Discographies

Experiencing disco, hiphop, house, techno, drum 'n' bass and garage, this work plots a course thorough the transatlantic dance scene of the last 25 years. Tracing the history of ideas about music and dance in Western culture and the ways in which dance music is produced and received, the authors assess the importance and relevance of dance culture in the 1990s and beyond. The book considers the formal, aesthetic and political characteristics of dance music. It discusses the problems posed by contemporary dance culture of both academic and cultural study and finds these origins in the history of opposition to music as a source of sensory pleasure. Discussing such issues as technology, club space, drugs, the musical body, gender, sexuality and pleasure, this book explores the ecstatic experiences at the heart of contemporary dance culture. It suggests why agencies as diverse as the House of Commons, the independent music press and public broadcasting should be so hostile to this cultural phenomenon.

'This is a lucid, informative, engagingly written and stimulating work. It admirably covers a variety of different theoretical issues and takes off from dance to raise all sorts of questions about the treatment of music in cultural studies'. - Simon Frith, University of Stirling'Discographies is contemporary, committed and compelling. The strengths of the book lie in its ability to combine academic expertise with an obvious immersion in dance music culture.' - Will Straw, McGill University

Jeremy Gilbert is currently teaching in the Media and Cultural Studies at the University of East London. He is contributor to Living Through Pop and The Moderniser's Dilemma. Ewan Pearson has been a visiting lecturer in Cultural Studies at the University of East London. He is now a full-time musician and has recorded for several Uk dance labels including Glasgow's Soma recordings.