70's Disco Vs. Modern Techno/Dance...Which is Better?

[garrybcoston]

The modern clubbers will say dance/techno, us old, dry and dusty people from "back in the day" will probably say disco. I love them both but I vote for Disco as my preference and here's why:

Disco was more complex in that there was numerous types of instruments, i.e., string section, horn section, drums, percussion, guitar, bass, keys/clav, etc. which equated into lush, heavy compositions for the vocalists/vocals to sing against...and don't forget about the human factor/element, i.e., all of the songs were played by human beings and not a high tech piece of gadgetry. In addition, there were background singers, usually composed of 3 or more women and one guy that gave a "heavenly" sound to support the Lead Vocalist or Vocalists. The sound was more innocent, classical, and happy. Also, Disco extended past just the music; disco was also composed of fashion, trend, and the whole 70's experience was primarily centered and based on Disco music, commercially produced if you will. The whole world embraced, breathed, and lived Disco while it existed.

I love Techno/Dance also but not over Disco. Dance or Techno is normally composed by one or maybe two people, a Producer and a professional keyboardist assisting the DJ/Producer; the resulting compositions are very simple to produce and compose with today's technology, and the majority of the songs are shear instrumentals with no vocals. Most of the sounds are eerie, forboding, aggresive, and in your face, which is slightly different from the 70's Disco sound except the heavy pounding 4/4 beat is still there in addition to the high hat cymbal hitting on the off beat; but let's face it, this is what Disco has evolved into over the years. Lastly, Dance/Techno has or will never be commercialized or be as popular as Disco.

Being a musician and being "Old School," I prefer the human factor over a machine or technology composing music. Nothing, in my opinion, will ever take the place of the "human element" in producing and composing music because in this you have emotions displayed from each individual to the audience; this is possibly missing or can be missing in most dance/techno music.

I prefer Disco, and this is my preference and my opinion on why I feel Disco was/is better than Dance/Techno.

[tony98]

If i had been asked this question in the 90's i might have said Dance Music. The trouble is that since then Dance seems to have run out of ideas and these days instead of a good production, every other track seems to have the same heavily distorted bassline.

[ALBATROS]

DISCO! without thinking for a microsecond!
Modern "Dance and/or Techno just lacks for any trace of emotions or feeling
that good Disco was so full of... The production was "fat", rich with sounds and melodies, and full of what most people find completely out of place in today's music...vocals! IMO, big part of modern club music really stagnated
in comparison with music made 25, 30 years ago...

ALBATROS

[pepper1dancer]

Hey Garrybcoston:

Hhmmm, good question, but is there a right answer? Me, personally, i have been dancing since the late 70's and i was just dancing 2 weeks ago. I Love the Disco sound and I Love today's sound. It doesn't matter to me how the sound is created to me. It's MUSIC and that's what counts. Last night on the turntable i was jamming to Tata Vega and Carrie Lucas and then i switched to some Boys to Men and then to Kelly Clarksons dance version of "Walk Away". Like you posted--------THE MISSION REMAINS THE SAME- KEEP ON DANCING!!!!!!!!

[Dayna]

Call me the SAHARA DESERT then~!! Cause i'm DRY AND DUSTY~!! No comparison..Disco has guts and a heartbeat..Techno is cold and has no heart.. any dj can mix that.. When Keoki started to Dj he had NO CLUE as to what he was doing:icon_eek:...not that he ever did:icon_eek:He was told to play Techno because it sounded cutiing edge and the crowd would have no clue if he F*cked up..because it all sounded the same~!!Plus the children at Disco 2000 at Limelight were so drugged out they didnt know what they were dancing to anyway..:icon_evil:
I dont care what anyone say's.......that my TAKE ON IT~!!

[Videoskooter]

... were so drugged out they didnt know what they were dancing to anyway

Disco without a doubt! Most of the time Disco music consisted of songs! Techno is more of a soundscape to me. It can be excellent as a background or cool to play at funfair attractions but it never gives that warm feeling Disco, Funk and Soul did.

I get the impression that people aren't dancing with each other anymore!

They usually egotistically wave on the floor like they are praying to the god of the smokemachine. And yes, I have the impression that drugs are much more en vogue than they were BITD (I could be wrong since I never did that junk and luckily I always got friends who felt the same way about that so I'm not ...experienced). I do like Techno however, even the hardfloor but it will never replace my genetic Disco feel! I can listen to Disco 24/7 but Techno only comes in small doses.

[musiquelover]

There's some really good house music out there if you're really looking for it.
So if you exclude house then disco is definately better than modern techno/dance music.

[andyy]

Growing up in the mid seventies as an early teenager i just loved the way the music was changing and yes Disco was responsible for it all. I loved the way that music could be up lifting souful and musically upbeat and best of all musical instruments were consistantly played to produce superb DIsco sounds all with indiviuality of sound.
Nothing since the Disco era of Late 1974 to 1986 comes any better in fact its the opposite it seemed to loose so much the house music was ok but lacked the variety of True Disco i always say music has become lazy people have become lazy the sound is all the same fast fast and faster and all with a blumming boring banging beat which drives me in sane.
Call modern music what you want dance techno or whatever its totally in my eyes BORING and would not want to go out shaking my body to a bump all night long i wanna have the variety of sound and i want to feel happy and great and musically fulfilled.
No dry and dusty dont come anywher near a true lover of good music and age in my personal opinion has nothing to do with what is in and what is out.
To all you modern listeners please take a leaf from the past make it smelll new fresh and exciting and bring back the great years of music because in my opinion it is way overdue.

[KBallenger53]

There's some really good house music out there if you're really looking for it.
So if you exclude house then disco is definately better than modern techno/dance music.

