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have a multitude of artists who do nothing new, nothing inspiring, and nobody learns anything from them. You can hardly imagine someone having a life-changing experience listening to the likes of today's pop artists. There was a time when the pop charts were filled with bands who did create music which had emotion, soul and edge. Those days were completely destroyed when pop was re-invented in the 80s, and the charts have never recovered. Today the gulf in quality between what is popular and what is not is larger than ever before, and unfortunately it's the popular music which is on the wrong end of the quality scale. And when the industry can't find any fresh artists to promote, they create some on TV, instantly generating an audience before they even release a record. It's a shallow state of affairs, with money being at the heart of it all. Where's the musicianship in that?

I admit, music is all about taste. It's a personal thing and this can never change. And I admit, I am extremely biased. Hell, I'm an electronic musician myself so you my read this and think that I'm just annoyed at the fact that I don't get as many gigs as I should. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth. I LOVE what I do, regardless of how popular it is. When I am on stage, and people are dancing and smiling, my life is better than you could possibly imagine (unless you are a musician yourself, in which case you know what I mean). What annoys me is not the status of my own career, I'm not shallow enough to think like that. What annoys me is that many people dismiss all forms of electronic music without a second thought. I know this because I used to think the same, until I had a life-changing experience when I heard a band called 'The Hardknox'. All I ask is that if you are reading this and thinking that all electronic music is rubbish, have a listen to some artists listed below and then form an opinion.

True artists : Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Orbital, Mr Scruff, Lemon Jelly, Lusine, The Chemical Brothers, Radioactive Man, Milanese, Leftfield, Freq Nasty, The Prodigy, The Lo Fidelity Allstars, Plastikman, Mathew Herbert, Speedy J, Underworld and (if you have the inclination to give me a whirl) Gusbo.

Trust me, within that list will be an artist who will blow you mind. Perhaps they won't all suit your taste, but that is the nature of art. All I ask is that you give it a try. It may change your life, as it did mine.

Learn more about this author, Angus Macdonald.
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