Algorave: A Survey of the History, Aesthetics and Technology of Live Performance of Algorithmic Electronic Dance Music

The algorave movement has received reasonable international exposure in the last two years, including a series of concerts in Europe and beyond, and press coverage in a number of media. This paper seeks to illuminate some of the historical precedents to the scene, its primary aesthetic goals, and the divergent technological and musical approaches of representative participants. We keep in mind the novel possibilities in musical expression explored by algoravers. The scene is by no means homogeneous, and the very lack of uniformity of technique, from new live coding languages through code DJing to plug-in combination, with or without visual extension, is indicative of the flexibility of computers themselves as general information processors.