I agree with you musiquelover. Disco was more, I should say, natural. By that I mean you had "Human Beings" playing the music as opposed to drum machines & synthesisors programed to play at a certain BPM (beats per minute).

For the DJ he must keep this in mind while mixing the records because due to the fact that most of the original Disco records were played by Human Beings, Human vulnerabilities would take place. Such as getting tired. The pace may slow down a tad bit. To the naked ear on the dance floor, you won't hear it. But to the trained ear of a DJ, we will notice it first, and will have to play with the pitch control frequently to keep in time with the other record that we're mixing with. You follow me?

But when it comes to House, Club, Trance, Underground, Tribal, Hip House, Acid, & Acid Jazz. They're already pre-programmed for a certain BPM so that they're easier to mix, in that which DJ's won't have to use the pitch control at all hardly!!! If you've got your self a nice set of Quartz Lock turntables, you can have two records running at the same time, while you're looking for something else to play.

The trick is when New Jacks try to mix the old with the new!!! Because they've become so spoiled/comfortable mixing Modern Dance music, they have to really learn how to control their pitches when incorporating a classic Disco record to the mix!!! That's when the true skill of a DJ are tested, better yet, when they try to mix all Disco period!

It's back to school for them!!!

'NUFF SAID

[David_NC]

That's an easy question... disco is better! For me, disco is fun, happy music while most later / modern dance music isn't. Most disco is also 'real' music produced by 'real' instruments and people vs. just electronic sounds, though there's a time and place for that, too. Personally, I like dance music that I can sing to (not that I'd ever sing loud enough to make anybody suffer!), and disco also wins in this respect. Mostly, disco just has a soul... I guess that's mainly what makes it better to me.

[Old Disco DeeJay]

I agree with just about everything that you guys have said. Modern Dance Music is an evolution of Disco Music, but not for the better.

If I am driving a long distance of about 8 hours duration, I will fill the car cd multi changer with Disco Music and not get bored, as every track has different vocals and harmonies. I would arrive at my destination, upbeat and happy. Whereas, even the thought of 8 hours worth of Techno/Rave music has me wanting to go and lie down, after takong some strong medication for my bursting head.

Remember the sight and colour of the Boogie Wonderland video, with Earth, Wind and Fire and The Emotions live on stage, dancing around, playing their instruments, with the vocal harmonies of both groups combined. Compare that to a current video, of one guy sitting in his bedroom with a synthesiser and a PC, creating a current Dance Tune. The video then invariably flashes to groups of stoned teenagers in a Club, waving their hands in the air.

I can't say that I liked every Disco song that was ever released, but I'd have to think long and hard for one that I hated so much that I refused to play it, or had to turn it off, as soon as I heard it. (Could be the start of a good thread in that thought !!).

However, there are plenty of the current tunes that just burst my head (Probably an age thing, though).

The simple test of how good something is, is in its ability to last the course of time. 30 years on, tracks like Good Times and numerous other Disco Hits are still regularly getting sampled, or covered by other artists.

In another 30 years time, I honestly believe that will still be happening, but when I look into my crystal ball, I don't see it happening for Techno/Rave Music.

[Cdnbob]

You guys are all getting old that's why you don't like modern dance music!

Seriously though, isn't techno beyond 140 bpm? I mean how can you dance to that other than bouncing around the room like a jack in the box! I think after an hour or so of that sort of music, most people would get sick of it. While I can't say I'm 100% familiar with modern dance music - don't go to clubs anymore so I have no idea what a club plays - only know what's played on the video music stations or online - from what I've heard, the instrumental part all sounds the same. One song mixes into the next and you don't really notice any difference. Its as if its all one long continuous song. Whereas with disco you knew when the dj mixed in a new song. Modern dance music seems to take forever get to the vocals and then when you do, you only get about 2 mintues worth and then another 5 or more minutes of drum beat. :icon_eek:

Without sounding like a boring old fart, lol, I'll have to agree with all of you, that disco was and is far better than modern dance music. Its better in general to a lot of modern music. And personally for me, I've been finding I'm turning backwards in time to this type of music as opposed to a lot of today's music which I find dull boring and repetitive. I mean Fall Out Boy sounds like Coldplay who sounds like Amy Wineho and on and on. Disco featured talent. People and professionals who loved the music and created music that sounded and was original in sound, style and appeal. I still love my disco music and I wonder why people just don't go back to making music with real instruments instead of drum machines, samplers, etc.

[BrunoRepublic]

You guys are all getting old that's why you don't like modern dance music!

Seriously though, isn't techno beyond 140 bpm?

Not all of it. "Techno" is a very vague term though. Applying the term "techno" to apply to all contemporary instrumental electronic dance music is like using "disco" to describe any vocal dance music. But if we're going to use "disco" to refer to the specific style of dance music made in the late 70s, then we should use the narrower defintion of "techno", which refers to a style that was really only around for a few years, and reached its peak in 1991.

[Cdnbob]

Not all of it. "Techno" is a very vague term though. Applying the term "techno" to apply to all contemporary instrumental electronic dance music is like using "disco" to describe any vocal dance music. But if we're going to use "disco" to refer to the specific style of dance music made in the late 70s, then we should use the narrower defintion of "techno", which refers to a style that was really only around for a few years, and reached its peak in 1991.

Ah okay. So what's the type of dance music where is sounds like its been speeded up to 78 rpm speed from 45? I'm sure its beyond 150 bpm or more...

[BrunoRepublic]

Ah okay. So what's the type of dance music where is sounds like its been speeded up to 78 rpm speed from 45? I'm sure its beyond 150 bpm or more...

There are several genres that qualify for that... drum 'n bass, speedcore, psy-trance...