View source for Digital hardcore

{{Short description|Music genre that melds hardcore punk with electronic music}}
{{Distinguish|Hardcore (electronic dance music genre)|electronicore|digicore}}
{{more citations needed|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name              = Digital hardcore
| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|[[Hardcore punk]]|[[Electronic music|electronic]]|[[gabber]]|[[drum and bass]]|[[breakbeat]]|[[techno]]|[[Electronic dance music|EDM]]|[[Noise music|noise]]|[[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]]|[[riot grrrl]]|[[industrial rock]]}}
| cultural_origins  = Early 1990s, Germany
| derivatives       = {{hlist|[[Grindcore#Electrogrind|Cybergrind]]}}
| subgenres         =
| fusion genres     =
| regional_scenes   = {{hlist|[[Europe]]|[[United States]]|[[Australia]]}}
| other_topics      = {{hlist|[[Anarcho-punk]]|[[electronicore]]|[[electropunk]]|[[Hardcore (electronic dance music genre)|hardcore techno]]|[[industrial metal]]|[[noise rock]]|[[Power noise|industrial hardcore]]|[[breakcore]]}}
}}

'''Digital hardcore''' is a fusion genre that combines [[hardcore punk]] with [[electronic dance music]] genres such as [[breakbeat]], [[techno]], and [[drum and bass]] while also drawing on [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]], [[Industrial music|industrial]] and [[noise music]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/culture/theater/.premium-1.592188|title=Neo-Nazi Fighting Digital Hardcore Musician Comes to Israel|last=Kutner|first=Moshe|date=2014-05-22|work=Haaretz|access-date=2017-07-09|language=en}}</ref><ref name="dhr" /> It typically features fast tempos and aggressive [[Sampling (music)|sound samples]].<ref name="dhr" /> The style was pioneered by [[Alec Empire]] of the German band [[Atari Teenage Riot]] during the early 1990s, and often has [[Sociology|sociological]] or [[Left-wing politics|leftist]] lyrical themes.<ref name="dhr" />

==Characteristics==
{{Listen
 |filename     = Rabbit_Junk_Locked.ogg
 |title        = "Locked" by Rabbit Junk
 |description  = "Locked" by [[Rabbit Junk]] demonstrates digital hardcore's signature quick pace, aggressive vocals, breakbeats, and industrial-influence.}}

Digital hardcore music is typically fast and abrasive, combining the speed, heaviness and [[Punk subculture#Ideologies|attitude]] of [[hardcore punk]], [[thrash metal]], and [[riot grrrl]]<ref name="dhr" /><ref>"I was totally into the riot grrrl music, I see it as a very important form of expression. I learned a lot from that, way more maybe than from 'male' punk rock." ''The Punk Years'', "Typical Girls" [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJmvaPdPG5Y&mode=related&search=] Access date: August 20, 2008.</ref> with [[electronic music]] such as [[hardcore techno]],<ref name="dhr" /> [[gabber]],<ref name="dhr" /> [[Oldschool Jungle|jungle]],<ref name="dhr" /> [[drum and bass]], [[glitch music|glitch]], and [[industrial rock]].<ref name=dhr/> Some bands, like [[Atari Teenage Riot]], incorporate elements of [[hip-hop music]], such as [[freestyle rap]].

According to Jeff Terich of ''Treble Media'', digital hardcore is "on the verge of reaching speeds incompatible with popular music, as if the rapid acceleration of BPMs would render the idea of rhythm irrelevant or, at the very least, unpredictable. Maybe this is music for dancing; definitely this is music for screaming and breaking things."<ref name="treblezine.com">{{Cite web|url=http://www.treblezine.com/34779-atari-teenage-riot-start-riot-20-years-hall-fame/|title=Atari Teenage Riot's Burn, Berlin, Burn! started a digital hardcore riot|website=www.treblezine.com|date=17 April 2017|language=en-US|access-date=2017-07-09}}</ref>

The [[electric guitar]] (either real or sampled and usually heavily [[Distortion (music)|distorted]]) is used alongside [[Sampler (musical instrument)|samplers]], [[synthesizer]]s and [[drum machine]]s. While the use of electronic instruments is a defining feature of the genre, [[bass guitar]]s, [[electric guitar]]s, and [[drum kit]]s are optional. Vocals are more often shouted than sung by more than one member of the group. Typically, the lyrics are highly politicized and espouse [[left-wing]] or [[anarchism|anarchist]] ideals.<ref name="dhr" /> Some practitioners have been influenced by [[anarcho-punk]].<ref name="treblezine.com"/>

