Is Disco Fever Here To Stay?

Everybody knows that the heyday of disco music was in the 1970s - the era of flared trousers, massive hair and the word 'groovy'. Some say that disco ended there, and that the genre has no place in today's music scene, where it is perhaps overshadowed by such giants as dubstep, hip hop and indie rock. Others would beg to differ - as one of my slightly intoxicated teachers claimed at my college's Summer Ball, "Disco is making a comeback! DISCO WILL NEVER DIE!"

So I decided to investigate - is disco really making a comeback? Or is it destined to go the way of Betamax tapes, Test Card F and Margaret Thatcher?...

The Evidence 

#1: The UK Top 40

Image © Atlantic Records

Take one look at the UK's current Top 40 and you'll see that disco is doing surprisingly well at the moment in terms of sales, contending with such mainstream megastars as Olly Murs and Jessie J. Daft Punk's disco-inspired track 'Get Lucky' is at #11 having spent a whole 14 weeks in the charts, and 'Treasure' by Bruno Mars - another disco hit - has enjoyed 10 weeks of great sales and is currently sitting at #16. Admittedly, both artists aren't strictly disco artists - Daft Punk are rooted more in electronica and house music than anything, and Bruno Mars is most famous for his soul/R&B sound. However, the fact that these artists have recently decided to step outside of their usual styles and produce disco songs (and extremely successful disco songs, too) proves that musicians and listeners alike are currently enjoying an appetite for funky disco tunes!

#2: Glastonbury 2013

A quick look at the Glastonbury 2013 lineup suggests that disco may not be the most popular genre at the moment, as it is outnumbered quite significantly by electronic acts and indie artists, but it is nonetheless enjoying some success on the current music scene. Proof of this can be found in the fact that disco legends Chic headlined the West Holt's Stage (featuring, of course, Nile Rodgers - the god of disco/funk guitar, and a session musician on Daft Punk's new album 'Random Access Memories'), playing to a crowd of thousands. If a 70s disco band can still headline a stage at one of the biggest festivals in the world, and completely nail their set too, then disco certainly cannot be called a 'dead' genre! The BBC, in fact, went as far as to refer to the event as "the re-birth of disco", which brings me on to the subject of...

#3: The Media Hype

It appears that my disco-fanatic teacher isn't the only person who sees the current resurgence of interest in the genre as a "disco comeback" - the world of music journalism has also noticed the direction that the genre is travelling in at the moment. Urban entertainment website Vibe has published a piece on the "fresh disco tracks" that are part of a current "disco rebirth", and British newspaper The Guardian quite recently produced an article on the fact that today's "dance music stars are drawing inspiration from the 1970s sounds of Chic, Donna Summer and Studio 54" - to give but two examples. Such articles make clear that it's not just listeners and music producers who are experiencing a newfound interest in the disco genre, but journalists too are sitting up and taking notice.

So, is disco making a comeback?

It appears so, yes! Get out your flares and your novelty afro wig, because it looks like disco is not only popular at the moment, but it's here to stay!

I'll leave you with this quote from the 1998 film 'The Last Days of Disco':

"Disco was too great, and too much fun, to be gone forever! It's got to come back someday. I just hope it will be in our own lifetimes."

PsyD

Next time on Superunknown: I'll be reviewing the four-minutes-of-epic-awesomeness that is 'Stingin' Belle' by Biffy Clyro

EDIT: Not long after writing this post, I found this image circulating Tumblr, with over 64,000 reblogs at the time of writing! I know that many people are saying that the disco genre is getting bigger and bolder than ever, but this is insane!...