Unpopular opinions

[noamab22]

Hardstyle hasn't been good since 2014 say or so, and id 100% blame Rawstyles increase in popularity for it because it encouraged lack of creativity.Today it feels like producers are just trying to make the heaviest kick without any real focus on the music they are putting out, Rawstyle has taken over the genre for the worse, what's the point in ttying to listen to euphoric hardstyle with a radical redemption style kick?

The last actual good anthem ive heard wasn't even a hardstyle track.
Sefas take on One Tribe was the only one with a normal melody that fitted the style.

[ThePrincipal]

2014 was a pretty average year though

[DjVero]

Hardstyle hasn't been good since 2014 say or so, and id 100% blame Rawstyles increase in popularity for it because it encouraged lack of creativity.Today it feels like producers are just trying to make the heaviest kick without any real focus on the music they are putting out, Rawstyle has taken over the genre for the worse, what's the point in ttying to listen to euphoric hardstyle with a radical redemption style kick?

The last actual good anthem ive heard wasn't even a hardstyle track.
Sefas take on One Tribe was the only one with a normal melody that fitted the style.

Imo the rawstyle scene has quite matured over the years, whereas when it first came up I was completely like your opinion as well. I hated it lol. Now I find the melodic scene so freaking repetitive, zero innovation, most complex wannabe melodies, literally every track follows the same formula, bullshit acceleration in BPM (155 some tracks now). There just isn't a simple melodic track anymore, except for TNT and the latest Psyko Punkz track maybe.

[battlejellyfish]

I took a break from hardstyle of about six months last year, for the first time since 2003 or something. NOTHING at all, including this place, 'coz you will listen some otherwise! I felt the same at the beginning of 2021, not as extreme as you, but still. Listen to other genres, techno in your case. Trust me, it really helps. It will spark your enthusiasm for this wonderful genre again. Or do one or two months only, just to try it.

It's not really sparking my enthusiasm no matter how much I'm avoiding or listening to the genre :/ I just had to accept things in hardstyle are going "this" direction and my taste "that" direction. There are some guys I follow and also use to check out the fresh stuff the most popular ones in the scene but that's it... music-wise at least. But one big advantage (or disadvantage depending where you're coming from) of the pandemic is that hardstyle artists did and still do Twitch or Youtube streams more often, something seemingly out of their comfort zone bringing out some little slice of their personality that usually doesn't come through simple Facebook or Instagram posts and that was definitely a nice experience for me!

[Soundphase]

Hardstyle is completely missing tracks like these nowadays:

Spoiler

[Gommes_]

Hardstyle is missing atmosphere and ideas. Most tracks from the past 2 months are so boring. Take Demi Kanon's Activate for example. These type of kicks are everywhere, the melody is random and of course it has to have some sort of chaotic outro. This tune, while not necessarily bad (especially from a technical standpoint) is symptomatic for the whole scene, which just became so generic and kinda tedious.

[Soundphase]

Take Demi Kanon's Activate for example. These type of kicks are everywhere, the melody is random and of course it has to have some sort of chaotic outro. This tune, while not necessarily bad (especially from a technical standpoint) is symptomatic for the whole scene, which just became so generic and kinda tedious.

I actually agree, this track is overhyped. And most tracks nowadays get overhyped so easily for some strange reason

[MKN]

Hardstyle hasn't been good since 2014 say or so, and id 100% blame Rawstyles increase in popularity for it because it encouraged lack of creativity.Today it feels like producers are just trying to make the heaviest kick without any real focus on the music they are putting out, Rawstyle has taken over the genre for the worse, what's the point in ttying to listen to euphoric hardstyle with a radical redemption style kick?

The last actual good anthem ive heard wasn't even a hardstyle track.
Sefas take on One Tribe was the only one with a normal melody that fitted the style.

Yeah I kinda agree. I think it has something to do with the amount of people at that time learning/wanting to become a DJ... I thought everything I needed to learn was on YouTube. But it was all technical stuff.

Only in the last few years I realized that it's much better to have a meaning/feeling/great idea for a track, rather than try and make something with an average sample/loop/vocal.

My older music never had any feeling or idea behind it, was just a release to get gigs :/

Least I learnt from it now though

[Soundphase]

The reason why I have unfortunately decided to leave the scene is because there is no simple good stuff now. I think simplicity isn't wanted in the scene anymore

[Gommes_]

Agree. It is more about who can put the most random stuff in their tunes. A track like So High by Noisecontrollers would be unimaginable today.
Only one kick throughout the whole climax, one melody which lasts 2 minutes! and and intro and outro which only present the kick? No way! I also agree with noamab22, that whole shift in designing a track is fully to blame on the rawstyle trend.