==History==

===1990s===
[[File:Atari Teenage Riot 2010 02.jpg|thumb|German band [[Atari Teenage Riot]] are considered progenitors of the style.]]
The music was first defined by the band [[Atari Teenage Riot]], who formed in [[Berlin]], Germany in 1992.<ref name=dhr/> The band's frontman, [[Alec Empire]], coined the term "digital hardcore," setting up the [[independent record label]] [[Digital Hardcore Recordings]] in 1994.<ref name=dhr>Interview with J. Amaretto of DHR, WAX Magazine, issue 5, 1995. Included in liner notes of ''Digital Hardcore Recordings, Harder Than the Rest!!!'' compilation CD.</ref><ref>Alec Empire. [http://www.indymedia.ie/article/80386 on the Digital Hardcore scene and its origins], ''[[Indymedia.ie]]'', 2006-12-28. Retrieved on 2008-05-28.</ref> German bands with a similar style began signing to the label and its underground popularity grew, with small digital hardcore festivals being held in several German cities.<ref name=dhr/> By the mid-1990s, a number of new record labels specializing in the genre were formed around the world. These included Gangster Toons Industries (Paris), Praxis (London), Cross Fade Enter Tainment (Hamburg), Drop Bass Network (U.S.), and [[Bloody Fist]] (Australia).<ref name=dhr/> [[Digital Hardcore Recordings]] also had some kinship with the Frankfurt labels [[Mille Plateaux (record label)|Mille Plateaux]] and Riot Beats.<ref name=dhr/> Alec Empire's work subsequently set the template for [[breakcore]].<ref>Alvin Chan, Music OMH, March 2008. [http://www.musicomh.com/interviews/alec-empire_0308.htm] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002033313/http://www.musicomh.com/interviews/alec-empire_0308.htm|date=2008-10-02}} Access date: August 6, 2008.</ref><ref name=xlr8r>Matt Earp, "Breakcore: Live Fast", XLR8R, July 20, 2006. {{cite web |url=http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2006/05/breakcore-live-fast |title=Breakcore: Live Fast &#124; XLR8R |access-date=2008-08-09 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080906185001/http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2006/05/breakcore-live-fast |archive-date=2008-09-06 }} Access date: August 8, 2008.</ref>

===2000s===
In Alec Empire's words, "Digital Hardcore went from a local, Berlin based scene to an international underground movement."<ref name="AEInterview">[http://www.digitalhardcore.com/News_Item.asp?News_ID=25 The definitive Alec Empire Interview 26/02/02] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070203091920/http://www.digitalhardcore.com/News_Item.asp?News_ID=25 |date=February 3, 2007 }}</ref> The soundtrack to the film ''[[Threat (film)|Threat]]'' included contributions from digital hardcore musicians, along with [[metalcore]] bands.<ref>Ryan Orvis, MPR, "Just a Minor ''Threat''", [http://www.medusapr.com/press/threat/entertainment-today.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090112001429/http://www.medusapr.com/press/threat/entertainment-today.html|date=2009-01-12}} Access date: August 6, 2008.</ref> [[James Plotkin]], [[Black Army Jacket|Dave Witte]] and [[Making Orange Things|Speedranch]]'s project [[Phantomsmasher]] combined digital hardcore with [[grindcore]]. Notable 21st century digital hardcore groups include [[Left Spine Down]], [[Motormark]], [[Death Spells]], [[The Shizit]], [[Rabbit Junk]], and [[Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas]]. Additionally, [[Nine Inch Nails]]' 2007 studio album ''[[Year Zero (album)|Year Zero]]'' has been considered as a digital hardcore album as well.

===2010s===
Digital hardcore saw less prominence in the 2010s. However, its international influence can be seen in the prominence of [[electronicore]], a similar musical genre fusing hardcore punk and metalcore with electronica. The German band [[We Butter the Bread with Butter]] has seen commercial success employing this fusion.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://musicserver.cz/clanek/38049/Get-Infected-Tour-zabouri-uz-za-par-dni-v-Praze/|title=Get Infected Tour zabouří už za pár dní v Praze|work=musicserver.cz|access-date=2017-05-21}}</ref> The term "digital hardcore" has largely fallen out of use, given its association with politically charged lyrics, which are not a characteristic of newer electronicore artists.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

One notable digital hardcore band to come out of the 2010s was [[Machine Girl]], especially with their 2017 album ''"...Because I'm Young Arrogant and Hate Everything You Stand For",'' which combined their earlier modern [[breakcore]] style with more extreme hardcore punk vocals.

=== 2020s ===
Coming into the 2020s, digital hardcore has seen a rise with new releases and artists, such as [[LustSickPuppy]]. Notable mainstream success within the digital hardcore genre has been seen with the British band [[Wargasm (band)|WARGASM]], whose debut EP, ''Explicit: The Mixxxtape'', was released on 9 September 2022; the full-length album ''[[Venom (Wargasm album)|Venom]]'' was released a year later to critical success.

==See also==
*[[Digital Hardcore Recordings]]
*[[Breakcore]]
*[[Electronicore]]
*[[Electropunk]]
*[[Grindcore|Cybergrind]]
*[[Industrial metal]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Reynolds, Simon (1999). ''Generation Ecstasy: Into the World of Techno and Rave Culture''. Routledge. {{ISBN|0-415-92373-5}}
* Taylor, Steve (2006). ''The A to X of Alternative Music''. Continuum International Publishing Group. {{ISBN|0-826-48217-1}}

{{Electronic rock}}
{{Hardcorepunk}}
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[[Category:20th-century music genres]]
[[Category:21st-century music genres]]
[[Category:Hardcore punk genres]]
[[Category:Hardcore music genres]]