The Unexpected Revival of Eurobeat

[Wataru Akiyama]

So I read a topic about how this is the Dark Age of Eurobeat.

Yet, a lot of American kiddies and twenty-somethings are suddenly learning about Eurobeat through those hilarious (they aren't hilarious) meme videos.


youtu.be/Jgiopr0EpoI

Like that.

Suddenly Americans, or at least the ones who are Extremely Online and like memes and internet pop culture, know about it.

We've reached the point where you COULD actually play Eurobeat in a club or something in America and people would know about it, but not as music you actually listen to like we do.

I listen to Eurobeat all the time, but I could imagine explaining this to normal Americans.

"Oh, you listen to that weird joke meme music? Weird!"

They'd say something like that.

While I am glad people know about Eurobeat more widely thanks to memes, I am annoyed that it's this hilarious joke thing.

I dunno, what do you guys think? Is it good that suddenly more people know about it? Or is this actually harmful in the long run? I'm pessimistic about this because I'm sure the Eurobeat artists don't want to be just known as "those people who make the memes".

[Wataru Akiyama]

I feel like my post is a bit rambly and meandering, so I'll try to condense what I'd like you all to consider:

If Eurobeat was truly in a Dark Age, I don't think people would know about it as much as they do now. But I don't think the method by which people know about it right now is a good one and it may actually be harmful.

Your thoughts?

[Lebon14]

The moment "memers" stop using "Initial D" as an artist and stop using Running In The 90's, Déjà Vu and Gas Gas Gas as songs will be the moment I'd start believing this.

People don't associate this to Eurobeat; in fact, very few of them wil *actually* google it up and find out. They'll associate with Initial D anime, games, memes and that's it. In fact, a lot of groups on the internet will *only recognize* and *listen to* eurobeat songs if it was featured in Initial D in a way or another. What they think of the rest? Trash. Rain197 will probably back me up on this one.

As much as I'd want to believe this, the general public is still clueless.

EDIT

My bro liked Gas Gas Gas simply because it was in a DOTA 2 compilation video with memes. And he knows I'm listening to this stuff. He would have picked up more than Gas Gas Gas if he really liked it. See my point? People like it coz it's a meme and that's it, that's all. Eurobeat is *not* improving in any way.

[alpines]

Eurobeat is *not* improving in any way.

Exactly, well at least seeing it from the internet/memes/anime point of view.

In memes it's used just as a means to an end (I hope that was the correct translation from the german phrase "Mittel zum Zweck").
If there was other energetic funny sounding music people would probably take that instead of eurobeat.

People may know about eurobeat (not knowing it's actually eurobeat) in memes but they don't have any clue about its fullest extent.
Eurobeat is so much more than just music used in a specific anime or internet memes.

It has been around for many decades and evolved so much that by only knowing it through memes or anime you don't do justice to it.
Just taking a tiny chunk of it out and selling it somewhere else as a side product is - at least for me - still not a revival.

[Rain197]

"Oh, you listen to that weird joke meme music? Weird!"

That makes me sick too, people are thinking I'm listening to animation's OST. Eurobeat isn't OST.

People don't associate this to Eurobeat; in fact, very few of them wil *actually* google it up and find out. They'll associate with Initial D anime, games, memes and that's it. In fact, a lot of groups on the internet will *only recognize* and *listen to* eurobeat songs if it was featured in Initial D in a way or another. What they think of the rest? Trash. Rain197 will probably back me up on this one.

Ahah, I remember when I was on a popular Facebook group about Initial D.
I published a video with an Eurobeat song, someone just say it wasn't Eurobeat BECAUSE IT DIDN'T APPEARED ON INITIAL D...

Months ago, I saw a comment on YouTube, fasten your seatbelts ! It was something like : "It's Dave Rodgers who are choosing all the Initial D songs".
For them, if the song didn't appeared in Initial D, it's trash.

