Synthpop

Synthpop is an Electronic Pop style led by prominent, melodic synthesizer sounds. It was mainly developed in the mid-1970s alongside New Wave, drawing on Pop Rock, Moogsploitation, and various keyboard-led styles associated with Progressive Electronic. Initially spearheaded by Krautrock band Kraftwerk and new wave artist Gary Numan, the genre achieved major commercial success in the 1980s, with artists like Depeche Mode, Tears for Fears, The Human League, and New Order dominating the pop charts for most of the decade. At the time of its first major breakthrough, synthpop, unlike other types of pop music, was minimal, mechanical, and atmospheric, often delivered with a detached-from-reality, cold feeling. As the popularity of synthesizers in pop music rose—fueled by Electro-Disco and other post-Disco styles in the mid-1970s, and intensified by new technology like MIDI and digital synthesizers—synthpop became associated with the era it emerged from, and is often considered the defining genre of 1980s pop music. Since its inception, the genre's evident commercial success has led to numerous evolutions of its sound, influencing a significant portion of pop and electronic music. The pulsating drum machine patterns played a large role in the development of Dance-Pop, particularly that of Madonna and Pet Shop Boys, sometimes denoting a joyful, cheerful version of synthpop. The genre's minimalist and often cold approach influenced various Industrial artists and traditions, leading to the development of EBM and, eventually, Futurepop, which further perpetuated the genre's chilly aesthetic. Its repetitive grooves, alongside Electro's rhythms, laid the foundation for Detroit Techno and thus Techno as a whole, refining the electronic backbone and instrumental-oriented approach of some types of synthpop. AKA: Synthesizer PopTechnopop