2015: EDM's End Of Days

Times were apparently so interesting that 2015 came and passed without either of the promised album releases from ex-SHM members Steve Angello (who bought back his album's rights from Columbia Records) or Axwell and Ingrosso, who did not deliver on their promised Def Jam album release. Instead, 2015's big winner was 'Where Are U Now', Skrillex and Diplo's Billboard pop chart top 10 collaboration with Justin Bieber for the production duo's Jack Ü side project. That track features no car alarms or thunderous basslines, but is a rather blissful garage-meets-soul journey sounding more like UK post-dubstep than Afrojack.

EDM's victors celebrated and healed in 2015. Calvin Harris canoodled with Taylor Swift, Avicii coalesced, and the Swedish House Mafia remained separated. And of those who remained active in a tumultuous 2015? "[EDM] is a wave right now and you can ride on it... [But] if I look at what I play, 99 per cent of the sets that I play on aren't EDM events. I haven't played [Electric Daisy Carnival] since 2011," Skrillex told Pitchfork, summarizing how he and others survived the year in dance that featured EDM's cataclysmic fall.

2016 is mere weeks away, and on the horizon Justin Bieber's likely to sing over more house-inspired and bass-laden funk, while it looks like Drake's possibly stepping more significantly onto the dancefloor, threatening an EP with garage don Craig David. Though different than what EDM offered, what's next still certainly appears quite appealing.

Marcus K. Dowling is a freelance writer based in Washington DC, follow him on Twitter here

Patch D Keyes is a freelance illustrator based in Bristol, follow him on Twitter here