Electronic body music (EBM) is a type of electronic music that mixes parts of industrial music, synth-punk, and dance music. It began in the early 1980s in Western Europe, growing from the punk and industrial music scenes. EBM uses repeated basslines, programmed disco beats, and mostly clear vocals with shouts. The lyrics often include themes that challenge or provoke listeners.

Over time, EBM changed to include more structured songs, similar to how other industrial music evolved. It became part of the European new wave and post-punk movements. EBM was the first style to mix synthesized sounds with excited dancing, such as pogoing.

EBM became popular in the late 1980s. During this time, a youth culture developed around EBM. People who followed this music called themselves EBM-heads or, in North America, rivetheads.

Etymology

The term "electronic body music" was first used by Ralf Hütter of the German band Kraftwerk during an interview with the British music newspaper Sounds in November 1977. In June 1978, Hütter used the same phrase again in an interview with WKSU radio (Kent, Ohio) to describe the more physical feel of Kraftwerk's album The Man-Machine. Although the term was created in the late 1970s, it became more popular in the 1980s.

— Jurgen Engler of Die Krupps

In 1981, the German group DAF used the term "Körpermusik" (body music) to describe their danceable electronic punk style. Later, in 1984, the Belgian band Front 242 used the phrase "electronic body music" to describe the music on their EP No Comment.

Characteristics

EBM is a type of music that combines electronic punk sounds with industrial noises. It uses programmed drum beats, repeating basslines, and clear or slightly distorted vocals. These vocals are often mixed with shouts or growls and special effects like echo. Common rhythms in EBM include the steady 4/4 disco beat or rock-style backbeats, which use a kick drum, snare drum, and hi-hat. Some rhythms also include slight changes in timing.

Environmental sounds, such as the noise of a hammer hitting metal, machines, or alerts, are often added to create a "factory-like atmosphere." Other sounds used include parts of political speeches or scenes from science fiction movies, as seen in the song "Funkahdafi" by Front 242.

History

EBM music developed from a mix of post-punk, industrial, and post-industrial music styles. Early influences included bands like The Normal, Suicide, DAF, Die Krupps, Killing Joke, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle, and Test Dept. It also drew from krautrock and Berlin school artists such as Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream, who used electronic bass patterns in their music.

— Timor Kaul, German musicologist and cultural historian

Other influences came from synth-pop groups like The Human League and Fad Gadget, as well as the dance hit "I Feel Love" by Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer. Daniel Bressanutti of Front 242, who helped create the term EBM, mentioned that Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Kraftwerk, Throbbing Gristle, Giorgio Moroder’s electro-disco, and the punk movement also shaped the style.

EBM began in the early 1980s in Germany and Belgium. Bands like DAF, Die Krupps, Liaisons Dangereuses, and Front 242 combined dance rhythms with repeating electronic patterns. At that time, important synthesizers included the Korg MS-20, Roland SH-101, ARP Odyssey, Emulator II, and models from Oberheim and Yamaha.

Typical EBM songs include "Verschwende deine Jugend," "Alle gegen alle," and "Der Mussolini" by DAF; "Wahre Arbeit, wahrer Lohn," "Goldfinger," and "Für einen Augenblick" by Die Krupps; "Etre assis ou danser," "Los niños del parque," and "Avant-après mars" by Liaisons Dangereuses; and "Body to Body," "U-Men," and "He Runs Too Fast for Us" by Front 242.

Front 242 described their sound as a blend of Throbbing Gristle and Kraftwerk. Bands like Nitzer Ebb and Portion Control, influenced by DAF and Cabaret Voltaire, followed soon after. Many artists from this time used designs inspired by socialist realism, often in a humorous way. Other notable artists included Pankow, Vomito Negro, Borghesia, The Neon Judgement, à;GRUMH…, A Split-Second, The Klinik, and Signal Aout 42.

By the late 1980s, EBM became popular in Canada (Front Line Assembly), the U.S. (Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Schnitt Acht), Sweden (Inside Treatment, Pouppée Fabrikk, Cat Rapes Dog), and Japan (2nd Communication, DRP, Soft Ballet). North American bands started using EBM’s repeating bass patterns and combined them with the rough energy of punk and thrash metal. Nine Inch Nails later blended EBM with rock, creating the album Pretty Hate Machine (1989).

