Is Hyperpop The Future Of Pop?

I discovered PC music through this video years ago:

I've always found it a mixed bag: absolutely love some of it, and some of it elicits a "nails on chalk board" level of instant revulsion. I just put that down to personal taste. Objectively, I find nothing wrong with Sophie but I just haven't enjoyed any of her music at all. I do enjoy Hannah Diamond though (in small doses). I get the feeling that a lot of people will feel the exact opposite.

  On 11/27/2020 at 4:59 PM, MIXL2 said:

PC music's stuff is already called bubblegum bass no?

First of all, PC music is a label, started by A.G Cook who more or less invented the genre. Pretty sure the terms bubblegum bass and hyperpop came later (correct me if I'm wrong). Which makes sense... naming a genre after a label would be a bit odd... 

this music is godawful and nothing can change my mind on that

Sorry guys I’m late for my gatekeeping post. Please keep in mind these are just the ramblings of a 32 year old who doesn’t know what 100 gecs sounds like, just my version of events 

sophie was the first to come to prominence in 2013-14, pre transition, but there was tons of that stuff floating around the SC algorithms then. At that point, I would say deconstructed club and “hyperpop” were still one entity. There were even a couple strains of lofi that were in the pot.

Later, in 2016, when Arca fully stepped out from behind the producer veil, showed their face and started singing Spanish opera over super saws and dark reverb, that’s my guess when hyperpop started really developing. Arca was a huge deal for a year solid (remember all those BDSM live shows with lots of prop blood spraying everywhere?), and was one of the most prominent figures in electronic music to bring identity to the forefront.

 I’m pretty sure Sophie fully came out as a trans woman around 2016-17, complete with topless music video. Even though Arca to my knowledge hasn’t released any hyperpop, both of those artists brought Queer identity into the mainstream as an aspect of serious electronic music. 2018-Now is YouTubers in middle America expanding as the new critical mass hyperpop fan demographic.

... I miss when hyperdub was cool.

  On 11/28/2020 at 2:24 PM, sheatheman said:

Even though Arca to my knowledge hasn’t released any hyperpop...

 

I would argue her last album, KiCk I, could be considered hyperpop.

Charli XCX is fantastic, already a pop legend at 27 afaic.

Some of the others like SOPHIE, 100 gecs, recent Arca, etc. aren’t really my kind of thing (as standalone artists anyway, they have their moments or collaborative worth). More the Gen Z anime avatar newly-LGBTIQ type scene. It’s exciting and inspiring for some I guess. I’m happy it exists, just over there please, and not too loud, y’know

PC Music, bubblegum bass and deconstructed club are sort of the way we’ve known it. The recent label of glitchcore/hyper pop is a sign this this now become very recognisably sceney (ala dupstep, vaporwave/chill wave, emo, trap, etc.). It does feel pretty representative of the times and a logical tangent which will probably be looked back on with equal affection and embarrassment as something that needed to happen for a little while and did some cool things amidst a lot of dated junk.

  On 11/28/2020 at 2:24 PM, sheatheman said:

Sorry guys I’m late for my gatekeeping post. Please keep in mind these are just the ramblings of a 32 year old who doesn’t know what 100 gecs sounds like, just my version of events 

sophie was the first to come to prominence in 2013-14, pre transition, but there was tons of that stuff floating around the SC algorithms then. At that point, I would say deconstructed club and “hyperpop” were still one entity. There were even a couple strains of lofi that were in the pot.

Later, in 2016, when Arca fully stepped out from behind the producer veil, showed their face and started singing Spanish opera over super saws and dark reverb, that’s my guess when hyperpop started really developing. Arca was a huge deal for a year solid (remember all those BDSM live shows with lots of prop blood spraying everywhere?), and was one of the most prominent figures in electronic music to bring identity to the forefront.

 I’m pretty sure Sophie fully came out as a trans woman around 2016-17, complete with topless music video. Even though Arca to my knowledge hasn’t released any hyperpop, both of those artists brought Queer identity into the mainstream as an aspect of serious electronic music. 2018-Now is YouTubers in middle America expanding as the new critical mass hyperpop fan demographic.

