Summary: Well, the big EDM (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_dance_music) tribute at the Grammy's went down on Sunday night. It played out as I imagined it would with the lineup they announced; kind of messy, too poppy, a little confusing. It started off bad, but luckily we had the Foo Fighters, and a man wearing an LED mouse head to bring an end to the silliness that opened the performance. I get the pairings, plenty of other acts are forced to perform together. Why bring out Foster The People and have them do karaoke to the Beach Boys? And when would we ever see Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt perform together besides Grammy night? Surely, fans of these artists would rather see them do a couple of their own songs, but it's only a 3 hour show and you can't give everyone their own timeslot. So yeah, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown and the Foo Fighters really had no place in an EDM tribute, but it fit with the rest of the nights performances. Some, including me, would rather not have seen Guetta there either because he makes POP music. EDM POP granted, but POP nonetheless. It's made quickly, with little to no feeling, with the intention of selling copies. Just crank em out and move on to the next one. The songs come and go, and you don't even remember the names. Of course, for every one of me who loves the underground, there is a newcomer to the scene who digs Guetta, the commercial stuff, the Jesus poses, and the cornball gimmicks. These newcomers eventually dig deeper and find their favorite genres and artists. I found EDM in the 90's because I saw The Prodigy on MTV (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmin5WkOuPw), I heard Children (http://amsoulrecords.com/2011/06/robert-miles-children/) from Robert Miles in grocery stores, I loved the marketing of Keoki (http://amsoulrecords.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Keoki_Journeys-By-DJ_Moonshine_EDM.jpg) and his larger than life persona. We all had our own Guetta (https://twitter.com/#!/davidguetta), Skrillex (https://twitter.com/#!/skrillex), Deadmau5 (https://twitter.com/#!/deadmau5) orKeoki (http://amsoulrecords.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Keoki_Journeys-By-DJ_Moonshine_EDM.jpg) that brought us into the scene, so I guess shouldn't complain that Guetta makes EDM Pop, right? Someone has to. Guetta's part in the Grammy's went off exactly as I thought it would, cheesy and completely cringeworthy. As I was watching the embarrassment unfold, I was thinking, "ehh the blogs will get it right." So here I am blogging about it. It was so bad that I got a text from my aunt asking me if that's the stuff I like. Aunt Deb: "Was that electronic number with Chris Brown like what you do?" Me: "It was a mess. I only claim the guy in the mouse head." Aunt Deb: "Oh Good! I hated it, and wtf was that exorcism thing? The Grammys sure have changed, G'night hun." (http://amsoulrecords.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Deadmau5-Grammys_EDM_Techno-Music.jpg) This is my hippie aunt from the 60's, I love her. I've played her some of my records before, I was proud that she knew the difference between the poppy crap and Deadmau5....and that is why this performance was so important!! It was surreal to see mouse ears at the Grammys. I still love a good gimmick, and Joel has the best one. EDM has been in the Grammys before, see Dirty Vegas (http://www.dirtyvegas.com/), The Chemical Brothers (http://www.thechemicalbrothers.com/#p=home), Daft Punk (http://www.daftpunk.com/), and local hero Bill Hamel (https://www.facebook.com/Bill.Hamel.Music) to name a few, but this was the first time EDM shared the spotlight on such a high level. It opened up the doors for longer live performances, the opportunity to present awards, new categories, it goes on. Anyone want to see Best Vinyl DJ Mix? What about Best New EDM Artist? The possibilities are endless. Skrillex won 3 Grammys before the show aired, imagine EDM artists getting their awards LIVE on the televised broadcast!
