Nine-time Grammy winner Sonny Moore, also known as Skrillex, is one of the most influential electronic dance music artists of all time. With albums and extended plays that have aged like wine, such as “Recess,” “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites,” and “Quest for Fire.” These collections of music have led up to his most recent studio work that was released on April 1.
The 34-song album holds pieces of music that have dated all the way back to the early 2010s. On this album there is also a big collection of artists that are in the EDM industry. Artists such as Space Laces, Virtual Riot, DJ Smokey, and many more. Why this album is important is that Skrillex is such a wildly vital pillar and pioneer of the industry. He paved the way for what is now called dubstep. He was not confined to just one genre though. He made songs that were drum and bass, brostep, and hints of techno. With him being so versatile as an artist with his one-of-a-kind live set, he was able to make waves in an industry that was newly born at the time.
This matters because he lit a fire of drive and passion in aspiring artists who had fallen in love with the genres that electronic dance music had to offer. Artists who are now titans of the industry, at the time were taking after Skrillex. Excision is objectively one of the biggest dubstep producers and DJs of all time and there are songs where there is influence from Skrillex. Skrillex was an inspiration to so many artists then and now, and with this new album, he has once again made waves in an industry that has multiplied in unimaginable ways.
Dubstep DJ JKSTR is one of the people who was inspired by the music of the past and present. He said: “The album truly makes me want to push even harder than I ever have. With the way he’s pushing the boundaries of the genres he’s producing and allowing it to flow into the mainstream music world, he truly is a master of his craft, and I cannot wait to see what he does with this momentum that he has generated.”
Someone else who has stated that he very much takes after Skrillex is multi-genre producer and DJ Emorfik. Emorfik is a long-time producer, writing songs across many different genres for over the last eight years. He also has the credentials as well, as he has played across the world in big cities in Europe and China. He also has performed on some of the biggest stages in the United States such as mainstage at Lost Lands Music Festival.
“As someone who grew up in the prime Skrillex era, it is such an unreal feeling to see as both a creator and a life-long fan that my idol is cranking out genuine masterpieces,” Emorfik said. “I can only imagine to be where he is now, and I truly hope to be where he is one day.”
Finally, an artist who has been in the industry as long as Skrillex, is producer and DJ Kill The Noise. He is an artist who collaborated with Skrillex on the title track of Skrillex’s album “Recess” and has known Sonny for a very long time. When the album dropped, he wrote on Twitter: “FUS is postmodern Skrillex… how tf did he make a fresh Skrillex album in a post Skrillex world? He came back from the dead and wrote it from the POV of the ghost of Skrillex past, present, and future simultaneously… it’s Skrillex referencing himself in superposition.”
With cosigns and expressions of inspiration from the biggest artists in the industry, all the way down to the artists who are getting started, Skrillex has taken the electronic dance music industry by the reigns again and reset the standard of what professional tracks should sound like. One other thing that he was able to do is show just how crazy and silly ideas can be but still work.
In an interview at the Grammys, he was asked about some of the craziest ideas he has had to make instruments in songs, and he spoke about how he used the pop from a soda can, “because why not.” Time and time again, Sonny has shown why he is the best at what he does and shows that you can truly do absolutely anything you want if you set out and seek after it — don’t stop, and have some faith in yourself.
