Electro

Electro on vinyl: Planet Rock, drum machines and vocoders

In short: Electro is the style that brought funk, hip hop and Kraftwerk together in the early eighties: hard drum-machine beats, synth bass and voices through a vocoder. The Vinyl Room currently has 213 records in this style, many of them on 12-inch.

What is electro?

The starting shot is said to be “Planet Rock” by Afrika Bambaataa & the Soulsonic Force (1982), which picks up a melody from Kraftwerk’s “Trans-Europe Express”. The Roland TR-808 drum machine became the heart of the style. In Los Angeles, the World Class Wreckin’ Cru played electro before its members went on to shape West Coast hip hop. In the 2000s the sound returned as electroclash, and bands such as Moderat from Berlin carry it on to this day.

What to look for

Many electro classics also came out as 12-inch singles, often on small labels. You recognise first pressings by label, catalogue number and runout matrix; many tracks also exist on eighties compilations.

From our stock

First pressings

Electro & hip hop

New in

→ Electronic on vinyl · Hip hop on vinyl · How to spot a first pressing · Grading explained

FAQ

What is electro? A style of the early eighties combining funk, hip hop and electronics, with drum machine, synth bass and vocoder.

What does “Planet Rock” have to do with Kraftwerk? Afrika Bambaataa’s “Planet Rock” (1982) picks up a melody from Kraftwerk’s “Trans-Europe Express”.

Is electro the same as electronic music? No. Electro is a specific style, electronic music the umbrella term for many styles.