Eurobeat (Music Genre)

Eurobeat is a type of dance music derived from the Italo-disco music of the 1980s. It became very popular in Japan during the 1990s and peaked in popularity around 2000, after which it declined. Eurobeat is characterized by a fast BPM around 140 to 160, passionate and energetic vocals, and a heavily synthesized sound. Much of Eurobeat is made in northern Italy (especially in Lombardy) and is often sung by Italian singers.

Some fans believe that the first proper Eurobeat songs were made in 1990, at the A-Beat-C label. Max Matsuura with Avex Trax recognized Eurobeat’s potential and licensed A-Beat-C’s songs for its revival of Beat Freak’s Super Eurobeat CD compilation. A-Beat-C’s initial success was also due to producers and writers Giancarlo Pasquini, Alberto Contini, Gino Caria, Sandro Oliva, Andrea Leonardi, and others.

Other labels were also present in Eurobeat’s early days. Time Records, which had been producing Italo-disco since 1984, gradually evolved its sound to become more fitting for the new Japanese audience. Though originally headed by Mauro Farina, Giuliano Crivellente, and Florian Fadinger, Laurent Gelmetti eventually took up the producer’s mantle at Time and evolved the sound into Eurobeat by 1992.

Farina, Crivellente, and Fadinger continued to operate Asia Records, which dominated the later That's Eurobeat albums, a competitor to Super Eurobeat.

Eurobeat’s tempo became faster and faster as the mid-1990s passed. Producers from Time Records especially broke away to form new labels, including Hi-NRG Attack, Vibration, SCP, and Delta. Delta became one of the most successful Eurobeat labels of the late-1990s, boasting songs made by Andrea Leonardi and Laurent Gelmetti. Popular Eurobeat singer Clara Moroni headed the label and sang many songs for it.

Avex also created new compilations to go alongside Super Eurobeat, which was approaching its hundredth volume in 1999. These compilations were Maharaja Night – Hi-NRG Revolution (1992-1998), Eurobeat Flash (1995-1999), and Super Eurobeat Presents Euromach (1999-2002).

Time Records reinvented itself after Laurent Gelmetti stepped down as producer. Gino Caria and Sergio Dall'Ora took over production in 1995. During 1996 to 1998, Time Records produced many hits under the work of three producers: Sergio Dall'Ora, Davide Di Marcantonio, and Luca Pernici.

Around the year 2000, Eurobeat was reaching a zenith in popularity. Avex Trax, which continued to have a virtual monopoly on all Eurobeat releases, demanded producers change their production styles to create a new sound befitting the next century. For A-Beat-C, the altered production style heralded in a golden age of production, but many other labels saw the quality of their productions decrease under Avex’s strict stylistic demands. Some labels took a few years before their productions really improved for the tastes of the majority. Note that a few labels did not see their styles change, especially if they were making songs for other companies.

Though Eurobeat saw a continued decline in popularity over the 2000s, Super Eurobeat albums were still released almost every month. Super Eurobeat Vol. 141 opened up the series to other labels, and after that more labels continued to join the series. GoGo's Music, Akyr Music, Dima Music and Eurogrooves began to make music starting in the late-2000s.

The beginning of the 2010s was another point of decline for Eurobeat, as many producers and singers left the genre. Super Eurobeat went on hiatus in 2012, and beginning in 2013, albums were more infrequent. The last Super Eurobeat album was Vol. 250, in 2018. It was a celebration of 25 years of music. Super Eurobeat lived on as a yearly compilation after that, through annual releases on The Best of Super Eurobeat, beginning in 2019.

After 2018, many labels stopped producing Eurobeat regularly, but long-time producers kept the Eurobeat scene alive. Giancarlo Pasquini created Dave Rodgers Music, Roberto Festari created NickTheBeat and Hybrid Mix, and Roberto Gabrielli created GReurosound. Other labels like Delta and SCP also published some songs. As of 2023, these labels are allowing Eurobeat to live on, but the fans are an integral reason why Eurobeat survives.

Most labels released their own songs independently of Avex as vinyl singles and later as digital albums.

Japanese artists and producers also created Eurobeat (J-Euro), and fans from the United States, Canada, and other countries also made songs (Indie Eurobeat). Some significant J-Euro labels include Akiba Koubou, SuganoMusic, A-One, Eurobeat Union, and SOUND HOLIC. Some significant indie labels include Odyssey Eurobeat and Axis Mundi Studio.

Almost all Eurobeat songs involve male or female vocalists. Some famous vocalists of Italian Eurobeat include Mauro Farina, Elena Ferretti, Clara Moroni, Giancarlo Pasquini, Tomas Marin, Gino Caria, Karen J. Wainwright, Elena Gobbi Frattini, Annerley Gordon, Fernando Bonini, Davide Di Marcantonio, Patrizia Saitta, Giordano Gambogi, Simone Valeo, Maurizio De Jorio, Alessandra Mirka Gatti, Christian Codenotti, Ennio Zanini, and Alessandro Gilardi.

Eurobeat singers usually do not sing under their own names, but rather under aliases. For example, Giancarlo Pasquini usually sings under the Dave Rodgers name. Some aliases are used by multiple artists, and most artists use multiple aliases. In recent years, some singers who previously had used multiple aliases have begun to use their real names. Classic examples are Gabrielli Roberto Eurosound artists Claudio Magnani, Andrea Delfino and Elena Ferretti.

Some Eurobeat singers have achieved wider recognition outside of their fanbase to some extent. Examples are Mauro Farina who co-founded The SAIFAM Group, the biggest label in Italy which encompasses many other genres like Italodance, Pop, Speed, Fitness and others; and Elena Ferretti who garnered 2nd place in the first Italian edition of The Voice Senior in 2020.