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Trip-Hop
Genre: A 33 1/3 Series (Book 1)
- Author
- RJ Wheaton
- Narrator
- Adam Sims
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Publish Date
- 29 April 2025
- Run Time
- 5 hours
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
Trip-hop described some of the 1990s’ best music, and it was one of the decade’s most revealing bad ideas. This book chronicles the music and its leading artists, packed with recommended listening, essential tracks, great remixes, and under-recognized albums.
“Your playlists will soon be overflowing.” - Spectrum Culture
The music itself was an intoxication of beats, bass, and voice. It emerged amid the social tensions of the late 1980s, and as part of hip-hop’s rise to global dominance. It carried the innovations of Jamaican soundsystem culture, the sweet refuge of Lovers Rock, the bliss of club jazz dancefloors and post-rave chill-out rooms. It went mainstream with Massive Attack, Portishead, Tricky, DJ Shadow, Kruder & Dorfmeister, and Björk; and with record labels like Ninja Tune and Mo’ Wax. To the artists’ despair, the music was tagged with a silly label and packaged as music for the boutique and the lounge; made respectable with awards and acclaim.
But the music at its best still sounds experimental and dramatic; and its influence lingers through artists like FKA twigs, Sevdaliza, James Blake, Billie Eilish, and Lana Del Rey. This short book is a guide to ’trip-hop’ in its context of the weird 1990s: nostalgia and consumerism; pre-millenium angst and lo-fi technology; casual exoticism amid accelerating globalization and gentrification.
Critics Review
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A detailed, authoritative, knowledgeable unpacking of a notoriously conflicting genre written by a diamond-keen cultural critic who's not afraid to tackle nuanced, difficult topics while still singing the praises of music he loves to the high heavens. . . . Your playlists will soon be overflowing.
Spectrum Culture
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- RJ Wheaton
- Narrator
- Adam Sims
- Duration
- 5 hours
- Release Date
- 29 April 2025
- ISBN
- 9798765149133
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Genre
- Music reviews and criticism, Musicians, singers, bands and groups, Electronic music, History of music
Synopsis
Bloomsbury presents Trip-Hop by RJ Wheaton, read by Adam Sims.Trip-hop described some of the 1990s’ best music, and it was one of the decade’s most revealing bad ideas. This book chronicles the music and its leading artists, packed with recommended listening, essential tracks, great remixes, and under-recognized albums.“Your playlists will soon be overflowing.” - Spectrum CultureThe music itself was an intoxication of beats, bass, and voice. It emerged amid the social tensions of the late 1980s, and as part of hip-hop’s rise to global dominance. It carried the innovations of Jamaican soundsystem culture, the sweet refuge of Lovers Rock, the bliss of club jazz dancefloors and post-rave chill-out rooms. It went mainstream with Massive Attack, Portishead, Tricky, DJ Shadow, Kruder & Dorfmeister, and Björk; and with record labels like Ninja Tune and Mo’ Wax. To the artists’ despair, the music was tagged with a silly label and packaged as music for the boutique and the lounge; made respectable with awards and acclaim.But the music at its best still sounds experimental and dramatic; and its influence lingers through artists like FKA twigs, Sevdaliza, James Blake, Billie Eilish, and Lana Del Rey. This short book is a guide to ’trip-hop’ in its context of the weird 1990s: nostalgia and consumerism; pre-millenium angst and lo-fi technology; casual exoticism amid accelerating globalization and gentrification.
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