Eurobeat refers to two styles of

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

that originated in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

: one is a British variant of Italian

Eurodisco Eurodisco (also spelled as Euro disco) is the variety of European forms of electronic dance music that evolved from disco in the late 1970s, incorporating elements of pop and rock into a disco-like continuous dance atmosphere. Many Eurodisco ...

-influencedAng, Ien & Morley, David (2005). "Cultural Studies: Volume 3, Issue 2". ''Routledge''. pgs. 171, 173, 170. . "Eurorecords had to have immediate cross-national appeal, musical simplicity was of the essence- a bouncy beat, just one chorus hook, elementary lyrics. The fun of these records was entirely a matter of sound quality, but once a record was a hit it took on a kind of sleazy, nostalgic charm of its own. It was precisely the brazen utility of these records, in short, that gave them gay disco consumer appeal too. ..Eurodisco also had an obvious element of camp -British club audiences took delight in the very gap between the grand gestures of Eurosingers and the vacuity of their songs."

dance-pop Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...

, and the other is a

hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated in the United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the ...

-driven form of

Italo disco Italo disco (variously capitalized, and sometimes hyphenated as Italo-disco) is a music genre which originated in Italy in the late 1970s and was mainly produced in the early 1980s. Italo disco evolved from the then-current underground dance, p ...

. Both forms were developed in the 1980s. Producer trio

Stock Aitken Waterman Stock Aitken Waterman (abbreviated as SAW) are an English songwriting and record production trio consisting of Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, and Pete Waterman. The trio had great success from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s. SAW is considered ...

and pop band Dead or Alive made Eurobeat music more popular in the United States, where Eurobeat was historically marketed as

(pronounced as "high energy"). For a short while, it also shared this term with early

freestyle music Freestyle music, also called Latin freestyle or Latin hip-hop ''(sic)'' is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in the New York metropolitan area and Philadelphia, primarily among Hispanic Americans and Italian Americans in the 1980s. I ...

and Italo disco.

Overview

In the late 1970s, Eurodisco musicians such as

Silver Convention Silver Convention were a German Euro disco recording act of the 1970s. The group was originally named Silver Bird Convention or Silver Bird. Career The group was initiated in Munich by producers and songwriters Sylvester Levay and Michael Kunze ...

and

Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her mus ...

were popular in America. In the 1980s, a highly polished production with "musical simplicity" at its core — from

Bubblegum Pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States i ...

-like lyrics, catchy (in some cases Italian, in other Eurodisco-like) melodies, to "elementary" song structures — an average British Eurobeat song took very little time to complete. Bananarama's "

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

" and Mel & Kim's "

Showing Out (Get Fresh at the Weekend) "Showing Out (Get Fresh at the Weekend)" is the debut single released by sister duo Mel and Kim in 1986. The single's B-side, "System", was originally intended to be the duo's debut release, but after getting to know the sisters, Pete Waterman ...

" were said to be completed in a day, according to Pete Waterman of

. Eurobeat lyrics and melody are very simple. Italo disco, sometimes fast and happy music like

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

, with a sequenced octave bassline. Many feature guitars as a beginning section, followed by a thunderous, highly technical synthesizer riff which is then repeated after the chorus. Songs usually repeat the verse, bridge, and chorus multiple times during the song. The beginning is typically like an instrumental rendition of the verse, bridge, and chorus, while the riff is a lot like an instrumental version of the chorus.

Use of the term

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

record producer

Ian Levine Ian Geoffrey Levine (born 22 June 1953) is a British songwriter, producer, and DJ. A moderniser of Northern soul music in the UK, and a developer of the style of Hi-NRG, he has written and produced records with sales totalling over 40 million. ...

's Eastbound Expressway, released the single "You're a Beat" in recognition of the slower tempo of hi-NRG music emerging from Europe. Many European acts managed to break through under this new recognition, namely the likes of

Modern Talking Modern Talking was a German pop music duo consisting of arranger, songwriter and producer Dieter Bohlen and singer Thomas Anders. They have been referred to as Germany's most successful pop duo, and have had a number of hit singles, reaching th ...

Bad Boys Blue Bad Boys Blue are the German pop group formed in Cologne in 1984. The group performed many international hits including "You're a Woman", " Pretty Young Girl", " I Wanna Hear Your Heartbeat", and "Come Back and Stay". The group became massive ...

, Taffy, and

Spagna Ivana Spagna (born 16 December 1954), also known simply as Spagna (), is an Italian singer and songwriter. She is best known for her worldwide hit song " Call Me" released in 1987. Career Spagna started her career singing in English and in the ...

. The term "Eurobeat" was subsequently used commercially to describe the

–produced hits by Dead or Alive,

Bananarama Bananarama are an English pop duo from London, formed as a trio in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Thei ...