Meanwhile, EBM grew in underground club scenes, especially in Europe. Important labels during this time included Play It Again Sam and Antler-Subway in Belgium, Zoth Ommog in Germany, Wax Trax! in North America, and Energy Rekords in Sweden. Notable artists at this time were And One, Armageddon Dildos, Bigod 20, Insekt, Scapa Flow, Orange Sector, Paranoid, and Electro Assassin.

Between the early and mid-1990s, many EBM artists stopped making music or changed their styles, adding more rock, heavy metal, and electronica elements. The album 06:21:03:11 Up Evil by Front 242 marked the end of the 1980s EBM era. Nitzer Ebb, a key EBM band, shifted to alternative rock. Without its main artists, EBM as a clear style faded by the mid-1990s.

In the late 1990s and after the year 2000, Belgian, Swedish, and German artists like Ionic Vision, Tyske Ludder, and Spetsnaz revived EBM. This revival led to Sweden and East Germany becoming centers for the movement, producing new artists. These musicians focused on a traditional EBM style, often called "old school EBM," to oppose the growing futurepop scene.

At the same time, some European techno producers began adding EBM elements to their music. This trend grew alongside the electroclash scene. As electroclash declined, artists like The Hacker, DJ Hell, Green Velvet, Black Strobe, and David Carretta moved toward a techno/EBM mix.

There has been more overlap between the old school EBM scene and this techno/EBM crossover. Some artists have remixed each other. A notable example is Terence Fixmer and Nitzer Ebb’s Douglas McCarthy forming Fixmer/McCarthy.

Aesthetics

EBM music draws from the style of punk and industrial music, which often challenge traditional ideas (for example, by questioning the meaning of symbols). It frequently uses strong, shocking images, such as references to Nazi symbols, similar to how punk music sometimes used the swastika. Using symbols from totalitarian, Socialist, and Fascist groups has led to discussions among fans and people outside the genre because these references can be confusing due to industrial music's tendency to oppose mainstream ideas. For example, the military-themed band Laibach did not try to change the image of military symbols, which made their performances feel real to fans, leading some to accept the band's image without question.

— Chris Piper, manager of Nitzer Ebb

The military style of EBM combines a mix of human and machine elements, similar to ideas found in cyberpunk or transhumanist movements. EBM often shows a very strong, tough image, using themes like victory, fighting postures, and fear. It is known for showing "tough-guy" or macho attitudes, seen in both men and women. Gabi Delgado-López of Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft explained that the duo who wore black leather and military-style clothing in the 1980s were inspired by a specific subculture related to male homosexual sado-masochistic scenes. This style was not meant to represent a belief in traditional masculine ideals but was instead part of a role or performance.

Derivatives and alternative terms

Electro-industrial music came from EBM and industrial music that started in the mid-1980s. EBM has simple structures and a clear sound, while electro-industrial uses rich, complicated sounds with many layers. It includes elements from ambient industrial music. Artists like Skinny Puppy, Numb, and Mentallo & The Fixer helped create electro-industrial. In the early 1990s, this style led to the dark electro genre. By the end of the decade, a new style called "hellektro" or "aggrotech" developed, inspired by techno and hard-trance music.

Industrial dance is a term used in North America to describe electronic body music and electro-industrial music. People who enjoy these genres often call themselves rivetheads.

Industrial dance music is usually described as having fast, electronic beats, keyboard melodies, powerful rhythms, voices that show anger or are sampled, and images from science fiction.

Since the mid-1980s, the term industrial dance has been used to describe music by artists such as Cabaret Voltaire, Die Krupps, Portion Control, The Neon Judgement, Clock DVA, Nitzer Ebb, KMFDM, Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly, Front 242, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Manufacture, Yeht Mae, My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, Leæther Strip, and early Spahn Ranch. In March 1989, Spin Magazine published a two-page report about the industrial dance movement in Canada and the U.S.