... I miss when hyperdub was cool.

 

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i can't speak on any of this intel on these newer artists since i know nothing about them but i would like to just add props to the queer artists who paved the way for this contemporary trend you're speaking of. it seems to me that queerness has always had it's place in the "serious electronic music" scene and i think it's cool that a lot of pioneers were queer - ppl like wendy carlos, frankie knuckles, coil, genisis p, dj sprinkles, etc come to mind straight away. the warehouse in chicago opened in 77 and from all accounts i've read it was a haven for the local lgbtq+ community back then. if we're experiencing more of this happening today i think it's part of a tide that's been happening in electronic music for a long time. it's also worth considering that before electronic music became so bro-ified it went hand in hand in many places with battles against city ordinances and raids and shit so the sense of doing something boundary pushing and resisting conservative cultural tendencies is a real part of the history. i don't at all mean to diminish the significance of any contemporary artists who are very much doing their own new thing, but i wanted to widen the historical lens a bit.

Yeah queerness and electronic music have been a thing since the late 70s maybe? House techno etc has been a haven countless people as well as a driver for cultural change. To apply the issac newton quote to hyperpop icons, “they stood on the shoulders of giants”

Imma keep it real with you guys, I feel that just like most genres of music there is good hyperpop and bad hyperpop. Some of ag cooks songs are definitely hit or miss for me but fuck, the dudes got serious production skills. You can also tell a lot of these people are huge idm/electronica fans just like some of us. Some of the stuff coming out of the scene is really dope and to dismiss it just because it falls under that tag is pretty whack imo

  On 11/27/2020 at 4:41 AM, Hugh Mughnus said:

What about this actually rubs your johnny the right way? lol 

 

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Seriously? The beat is like entering the event horizon. Do you dislike industrial, metal, or the "kind of extreme" type of IDM? Because, yeah, this pushes all those buttons for me, spangled with pop detritus in a way that I'm quite OK with.

Although there are some Sophie tracks like "Immaterial" where I'm like, OK, easy on the cheez, Chester, lol.

  On 11/29/2020 at 7:46 PM, sweepstakes said:

Seriously? The beat is like entering the event horizon. Do you dislike industrial, metal, or the "kind of extreme" type of IDM? Because, yeah, this pushes all those buttons for me, spangled with pop detritus in a way that I'm quite OK with.

Although there are some Sophie tracks like "Immaterial" where I'm like, OK, easy on the cheez, Chester, lol.

I like industrial & metal yeah! 

I'm not really knocking the production quality tbh, sounds pretty polished etc. But so does nicki minaj and the like, which is what this stuff reminds me of. 

I think if I had to be completely honest it's almost 100% the vocals that turn me off of this stuff. And any track that has that really terrible auto-tuning (that hannah diamond track made me want to break something lol) is an immediate ctrl-alt-del.

Sophie's the best producer of the last decade.
Making stuff that's accessible but also fresh sounding, weird and genuinely occupying it's own world isn't an easy thing to do. Bipp was a game changer when it came out 7.5 years ago. No one else is sculpting sound with such a sharp blade.

There's some neat production on Charli XCX's last* album, more interesting sonically than most stuff out there:

*not including the hastily made lockdown one

That Pony Boy track is sick.

Farrah Abraham did Hyper Pop in the BUtt. 

i thought  this stuff was just  abusing the only vocal effect that covers up for people who can't sing?  like a crutch. "i can't sing so i'll do this genre hyper pop because don't really need to know how to sing can just autotune the vocals and people will accept it" but i guess it's a thing. a terrible thing. 

pretty much any genre there's 5% of it that's probably good and crossover to people who otherwise think it sucks. 

seems a natural niche genre to happen though given how trash mainstream pop typically is. where are the weird kids gonna go who don't have siouxsie sioux to latch on to or goth new wave synth wave no wave? 

the future of pop though? idk. seems that people who can actually sing and make music won't go balls deep into a thing that hides their actual skill and talent.. but it wouldn't surprise me if people get 'voice shamed' for being born w/a singing voice or something. 

