Melodic EDM Playlists

Spotify Playlists

Spotify's editorial playlists are the primary discovery mechanism for melodic EDM at scale. But the most valuable playlists are often user-curated, maintained by dedicated listeners with deep genre knowledge.

• Melodic House & Techno — Spotify's flagship editorial playlist for the genre. Updated weekly with new releases from established and emerging artists. Reliable source of new releases from artists you already know.
• This Never Happened — Lane 8's label has its own Spotify presence and playlists. The label's curation ethos — emotional, melodic, no phones at shows — makes its playlists among the most consistently excellent in the genre.
• Anjunadeep — Consistently excellent curation across melodic house and progressive house adjacent territory.
• Jax Lukken — Follow Jax Lukken on Spotify for Dutch melodic EDM releases as they drop.

YouTube Channels

YouTube is where melodic EDM's most important long-form content lives — live sets, DJ mixes, and label showcases that give the music the time and context it needs.

• Cercle — The single most important YouTube presence for melodic EDM. Records artist performances in extraordinary locations — archaeological sites, mountain peaks, historic buildings. Ben Böhmer above the clouds, Anyma at the Pyramids: these are definitive documents of what the genre can be. Start here.
• Afterlife — Tale Of Us's label channel carries sets from the label's artists, representing the melodic techno end at its highest level.
• Anjunadeep — Regular mix series, artist showcases, and the Anjunadeep Edition series. One of the strongest YouTube presences in the genre.
• Jax Lukken — Subscribe on YouTube for music videos and live content.

SoundCloud

SoundCloud remains the most important platform for melodic EDM discovery at the early-artist level. Most significant producers in the genre posted their early work on SoundCloud before Spotify or label distribution, and the platform's comment culture creates a community around individual tracks that streaming services can't replicate.

• Artist profiles — Most melodic EDM artists maintain SoundCloud profiles with free tracks, demos, and DJ sets not available on streaming platforms
• Label reposts — Following label accounts (This Never Happened, Afterlife, Anjunadeep) creates a curated feed of new releases
• DJ sets — Full DJ sets frequently uploaded to SoundCloud before or instead of YouTube, especially for underground-oriented artists
• Early releases — Many artists release tracks on SoundCloud weeks before official streaming platform release dates

Label Channels

Following melodic EDM labels directly is one of the most reliable ways to stay current with the genre.

• This Never Happened — Lane 8's label; the emotional/melodic house standard
• Afterlife — Tale Of Us; melodic techno at the artistic frontier
• Anjunadeep — Above & Beyond's family; progressive and melodic house
• Colorize — UK label with a strong melodic progressive house orientation

Live Sets

Live sets and DJ mixes are where melodic EDM works best as a listening experience — the extended format gives the music room to do what it does most effectively.

• 1001Tracklists — Track ID tool and setlist database that helps you identify tracks from recorded sets
• Radio shows — Artist-hosted radio shows (Lane 8's This Never Happened Radio, Above & Beyond's Group Therapy) provide regular curated sets
• Festival streams — Ultra, Tomorrowland, and smaller melodic-focused festivals (Afterlife residency in Ibiza) frequently stream sets that find their way to YouTube

Building Your Own

• Be specific about subgenre — a playlist mixing melodic house, melodic techno, and melodic dubstep may be too varied in energy to work as a coherent listening experience
• Build around energy levels — group tracks by where in a listening session they work best: intimate and low-energy for late night, higher energy for commute
• Prune regularly — the best playlists are maintained, not accumulated
• Follow artists not just tracks — when you find a track you love, follow the artist and the label. The next track is more likely discovered that way than through algorithm recommendation