MIDI JUNKIES: the progression of digital hardcore

Bridget Holt  

Music Journalist 

Coined in 1994 by the Berlin-based group Atari Teenage Riot, the term digital hardcore has been used to describe all types of genre-bending, fast-paced electronic music; typically amongst that which combines elements of hardcore punk with styles such as break-core, EDM, house, trance, and drum n bass. 

Atari Teenage Riot was formed in 1992 by founding members Alec Empire, Hanin Elias, and Carl Crack. The trio produces a signature wall of sound characterized by its impenetrable energy, distorted samples, and endless drum breaks. Their influential debut “Delete Yourself!” would set the tone for the type of anti-establishment punk rhetoric that frequents the genre, as well as the subjects of video games, addiction, and a futuristic cyberspace. Empire later founded a record label by the name of Digital Hardcore Recordings for the group to release under, giving an official name to the genre and providing an outlet for like-minded electronic artists to participate. 

Despite the “cult-band turned underground legends” status that ATRobtained, the genre is still mostly underrepresented. Artists reinventing the genre in the early-to-mid 2010s found their fanbases largely through chronically online populations from mysterious and notorious websites like 4-chan, and later through alternative corners of platforms like TikTok. The genre holds an almost entirely online cultural identity– reserved for only the tightest-knit communities of self-identified chronically online cyber-punks. And they aren’t just weird – but proudly so.  

You might already be familiar with these fanbases, and regrettably, due to the toxic reputation of many of these online spaces, you might be thinking– yuck. Reputable digi-hardcore outfit Death Grips might cross your mind, their fanbase being somewhat of a derivative factor for new fans. However, for many (including myself), the genre tackles ideas and sonic images unique to a generation raised in good part by, well, the internet. It explores newer, sometimes dystopian techno-humanist ideas in a way that could only be described as a form of deranged, intense exposure therapy. 

In 2024, the New York natives behind the experimental-electronic project Machine Girl released their sixth studio album, “MG Ultra. Machine Girl would find a dedicated fanbase through niche online communities following their 2014 release “wlfgrl” and would become an increasingly prominent name throughout online music forums and alternative internet subspaces. 2020’s lockdown would ultimately be the catalyst for much of their latest success, with new fans being exposed through trending tik-tok audios and ultimately from a collective increase in internet exposure during this time. 

Much like their digi-hardcore predecessors, Machine Girl’s “MG Ultra” continues to examine tech’s double-edged sword, with rapid content consumption, addiction, ego, paranoia, and indulgence all being common themes throughout the record. Not to mention the title itself being a reference to MK-Ultra, which, if you are unfamiliar, might be worth a google search. 

Up and coming Houston based digi-punk outfit CPU Buddha embodies a similar sound, creating a fast, chaotic, glitchy ambiance similar to that of a final boss fight, or what one might even think is a full-scale robot takeover. Their 2024 self-titled EP would put them on the map as one to look out for, bringing their hypnotizing, high energy digital hardcore sound to small venues and house shows across to numerous Texas cities and new audiences.  

I can only predict the genre’s growth as internet culture continues to merge with the mainstream. Discourse transcends Reddit forums and continues to infiltrate our social and political lives. Newer generations will continue to push the threshold of technological advancement in music, just as our relationship to technology advances further. The inevitable increase in self-producing artists and artists unwilling to sign to a label could also add to this trend, with music promotion and fan populations making a greater shift further into the digital space. 

But as a wise man once said– check the subreddit. 

Oh, and make sure you tip your fedora to the moderator on the way out.