also, lols at that video pointing out "sophie lyrics criticize capitalism" and 30 secs later "has music used in adidas ad and even mcdonald's".  not shaming her.. just saying.. weird think to point out then point to mainstream capitalism success in ads for factory farm diabetes food desert pushers and sweat shops. 

edit: also, mostly, get off my lawn a little 

edit edit: some of this stuff comes across as BitMeddler  ShitMix 2020 but w/o the good parts. some of it is more produced and seems to actually strive for pop acceptance for lack of a better phrase. perhaps  just striving to carve out its own hole in the pop universes. 

  On 11/29/2020 at 10:45 PM, ignatius said:

Farrah Abraham did Hyper Pop in the BUtt. 

I had no idea about that album until last year. Apparently it's a /mu and RYM touted cult classic. It is a wild listen.

To answer the question of the thread: I feel like it's simply the pop music of "now" 

  On 11/29/2020 at 11:02 PM, joshuatxuk said:

I had no idea about that album until last year. Apparently it's a /mu and RYM touted cult classic. It is a wild listen.

To answer the question of the thread: I feel like it's simply the pop music of "now" 

i think it's just a trend within pop music. the weird edgy kids and kids who are anti-pop. sort of punk. all mixed up and fighting for attention in the attention arms race. 

i didn't know about farah abraham's album either. her story is full on fucked up. i saw some shit posted on reddit and followed the thread for a minute and links posted about various stories and wtf her mom is a nightmare and so is she. she went full plastic surgery face dysmorphia porn star. trainwreck. i''d post her mom's music video but it'd be a distraction and isn't worth the cringe factor. 

  On 11/27/2020 at 7:06 PM, dcom said:

Do people listen to that garbage willingly and claim to like it? I feel extinction-level ancient.

damn bro its almost as if people enjoy different things

This thread and listening to stuff you guys posted made me feel really old. Thanks.

I've never heard of this stuff before and you say this has been going on since 2013ish (?), so I guess I can say one can become too oblivious to trends. Sonically (I can't really say musically, or can I?) it's interesting because it has many things going on, it's kind of electronic punk with all things rebel and sex and aggressiveness... but I dunno... I can't stand anything with autotune in it, vocals are annoying, and the "lyrics" are boring. I can see it's aimed for youth because all it talks about is the sex life so it has that pop thing.

It made me remember of the old rap which is all about money and ho's and bitches and drugs and dominating other males. This has a similar underlying theme going on, so yeah... the wheel had turned, and scooped up some 2000s underground sounds, but it's the same old wheel.

I'll pass. You guys enjoy.

I quite like that ponyboy track. As already said, solid production and the vocals are clear even though it's a thunderous beat. 

Some of Britney feels like a core influence. You could date it back to In the Zone, but more along the likes of Blackout and most especially Femme Fatale. The latter's producer combination of Max Martin & Dr. Luke (serving Britney's typical sound) feels like a 2011 basis that something like hyperpop (or wevs) evolves from. Right around the time when dubstep and EDM were pervasive, very producer-driven and that provoc-aesthetic she had going for a while. You can imagine a subsection of Britney fans a decade ago being hyperpop curious.

Oh man I tried that 100 gecs album a few weeks back, didn't get very far.  That just sounds like 100% irony to me, but even with that in mind I couldn't stomach it.

Sophie's one hella talented producer/sound designer from what I've heard.  Going to listen to her album soon.  Arca's last album has a similar vibe, which I also like.

https://boygirlxo.bandcamp.com/music

There’s some interesting production on some of these records but I don’t often find myself in the mood for it. It’s too active to work as background music. 
 

I’m mostly liking the new Jam City album. Not sure if it goes in this bucket. 
 

FWIW I played 100 gecs for a 20 year old girl I know that’s pretty into music and got a violently negative reaction so I guess not all the kids are into it. 

it's a psyop to distract millenials and zoomers from caring about class-based culture and politics

our entire culture & politics is the same psyop