Page 45 - WRY-Magazine-April-2024

EDITORIAL > 10 ELECTRONIC DEBUT ALBUMS THAT MADE AN IMPACT
Pendulum - Hold Your Colour

Released: 25 July, 2005
Each electronic sub-genre has its figureheads, and Australian
Disclosure - Settle
Drum and Bass outfit Pendulum were certainly that for the scene
Released: 3 June, 2013 throughout the 2000’s. The debut studio album ‘Hold Your Colour’
certainly paved the way for a growing movement, brandishing
UK duo Howard and Guy Lawrence had a lot of success in the lead
popular recordings, the likes of ‘Slam’, ‘Tarantula’, and ‘Hold Your
up to, and following the release of their debut album in the summer
Colour’. An LP that featured collaborations with Fresh & TC, the LP
of 2013. Tipped for big things in the years before its release, ‘Settle’
was reissued 2 years later with the addition of tracks ‘Blood Sugar’
arrived as a culmination of incredible collaborations, as the pair
and ‘Axel Grinder’. Since its initial release, it has gone on to become
drafted in features such as Sam Smith for ‘Latch’, Eliza Doolittle for
one of the best selling drum and bass albums of all time, and still
‘You & Me’ and AlunaGeorge for ‘White Noise’ among many more.
holds immense relevancy to this day.
Upon release, the LP was met with critical acclaim, climbing album
charts worldwide. It received a Grammy nomination in the same
year and has since achieved Platinum status in both the UK and
Illenium - Ashes
Australia.
Released: 15 February, 2016
Since his arrival on the scene, Illenium has become something of a
tastemaker, garnering a sizable movement within the remit of bass
and melodic dubstep. Some of his earliest music remains his most
iconic, with the likes of ‘Reverie’, ‘I’ll Be Your Reason’ and ‘Afterlife’
resonating with masses to this day having featured on his debut
Porter Robinson - Worlds
album, ‘Ashes’. Dropped at the start of 2016, it featured numerous
Released: 12 August, 2014 collaborations, and saw him take bass music in a new direction
with his uplifting style of production catching on quickly. The album
Porter Robinson went against the grain in 2014, introducing new,
makes up one LP of three regarded as the original trilogy that has
and expansive ideas to a saturated dance music market with
taken him to the summit of the scene.
his debut album ‘Worlds’. In the lead up to its full release, the
American offered up singles ‘Sad Machine’, ‘Lionhearted’, ‘Flicker’
and ‘Sea of Voices’, which would all go on to feature on the LP. This
was to be his only album for 7 years, drawing in industry acclaim Calvin Harris - I Created Disco
for its unprecedented direction, and the unique approach in its Released: 15 June, 2007
production. Many in the industry claim that this album opened
Even the industry’s elite had to start somewhere, ‘I Created Disco’
up many new stylistic avenues for artists to explore, with ‘Worlds’
being that for the now-acclaimed DJ and producer Calvin Harris.
undoubtedly inspiring artists that followed.
Back when he more explicitly featured as vocalist on his tracks, he
released his debut album in mid-2007, which he produced in his
home studio. Prior to the full release, he led with two singles which
have gone on to become some of his most popular tracks to date in
‘Acceptable in the 80s’ and ‘The Girls’. There is no doubt the success
of the album catapulted him to superstardom, and in becoming the
undeniably influential figure that he is today.
Justice - Cross
Released: 11 June, 2007

Justice are champions of gritty Electro House, with their debut
Skream! - Skream!
album, ‘Cross’, a culmination of all their early ideas as a pair, with
Released: 30 October, 2006
‘Genesis’, ‘D.A.N.C.E’ and ‘Phantom’ all highlights. Released in the
summer of 2007, it is hailed as a musical mosaic of sorts in the way A trailblazer for the original developments within the dubstep scene,
it draws upon various samples from other influential artists, the Skream! has always created the right noises at the right times. In
likes of Queen, 50 Cent, Madonna, Prince and Britney Spears. ‘Cross’ 2006, the release of his self-titled album ‘Skream!’ brought with it the
went on to be nominated for a handful of Grammy Awards and opportunity to innovate, bridging the gap between nostalgic rave and
has inspired many other esteemed artists due to its ingenuity and contemporary dance and pop. The resulting LP contributed to the very
innovation, the likes of Zedd for example. fabric of early dubstep. Channelling groundbreaking ideas through
tracks like ‘Midnight Request Line’, ‘Rutten’ and ‘Summer Dreams’, he
forged the foundations upon which the likes of Rusko and Skrillex would
build upon years later. Not only that, but he gave himself a platform
upon which he has established a stellar career.

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