Jason Donovan Jason Sean Donovan (born 1 June 1968) is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap ''Neighbours'', playing Scott Robinson, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 mi ...

Sonia Sonia, Sonja or Sonya, a name of Greek origin meaning wisdom, may refer to: People * Sonia (name), a feminine given name (lists people named, Sonia, Sonja and Sonya) :* Sonia (actress), Indian film actress in Malayalam and Tamil films :* Sonia ...

, and

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...

which were heavily based on the British experience with Italo disco. During 1986–1988, it was used for specific Italian 1980s

imports, such as

Sabrina Salerno Sabrina Debora Salerno (born 15 March 1968), known mononymously as Sabrina, is an Italian singer, songwriter, record producer, model, actress and television presenter. During her career, she has sold over 20 million records worldwide and scored ...

, and

Baltimora Baltimora was an Italian music project from Milan, active from 1984 to 1987. They are best known for their 1985 single "Tarzan Boy" and are often considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom and the United States. In other European countri ...

but was also used in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

as a catch-all term for UK-based

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

and

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

groups of the time such as

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...

, purported to have a "European beat", hence Eurobeat. By 1989, with the advent of

Eurodance Euro-Dance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG, Euro-electronica or Euro) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of hip hop, techno, Hi-NRG, house music, and Euro-Disco. This ...

and Euro house, the term was dropped in the UK.

History

United Kingdom

The trio of British record producers, songwriters, and former DJs Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, and Pete Waterman were involved in the British underground club culture, encountering the Black American soul music-focused scene called Northern Soul, Italian pop-Eurodisco, and sped-up Motown Sound-inspired tracks. As underground record producers, they sought to recapture the "nostalgia" of Motown Sound with a hint of campy playfulness where the simplicity of musical structures, like in Italian disco, was preferred. This musical formula was proven to be successful enough to be capitalized on as they had a string of top 10 UK hits in the 1980s to the point of their version of Eurobeat becoming synonymous with British pop music as a whole. Pete Burns of Dead or Alive regularly fought the production team over " aving to adhereto their production methods and concepts" which SAW were "quite firm about". Burns went on making a next album, produced by Burns and Dead or Alive drummer Steve Coy, without them, called ''

Nude Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. The loss of body hair was one of the physical characteristics that marked the biological evolution of modern humans from their hominin ancestors. Adaptations related to h ...

''. Epic (licensed by Sony Europe) was reluctant about releasing the album but it turned out to be so successful in Japan that it was awarded the

Japan Record Award is a major music awards show, held annually in Japan that recognizes outstanding achievements in the Japan Composer's Association. Until 2005, the show aired on New Year's Eve, but has since aired every December 30 on TBS Japan at 6:30 P.M JST a ...

Grand Prix for Best International Album of 1989 in the 'Pop' or 'Popular' Category.. Relevant pages 29-32 (Pete Burns), Pages 44 & 85 (high-energy music). Page 29 quote: "I got really sick working with them during the making of the '' Mad, Bad'' album. I got really, really sick." ..The Stock Aitken Waterman team was reportedly quite firm about adhering to their production methods and concepts, which Burns said was a major source of friction. "That's why we eventually walked away from them. For instance, there was a lyric from 'Something in My House' rom the follow-up album, ''Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know''where I make a reference to a 'wicked queen.' The actual producer, Mike Stock, stopped me and said I couldn't use the term because it would mean the record is about gay people. I was like, 'Fuck this; it's going on!' They actually wiped the original vocal, but then Pete Waterman came back and said, 'Let

urns An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape or ...

do it the way he wants to.' There you go."

Italy and Japan

"By the Italians, for the Japanese"

Meanwhile, in Japan in 1985, the term "Eurobeat" was applied to all continental-European dance music imports. These were mainly Italian and German-produced

releases. That sound became the soundtrack of the

Para Para is a synchronized dance that originated in Japan. Unlike most club dancing and rave dancing, there are specific synchronized movements for each song much like line dancing. Para Para has existed since the early 1980s when European countries starte ...

nightclub culture, which has existed since the early 1980s. Japan experienced Italo disco through the success of the German group

Arabesque The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foli ...

, which broke up in 1984. This did not prevent the release of two Italo disco-sounding singles in 1985 and 1986, produced and mixed by

Michael Cretu Michael Cretu ( ro, Mihai Crețu, ; born 18 May 1957) is a Romanian-German musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He gained worldwide fame as the founder and musician behind the musical project Enigma, which he formed in 1990. Cretu ...

(of

Enigma Enigma may refer to: *Riddle, someone or something that is mysterious or puzzling Biology *ENIGMA, a class of gene in the LIM domain Computing and technology * Enigma (company), a New York-based data-technology startup * Enigma machine, a family ...

