This fantastic book is about ‘Electronic Music in Britain from Doctor Who to Acid House’. I’ve read a few books on the history of electronic music already, it being one of my special interests, but this one is different because it spans several decades, a variety of genres and is focused on Britain. I found the early chapters the most fascinating, which discussed the pioneers of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and the trend of amateur tape recording. You could even buy ex-military equipment and create your own electronic instruments. The content of the book moves on to pop music and psychedelia in the 60s, followed by prog rock, industrial music, synth pop, dub sound systems, hip hop, sampling, and acid house, among others. The author interviewed some of the people involved and uncovers interesting links between the genres, plus he traces the influence of other countries’ music on the British scene. He also touches upon topics such as the controversy about sampling, whether noise is considered music, and the vital contribution of black artists to the innovations of electronic music. There are some well-chosen photos of various artists discussed in the book. Nowadays when music can be created on computers with relative ease – or even created by AI – the effort, dedication and creativity of these pioneers and trendsetters is all the more apparent, often in an analogue studio where sounds were painstakingly produced and recorded, to amazing effect.

Published by Omnibus Press, 2024.

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