Electronic dance music, the rock myth, and authenticity

Authors

  • John Gunders University of Queensland

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/prbt.v13i2.147

Keywords:

authenticity, electronic dance music, rock music

Abstract

Most discussions of authenticity in popular music mobilize the ‘rock myth’, a loose collection of assumptions that pit rock against an inauthentic other, such as pop, dance or electronic music. Some academic studies attempt to discuss authenticity in these genres by side-stepping the rock myth and focusing on other aspects of the genre’s construction. This article, however, examines the structures of power in electronic dance music showing that for the fans of this genre, as revealed through music journalism and online fan sites, the same discourses are at work as in discussions of rock.

Author Biography

  • John Gunders, University of Queensland

    John Gunders is an Honorary Research Consultant at the Centre for Critical and Cultural Studies, The University of Queensland. He has also published on the construction of authenticity in relation to television cooking shows.

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Published

2013-06-06

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Gunders, J. (2013). Electronic dance music, the rock myth, and authenticity. Perfect Beat, 13(2), 147-159. https://doi.org/10.1558/prbt.v13i2.147