). The later solo success of Arabesque's lead singer Sandra further introduced this sound to Japan. This attracted the attention of many Italo disco producers (mostly Italians and Germans), though by the late 1980s the Germans had faded out of Italo disco and focused on more popular scenes, mainly

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

. In Japan, this music is called "Eurobeat", "Super Eurobeat", and "Eurobeat Flash". Dsc 1150 Mantua

The Japanese

dance culture is influenced by Eurobeat. In the early 1990s, Eurobeat's popularity was gradually decreasing in Japan. Two Japanese men, namely Masato "Max" Matsuura the owner and a managing director of

Avex is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...

a small import record shop at the time, decided to release a

compilation CD A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...

. They went to Italy and met Giancarlo Pasquini (later known as

Dave Rodgers Dave Rodgers (born Giancarlo Pasquini; 21 February 1963) is an Italian singer, songwriter and producer known for his contributions to the Eurobeat genre of dance music. Born in Mantua, Italy, he formed the band Aleph before contributing to the lon ...

), then a member of the Italo disco band

Aleph Aleph (or alef or alif, transliterated ʾ) is the first letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician , Hebrew , Aramaic , Syriac , Arabic ʾ and North Arabian 𐪑. It also appears as South Arabian 𐩱 and Ge'ez . These letter ...

. Together they released the first ''

Super Eurobeat is a CD compilation series of Eurobeat music in Japan. The series itself is one of the longest-running music compilations. It has been running for over thirty years and the current list consists of 250 volumes (not counting the many "''Super Eur ...

'', a compilation CD which saw instant success and re-ignited Eurobeat's popularity in Japan. Avex also collaborated with foundational Eurobeat labels A-Beat C,

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

, and Delta long after Eurobeat's mainstream popularity peak. Eurobeat's sound (in the Japanese market) is its main link to its Italo disco origins, where it was just one of many different experiments in pure electronic dance. There are certain synth instruments that recur across the entire genre: a sequenced octave bass, the energetic (sometimes wild) and heavy use of synths, distinctive brass and harp sounds, and tight, predictable percussion in the background. The

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

series ''

Initial D is a Japanese street racing manga series written and illustrated by Shuichi Shigeno. It was serialized in Kodansha's ''seinen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Young Magazine'' from 1995 to 2013, with the chapters collected into 48 ''ta ...

'', based on the

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

Shuichi Shigeno is a Japanese manga artist famous for creating '' Initial D''. Shigeno has also created '' Bari Bari Densetsu'', ''Dopkan'', and ''Tunnel Nuketara Sky Blue'' ("First Love in Summer") all prior to the manga that would make him famous in 1995. ...

, uses Eurobeat music regularlyStuckmann, Chris (2018) "Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation". Vincent R. Siciliano segment. Mango Media Inc. . in its episodes during racing scenes between the characters, and because of this it has come to the attention of some anime fans outside Japan. The series, as well as the

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

, use a large playlist of Eurobeat songs (for example, the trio of "Deja Vu" by

, "Running in the 90s" by Max Coveri, and "Gas Gas Gas" by Manuel Caramori). (Many of these songs also became

memes A meme ( ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural i ...

.) There are also many Eurobeat songs based on the series itself, including: "Takumi" by Neo, "Speed Car" by D-Team, "Initial D Hell" by Dave Rodgers and "DDD Initial D (My Car is Fantasy)" by Mega NRG Man. Another anime called ''

Dear Boys ''Dear Boys'' (stylized as ''DEAR BOYS'') is a Japanese sports manga written and illustrated by Hiroki Yagami, published by Kodansha in ''Monthly Shōnen Magazine''. As of June 2007, the ''Dear Boys'' series has 25 volumes in total, ...

'', which focuses on basketball, also features Eurobeat during basketball game sequences. In 1998, Bemani, a branch of the video game company

Konami , is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...

made a hit video dance machine, ''

Dance Dance Revolution (''DDR'') is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is the pioneering series of the rhythm and dance V ...

''. The game acquired Eurobeat songs from the ''

Dancemania ''Dancemania'' is a series of remix compilation albums by i-DANCE. The series deals primarily with dance music, especially Eurodance. Despite many of its tracks being made by various musicians from all over the world and mainly from the European ...

'' compilation series published by

Toshiba EMI , formerly , was one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. on June 30, 2007, after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. Its CEO and president was Kazuhiko Koike. Whe ...

