After reading Chris Tranter's article I Wanna Date a Majestic Girl I couldn't help laugh. But it also played into certain stereotypes about women involved in the scene that both Chris and I inhabit. Female interest in electronic music is often patronised as superficial, but the EDM world is populated with female pioneers who don't rush to the dance-floor when they hear a Destiny's Child remix. Believe it or not, Daphne Oram, Bebe Barron, Wendy Carlos, and Mary Anne Hobbs didn't discover electronic music while putting on their make up and listening to YouTube.Australia's thriving experimental musical scenes may not have a Flumette or Ms. Faker scoring every second car advert, but with our vast array of female producers and DJs it's championed by women who are musical tastemakers. Whether it's professionally or as dance floor supporters.It's not unusual to hear a man comment on a girl's lack of knowledge on the scene or the historical roots of a sampler pack. But most women would attest that if they attempted to stop interrupting them—or asked for their opinion—they might be surprised. I work and socialise with women music-loving daily and find it hard to question their knowledge of chopped and screwed mixing techniques ends with Shlohmo.I adore my musical minded female friends not because they're girls, but because it's natural to connect over music. What suddenly makes people respond to a whispered synth and a bass line has nothing to do with their sex. Women are (often) just not as loud about it—we're drowned out by men claiming we don't exist. Good articles are assumed to be written by men, and a girl at a show must have come with her boyfriend.Majestic Casual's pretty, although awkwardly posed women are more appealing to a wide-range of music listeners because it's as close to pop as electronic music gets. It doesn't mean it's primarily marketed—or made for—women, if any gender bias is going on at Majestic Casual it's targeted at men. Naked women generally are.But do you know who they'll take with them? Majestic Boys. With askew beanies, and a moderate knowledge of Fruity Loops, they're the ones who spell their club DJ name without vowels. You've seen them around, they suddenly always really loved J Dilla and ironic 90s tracks. Maybe just last week they decided to start a bedroom record label.I don't want go on a date with these guys. They assume you have no idea who they're talking about when they name-drop Jai Paul. Although I understand that Majestic Boys' and their music aren't terrible and deserving to be laughed at, they're just experimenting and finding what they like.Regardless of which Youtube channel or record store you get your music from, there's no excuse for making snap judgments on someone's taste or background in music based on gender. It's insulting and it certainly isn't majestic.Rebecca Florence is the publicist for equal-opportunity employers The Operatives.
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