Intelligent Dance Music

Intelligent Dance Music (IDM) is a genre name in electronic music. The term is fairly vague and does not represent a single genre, but for different styles of electronic music. IDM can be roughly described as concrète intersection of diverse influences such as techno, breakbeat, drum’n'bass, industrial, ambient, clicks & cuts and Musique. Characteristics of music are exploring the onset and unusual sounds, for example by means of overdriven modulation frequencies used sound effects such as flanger, vibrato, glitch or distortion, as well as rhythmic and melodic complexity.

Definition

The term was first used in the 90s, especially in the English language for the classification of innovative electronic music. The term is intended to be primarily an indication that the listener is required intelligence, which is meant that the music is inaccessible to normal pop music standards. The tunes are playful as opposed to techno, melodic and complex. Often unconventional time signatures (like 7 / as well as frequent changes of meter to be installed.

The concept is not without controversy, as it directly implies that other sorts of electronic dance music for less intelligent audience are addressed. The classification as “Dance Music” is indeed refer to the electronic mode of production, however, seems largely inappropriate, as a “dancing” is not in the traditional sense is not usually possible and often provided the main purpose of the music. For these reasons, it is increasingly the term electronica – a collective term for innovative electronic music – have been displaced.

A more recent definition of IDM is also independent dance music.