. Though there was not much Eurobeat from 2006's SuperNOVA on, the series still features some tracks as of 2021. Other music games in Konami's lineup feature a large number of Eurobeat tracks, including ''

Beatmania (styled as ''beatmania'') is a Rhythm game, rhythm video game developed and distributed by Japan, Japanese game developer Konami and first released in December 1997. It contributed largely to the boom of music games in 1998, and the series e ...

'', ''

Beatmania IIDX is a series of rhythm video games, that was first introduced by Konami in Japan on February 26, 1999. ''IIDX'' has since spawned 31 arcade releases and 14 console releases on the Sony PlayStation 2. It is the sequel to the ''beatmania'' game ...

'', ''

jubeat , stylized as ''jubeat'', is a series of arcade music video games developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan, and is a part of Konami's Bemani line of music video games. The series uses an arrangement of 16 buttons in a 4x4 grid for gameplay ...

'', and many more. The popularity of the genre also led Konami to create a

game, ''

ParaParaParadise is an arcade and PlayStation 2 dance game made by the Japanese company Konami and released under the Bemani moniker following the Para Para fad. Konami would later release ''Dance Evolution'' for the Xbox 360, a game that shares many similari ...

'', though it was less successful than their other series.

J-Euro

There have been four types of music called "J-Euro" (Japanese Eurobeat); :1. Eurobeat songs made in Italy, covered by Japanese artists with Japanese lyrics. ::This type of "J-Euro" appeared first in the early 1990s. Notable artists of this type of "J-Euro" have included MAX, D&D, V6,

Dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

, and the "Queen of J-pop"

Namie Amuro Namie Amuro ( ; ja, 安室奈美恵, Amuro Namie, label=none; born September 20, 1977) is a Japanese former recording artist, producer, songwriter, dancer, model, actress and entrepreneur who was active between 1992 and 2018. A leading figure of ...

. :2. J-pop songs made in Japan, remixed in the style of Eurobeat by Italian Eurobeat producers. ::This type of "J-Euro" appeared first on the 1999 issue of ''Super Eurobeat'', ''Vol. 100'', with several tracks of this type of "J-Euro" by MAX, Every Little Thing, and

Ayumi Hamasaki is a Japanese singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, model, spokesperson, and entrepreneur. By 2002, Hamasaki had earned the nickname "Empress of J-pop" due to her popularity in Japan and throughout Asia. Due to her success and relevanc ...

. This type of "J-Euro" has been popular in the

para para is a synchronized dance that originated in Japan. Unlike most club dancing and rave dancing, there are specific synchronized movements for each song much like line dancing. Para Para has existed since the early 1980s when European countries starte ...

scene since around 2000. Tsutaya
J-Euro Non-Stop Best > Summary
Avex Trax launched the ''Super Eurobeat Presents : J-Euro'' series in 2000. This series included '' Ayu-ro Mix 1, 2 and 3'', plus a fourth remix album missing the "Super Eurobeat" tag featuring

, '' Euro Every Little Thing'' featuring Every Little Thing, '' Hyper Euro MAX'' featuring MAX, ''Euro global'' featuring

globe A globe is a spherical model of Earth, of some other celestial body, or of the celestial sphere. Globes serve purposes similar to maps, but unlike maps, they do not distort the surface that they portray except to scale it down. A model globe ...

, '' Euro Dream Land'' featuring

, ''J-Euro Best'', ''

J-Euro Non-Stop Best ''J-Euro Non-Stop Best'' is a megamix compilation album, consisting of recordings by various Avex artists produced and/or remixed by various music producers mostly those of eurobeat from Italy, released in 2001 by Avex Trax. As an album in the ...

'', Avex Trax
J-EURO
etc. :3. Eurobeat songs made in Japan, and sung by Japanese artists themselves. :: This type of Eurobeat has always been present since the 2000s, but only started to gain attention once the

scene began promoting songs in this style. Most songs are anime remixes or J-pop covers, which has led to some calling it an ''anime boom''. ::Eurobeat labels that showcase this type of J-Euro are ''A-One'', ''Akiba Koubou INC/Akiba Records'', ''Eurobeat Union'', ''Fantasy Dance Tracks'', ''Plum Music'', ''SuganoMusic'', ''TTL Sound'', ''Takanashi Koubou'' and more.

Para Para

One of the dance moves Eurobeat spawned was , a type of Eurobeat music-inspired Japanese youth social dance performed in unison.Roland B. Tolentino, Jin Hui Ong, Ai Yun Hing (2004). "Transglobal Economies and Cultures: Contemporary Japan and Southeast Asia". Page 241. University of Michigan & University of the Philippines Press. .

References

{{Electronica 1980s in music 1990s in music 2000s in music European music genres Hi-NRG British styles of music Italian styles of music Japanese styles of music Okinawan music Culture in Okinawa Prefecture Electronic dance music genres