2025: So what *did* happen, anyway?

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-- 2025: So what *did* happen, anyway?

Posted by Sykonee on Jan-02-2026 00:48:

2025: So what *did* happen, anyway?

I freely admit I'm hardly as much on the pulse of clubland these days, but did it feel as relatively... quiet to others? Like, it seemed the only major news stories that came out was just more fears about the emerging prevalence of A.I. sloppifying the scene.

This seems to have permeated into mainstream circles too, pop music commentators lamenting just how bland and washed the charts have been this past year compared to years past. Streaming numbers suggesting more and more folks keeping classics high in rotation rather than engaging with newer music.

I'm sure underground niches continue to thrive in their own, insular fashion, but for whatever reason, 2025 felt like a 'going through motions' kind of year, as though everyone's got far more pressing concerns in their lives now than hyping whatever the current crop of EDM producers are hashing out.

What say y'all?

Posted by SYSTEM-J on Jan-02-2026 13:47:

I can't think of many new trends that became prominent this year. It seemed to be mostly a continuation of the movements that have dominated the club scene post-pandemic. Mainstream techno keeps getting faster and harder, to the point that sets like this, which would have been seen as extreme even in the '90s, are now main stage festival fare. There have been some small scale reactions against this silliness, such as dub techno having one of its periodic breakouts through acts like Purelink, but they're barely scratching the surface.

Everywhere you look, '90s revivalism is still very much in fashion. Tempos are high, moods are euphoric, samples and remixes of classics are rife. The progressive trance stuff I'm mainly interested in has shown signs of going in a slightly more tribal direction in 2025 (history repeating once again) but nothing approaching the dominance that sound had the first time around.

The other big mainstream movement seems to be Afro House becoming more and more commercialised, less "afro" and more white and song-based. It's now reaching the point where you're hearing it infect the sets of people like Dave Seaman and Lee Burridge, much to the irritation of their fans.

Overall, it kinda feels like a sea change is imminent. We've been in this harder, faster, ADHD era of club music for over five years now and it's reaching the point where it's going to burn itself out. I wouldn't be entirely surprised to hear tempos start dropping again and things getting slightly deeper - there really isn't any other direction of travel left to go.

Posted by Light The Fuse on Mar-13-2026 11:32:

As the western empire dies the culture continues to eat itself. Occasional moments of brilliance but mainly recycled standards. 'Melodic house & Techno' is where 4x4 dance for the masses sits at this point at the entry level. As mentioned above the obnoxious hyperactive shit is getting super stale.
I dunno, I dont mind a bit of the stuff around atm it can be okay I guess - Im old and jaded though. Arent we all?