Carl Cox, Paul Oakenfold, Disco Donnie, Pasquale Rotella, and other influencers of our community share the history of electronic music and how they helped shape our community.
For those that know me personally, I love a good documentary. I also love to watch documentaries following my favorite music genre, electronic music. I’ve seen so many – This Was Tomorrow, Under The Electric Sky, and even Avicii’s recent documentary. I was enthralled to be able to watch another documentary. I went into it not knowing what to expect, and I must say I was not disappointed in the slightest by What We Started.
After first being introduced to the electronic dance music scene through the Kaskade event I attended in 2012, I’m still pretty new to the scene compared to some of my rave family. I didn’t really have a deep understanding of the scene and how it started. I knew of it from the beginning of the millennium and that was it. Apparently, it extends much deeper.
Netflix describes What We Started as “DJs and industry insiders offer a backstage pass to the world of electronic dance music, reflecting on its radical origins and the future of the genre.”
This film helped me discover that history by interviewing those that heavily influence how we listen to music and attend these large festivals. Individuals such as Disco Donnie, Pasquale Rotella, and so many others share their take on how they helped shape the way we attend these events.
It was quite interesting to learn about how disco is actually where electronic music was born. Once disco fell, electronic music began to evolve. It started with house and techno then transformed from that point.
DJing legends like Paul Oakenfold, Carl Cox, Tiesto, and so many others share their stories about how they first started making music and how they saw it change through the years, all while watching younger and newer artists go through their experiences in the business like Martin Garrix.
Carl Cox described it best in his description of the early days of electronic music. During those days it taught the audience to expect the unexpected.
What We Started definitely shed new light on the music scene I love, seeing it with a newfound appreciation for those that make the music and create these magical festivals I’m able to attend. If you love this scene, I would definitely recommend watching this film. Learning about where our genres started and how electronic music was born was most definitely eye-opening.