Another exemple I saw on reddit today, they consider hidden gems the Eurobeat songs in Initial D Arcade Stage...
https://www.reddit.com/r/initiald/comme ... idden_gem/

Like Myrddin Tryguel say it, there's 3 different groups :
- Limited to Initial D (and Odyssey)
- Parapara dancers
- Those who are buying every Eurobeat CD

Yesterday, on a well-know french forum (know for the anti-relou controversy), there was a thread of a K-POP fan which was asking us a better music genre. I say "Eurobeat", someone quoted me with "OH OUI !!!" (translation : OH YES !!!) with a YouTube link, and what was the song ? An Eurobeat song that appeared in Initial D...

But the best exemple of their shit knowledge was on Twitter with a photo of Roberto Festari, Claudio Accatino and Federico Rimonti. The comment was "Ces gars là ont créées toutes les musiques d'Initial D" (translation : "These guys created all the Initial D songs")
https://twitter.com/bodosomo/status/917416945233940481

[Bonkers]

Maybe Eurobeat is too old of a genre to take off here in the American nightlife? American music tastes are not stable; there's a constant battle for who can be the first to try something new, push the next popular sound, be the next artist in the spotlight, etc and teenage and young adult mainstream culture is one of following what's popular at the moment.

If Eurobeat were to have a revival here, there would need to be a group of DJs actually playing it in their local dance scenes (without parapara) for other possible DJs in the crowd to hear and then they take the genre back to their respected local scene. If the only outlet for Eurobeat music is a parapara performance at an anime con, it's going to remain to be seen in the same light as InitialD and JPop music.

[M2-EB]

Eurobeat never died, it's kinda dumb to talk about "revivals" and those things IMO (even in its "darker" 2012 year, where there was no SEB but a j-pop one. Producers kept on producing, doujin eurobeat kept on being released, etc).

People are getting to know about the genre through memes and Initial D compilation videos and humor videos in general for the last 4 or 5 years. Before that, it was Dance Dance Revolution, anime remixes or music videos, gyaru culture or even your friend stumbled upon a cool eurobeat song while going to some Japanese convention in 1897. I don't know anyone who got to know eurobeat through the "conventional" probably "non-harmful" way. I spent about 2 years or something listening eurobeat and being clueless about what was this music but I thought it was really cool, only after a while I started researching.

The more people know about the genre, the bigger the fanbase becomes, the more people will be talking about it and maybe more money for producers/labels' pockets. The only harmful thing I can sense about eurobeat is how shitty advertising practices are and how bad this is. Even if eurobeat were to play in night clubs I doubt Avex would allow it outside of Japan, so good luck with that (as far as I know, copyrights are a thing, right?). It's dumb being here complaining about what people do or do not with the music or how they met this genre or how often they listen to it or how they think it's all a joke... the best we can do is trying to show them that there's more to it than the same 3 songs or in the worst case: just move on. Let people do whatever. Let people listen whatever. Let it be a joke. I bet Avex don't care nor do any of the artists.

[Anthony McBazooka]

While I do fully understand the anger about ignorant people I fully agree with M2-EB.
People actually being aware of the existence of Eurobeat is a huge chance and it's being wasted by those who have the means to develop something of it. I mean, I try my best, too, but everyone who watched my VLOG should know that my situation is rather unfortunate in opposite to that of a stock company like Avex.
Yeah, Eurobeat has become a meme. That's a fact and we can't do a thing about it. But it's possible to have an influence on what will be the future of it. I know enough people who knew Eurobeat from the memes and now start to be interested in other songs too. But this needs kindness and patience and not arrogance. Please, don't be elitists who just listen to a special kind of music to feel special, but rather for the sake of the music itself. And this means embracing new chances of the music to develop.

[Bonkers]

Even if eurobeat were to play in night clubs I doubt Avex would allow it outside of Japan, so good luck with that (as far as I know, copyrights are a thing, right?).

Not if it's played at a rave

[xiao]

　　

[tsu]

hey guys! i've been lurking this forum for a while recently but eventually decided to register after reading this thread. maybe what i'm going to write here will cheer you up a little bit, at least i hope so. i'm the person who got into eurobeat through the path 'meme videos > initial d anime > initial d soundtracks > exploring everything related with eurobeat'. i'm a fairly new fan of this music genre and i haven't invested any money into buying cds but i know for sure it will happen in the future. i regret not discovering eurobeat while i was still in japan coz i could buy some cds directly there. anyways... i can say that eurobeat has become the main music genre i listen to on a daily basis and i love to spend some time on researching about arists or anything related really. maybe it just 'clicked', maybe it was just a case of being the right person in the right time but i'm pretty sure there should be more people like me out there who can get attracted to eurobeat through memes/anime.

