Get Phonky With It
Posted on December 20, 2022 Posted by Athena Scalzi 20 Comments
About six months ago, my friend introduced me to a new genre of music called Phonk, and ever since then I’ve been totally obsessed. Today, I want to share some Phonk with you, since it’s my new favorite genre and I think everyone should give it a try.
EDM and techno have been my favorite genres for the last decade, and Phonk definitely fits into the EDM genre, it’s just more of a specific subgroup. It’s like, darker than regular EDM. It sounds like it has a sinister vibe, like you’re at a rave but the rave is actually a demon worshipping cult.
I’m going to give you a couple of my favorite Phonk songs to listen to, and then y’all tell me your thoughts in the comments, okay? Cool.
First up is Rave by Dxrk ダーク, a super popular song on Tik Tok, and the perfect first song for you to see what I’m getting at with the whole demon rave vibe:
This next one, Neon Blade by Moon Deity, has such a sick drop after about a minute and a half. It’s absolutely nasty.
Going back to Dxrk ダーク because he’s the baddest of the bad, Bones is another excellent choice:
Have you stood up and started dancing yet?! I know I have. Okay, one more for all you crazy ravers out there. This is much more on the vibey side than the spooky side. And this will absolutely blow out the speakers in your car if you’re not careful, it is nasty. Twin Dragons by KSLV Noh and Hugomasked:
Alright, so these weren’t in order of my favorite-ness, and I have a lot more faves than just these ones, but this is definitely a good start for all y’all that are new to phonkiness.
So, which was your favorite? Do you want more recommendations of similar songs? Do you absolutely hate it? Let me know in the comments, and have a great day!
-AMS
Some of that reminds me of my sordid youth spent in 90s Goth clubs.
I will say this has the advantage of less repetitive guitar and fewer sneering British male vocalists.
It sounds like music from castlevania or doom, which is a good thing.
Haven’t commented before, but as a lover of electronic music, I was surprised a) not to have come across this subgenre before and b) think there’s a lot of drum and bass you would really like.
Going to drop Arrakis (Noisia remix) by Black Sun Empire as a starting point
I am pretty close to your father’s age so you can guess at my reaction to your music choices. :) I really think it is pretty funny how the reaction to music is so generational. My parents didn’t like the music I listened to and their parents didn’t like theirs.
Beyond that all I will say is be careful of your ears. They have to last you a long time.
I’m 43 so of course I LOVE this music! Seriously, thanks for the introduction. I’ve always been a fan of EDM and this is a great twist.
So far in addition to your recommendations I’ve really enjoyed “WRATH” by Phonka and “Kids Phonk” by MC ORSEN.
Oh hah I already had “Chaos” by PLAYAMANE in one of my playlists. I just had it grouped in with general EDM tracks.
The music is cool, but “Phonk” sounds exactly like what a science-fiction writer would name a music genre in his future universe.
It’s pretty good for EDM, the dark vibe is kind of interesting given the usual “party ’til you drop” upbeatness of most EDM. I do find the choice of artwork used on the videos kind of interesting too, especially for “BONES”. That’s Artemisia Gentileschi’s “Judith Beheading Holofernes”, one of the more radical Renaissance renditions of that Biblical theme by one of the very few female painters to achieve fame before the modern age.
I’m going to second grumbles’ comment. The first two transported me back in time two decades to a goth club where I’m wearing too much black fishnet and not enough anything else and I’m going to wave glowsticks around in a very dark room about it. The other two… would’ve been experimental stuff that a guest dj brought in, but still not completely out of place. Wild.
I’m all about SciComm when I’m on TikTok, so Rave from Dxrk ダーク had me imagining a researcher playing it in the background during videos of coronal mass ejections.
I’m getting darkwave vibes off of this, so I have to recommend Dance with the Dead. I’ve described their sound before as “soundtracks to horror movies that don’t exist.”
https://dancewiththedead.bandcamp.com/
Athena,
Very cool. I really like Neon Blade. Then again I am a big fan of EDM. I’d offer to dance with you, but at 64 yrs, my knees are not big on that, so we would have to sit and chat about it over a glass of wine. Besides taking care of your hearing, be nice to your joints…
So not all us old geezers dislike your music. Then again I was always weird.
So THAT’s what I’ve been listening to.
I liked Twin Dragons best.
Have you discovered mind.in.a.box yet? This is from the only standalone album; the other ones are an extended cyberpunk rock opera.
Stefan Poiss also has some good stuff as Thyx:
I have to disagree with the generation thing. Late boomer here, and I like well crafted music of all genres. These were good choices. You should take a boo at the Men in Black album by The Stranglers if you want some prototype for your genre.
I do like these. It’s reminiscent of 80’s industrial bands like Nitzer Ebb or Front 242.
Wot? No phonky “Winter Wonderland”?!?!?!
…reminiscent of 80’s industrial bands like Nitzer Ebb or Front 242….
My first thought as well – maybe sprinkle a little Front Line Assembly and Delerium into the mix as well.
The musicians from Delerium and Front Line Assembly also released a few albums as Synaesthesia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4L9rYr_BSY&ab_channel=Marlene
Hi Athena, and fellow commenters, thanks for educating me a bit. I had not encountered Phonk before, and enjoyed the introduction. My usual music is rock with guitar, piano, and/or vocals, but it’s good to leave my Boomer time warp occasionally.