaga Jazzist
Xploding Plastix
Lemon Jelly

contraband

if you can find anything by "de de mouse," he is off he heezy. he has a myspace, but he's rare enough in Japan, let alone America.

Bryse Eayo

Iruka wrote: »

Theres a compilation album thing called Ninja Tune Has alot of great artists, you should check it out.

as for some artists I dont see mentioned:
Amon Tobin
Jaga Jazzist
Xploding Plastix
Lemon Jelly

Yeah the trick to electronica music general is liking the Ninja Tune record label.

CooterTKE

lets see if i can remember all my records.

Dr. Theopolysis (sp)
Del the Funky Homosapian
BT
Everything but the girl
Groove Armada
Leftfield
DJ Rap
Lisa Lashes
Jon the Dentist

zhen_rogue

Ratatat.

http://www.myspace.com/ratatatmusic

Check out "wildcat" and "loud pipes" to start.
"Seventeen Years" is probably their best known single though.

These guys put on one of the best live shows i've seen in years, in case they come your way.
Tour info:
http://www.ratatatmusic.com/news.html

Gafoto

I really like sayCeT.

TrippyDK

nujabes has a very similar vibe to RJD2

MurphysParadox

De Phazz has such great music.

Also, Moby's new album Disco Life is pretty good - quite a throwback to his earlier techno work.

If you haven't heard Orbital's "Halcyon and on and on" then you can't consider yourself an real fan of techno. If you wish to enter the trance sub-genre, then you'll be well set to check out Oakenfold's Transport and Aphex Twin's ambient albums.

Check out http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/ It is a graphical representation of techno growth and influence over the decades. It offers many many genres, how they relate, and several prominent bands' music samples. It isn't great for the most modern stuff, but can be rather interesting to those who have been around for awhile.

Coal

Boys Noize
Justice

That's about it for me.

Ultimanecat

I just want to agree with pretty much every suggestion here, but specifically Röyksopp ("ö" isn't a letter in Norwegian, those crazy scamps!), Nujabes, and the veritable nostalgia overload / font of new exposure that is the above guide to electronic music

I noticed someone mention Explosions in the Sky...they're not electronic by any stretch but are awesome if your like of downbeat/mood-driven music extends into any genre. If you do give them a listen (their best album is usually considered to be "The earth is not a cold dead place", which shares quite a bit with the Friday Night Lights film soundtrack) and like them, then you should also check out Godspeed You Black Emperor, Mogwai, A Silver Mount Zion, Sigur Ros, and (surprisingly) the soundtrack to The Fountain.

eric.

Of what hasn't been mentioned, check out Crystal Castles. really great band.

Echo

eric. wrote: »

Of what hasn't been mentioned, check out Crystal Castles. really great band.

...though it was just concluded that they stole from several other songs from chiptune artists.

NightDragon

In addition to what's already been listed (damn, you guys got almost everything I was thinking of!), you may want to check out Ladytron.

Casual

Pendulum are my current musical obsession try them out.

DarkPrimus

I'm glad it didn't take to page 2 for Amon Tobin to get mentioned. Here's a few of his songs, since the youtube sampling thing is in-vogue:

4 Ton Mantis

Keep Your Distance

The Killer's Vanilla

Agentflit

let's see uh

Herbie Hancock did a variety of groovy jazz electronic stuff early on
Luke Vibert (aka Wagon Christ, Plug, etc), especially "Tally Ho!" but he has lots of good stuff
Nathan Fake is simply awesome
Trentemoller is great techno

GiantRobo

I had a thread back yonder that has a lot of suggestions in it.

http://forums.penny-arcade.com/showthread.php?t=56795

ApexMirage

If you're up for some vocal trance, check out either link in my sig, or www.di.fm for all your genre-specific needs

cyphr

MurphysParadox wrote: »

If you haven't heard Orbital's "Halcyon and on and on" then you can't consider yourself an real fan of techno.

Let's make babies. This is actually my favorite song, bar none, ever. So gorgeous.

Anyways, the OP may also want to check out Oakenfold's "A Lively Mind" album. Bunch of guest vocalists, including Brittany Murphy (strange, I know), Pharell Williams, and Grandmaster fucking Flash.

Edit: Also, if you haven't heard the live version of Halcyon & on & on, you really should. They throw in a Bon Jovi sample 3/4 of the way through, it's awesome. The Prime Minister might have it.

ApexMirage

MurphysParadox wrote: »

If you haven't heard Orbital's "Halcyon and on and on" then you can't consider yourself an real fan of techno.

Can we pretty please refrain from calling things techno when they're clearly not before I start cutting myself? The song is a classic, yes... but techno? *retch*

Darude's "Sandstorm" is techno, just as an example assuming you genuinely dont know the difference.

MurphysParadox

Depends on definitions. I use the term 'Techno' to describe all "Electronic Music" just as someone would use 'Classic Rock' to describe everything from The Wall to Stairway to Heaven. Electronica, at least out here in the Northeast US was used to describe crappy europop style music (say - Eiffel 65). I've noticed the British and, in fact, most of Europe use Electronica as the genre's major term just as I'm used to using Techno. No one would ever have said "hey guys, you have to hear this awesome new Electronica album I bought!" unless they were using sarcasm.

ApexMirage

That's no different than calling anything with a black singer rap. Sure you can do it and nobody will care, but why insult quality artists?


Back on topic - both artists are already mentionned here, but specifically I'd recommend:
Portishead's "Roads" is more then capable of taking you on a magical journey through your own mind.
Massive Attack's "Dissolved Girl" is also amazing, and you might recognize it as being in one of the opening scenes in the first Matrix movie

Neither of which is techno.