[xiao]

　　

[tsu]

maybe it just 'clicked', maybe it was just a case of being the right person in the right time but i'm pretty sure there should be more people like me out there who can get attracted to eurobeat through memes/anime.

Don't forget parapara !! dancing's a beautiful aspect of it

yeah, that's true! what's interesting i used to be into parapara in the past but i would not call myself eurobeat fan back then. now when i think about it it seems really weird i didn't take the chance to explore eurobeat world at that time but i guess it was due to the fact that parapara was just a small piece of my huge fascination of gyaru culture and i focused on different aspects of it. anyways, i feel happy that i'm into eurobeat now. this whole eurobeat journey i went over few past months felt like homecoming lol.

[xiao]

　　

[Wataru Akiyama]

While I do fully understand the anger about ignorant people I fully agree with M2-EB.
People actually being aware of the existence of Eurobeat is a huge chance and it's being wasted by those who have the means to develop something of it. I mean, I try my best, too, but everyone who watched my VLOG should know that my situation is rather unfortunate in opposite to that of a stock company like Avex.
Yeah, Eurobeat has become a meme. That's a fact and we can't do a thing about it. But it's possible to have an influence on what will be the future of it. I know enough people who knew Eurobeat from the memes and now start to be interested in other songs too. But this needs kindness and patience and not arrogance. Please, don't be elitists who just listen to a special kind of music to feel special, but rather for the sake of the music itself. And this means embracing new chances of the music to develop.

This is cool. What worried me is that guys like you artists would get irritated and not want to do the thing anymore if people kept dismissing it as hilarious memester stuff.

I am glad to hear you think it's all right and not a big problem.

The moment "memers" stop using "Initial D" as an artist and stop using Running In The 90's, Déjà Vu and Gas Gas Gas as songs will be the moment I'd start believing this.

People don't associate this to Eurobeat; in fact, very few of them wil *actually* google it up and find out. They'll associate with Initial D anime, games, memes and that's it. In fact, a lot of groups on the internet will *only recognize* and *listen to* eurobeat songs if it was featured in Initial D in a way or another. What they think of the rest? Trash. Rain197 will probably back me up on this one.

As much as I'd want to believe this, the general public is still clueless.

EDIT

My bro liked Gas Gas Gas simply because it was in a DOTA 2 compilation video with memes. And he knows I'm listening to this stuff. He would have picked up more than Gas Gas Gas if he really liked it. See my point? People like it coz it's a meme and that's it, that's all. Eurobeat is *not* improving in any way.

I know what you mean.

I've noticed that if people aren't shocked out of not liking it, they are very surprised to find out that there is a whole subculture and history to the funny meme music!

They can't BELIEVE people used to dance to this, and so on!

Maybe Eurobeat is too old of a genre to take off here in the American nightlife? American music tastes are not stable; there's a constant battle for who can be the first to try something new, push the next popular sound, be the next artist in the spotlight, etc and teenage and young adult mainstream culture is one of following what's popular at the moment.

If Eurobeat were to have a revival here, there would need to be a group of DJs actually playing it in their local dance scenes (without parapara) for other possible DJs in the crowd to hear and then they take the genre back to their respected local scene. If the only outlet for Eurobeat music is a parapara performance at an anime con, it's going to remain to be seen in the same light as InitialD and JPop music.

Yo, have you seen the '80's revival going on in pop culture right now, with things like READY PLAYER ONE?


youtu.be/4aifnWlP_sM

Right now, '80's music and culture is coming back in a huge way.

They say there's a 20 year cycle to things. Stuff is made, then it goes away, then 20 years later everyone likes it again!

We're near that point now with Eurobeat, or at least its 90's form. I wouldn't be surprised if suddenly there is a HUGE 90's lovefest on the horizon and suddenly Eurobeat is thrust back into the forefront of the world consciousness.