Quentin Tarantino Influences on EDM

The Canadian dubstep brothers Zeds Dead take their name from a line in 1994’s "Pulp Fiction" delivered by Bruce Willis, “Zed’s Dead, baby.” Zeds Dead recently dropped a melodic remix of Marina & The Diamonds’ “Lies.”

Rock-dubstep band Modestep’s video for “Show Me a Sign” winks at Kill Bill’s lady blade slingers, as well as the movies Underworld and the Matrix, both starring kick ass babes, a Tarantino trademark.

After the release of "Kill Bill Pt. 1" in 2003 every beat-maker with a sampler helped himself to Nancy Sinatra’s cover of Cher’s "Bang Bang". Among the EDM acts taking a bite were UK house-heads Audio Bullys who used it in their 2005 track, “Shot You Down.” Some argued it was the best thing about the track.

Samuel Jackson’s delivery of Ezekiel 25:17 in "Pulp Fiction" has turned up on a mile high stack of wax, including industrial act Sonic Subjunkies’s, "Destroy” (1998), DJ Reality's drum n’ bass track "Anger" (2000) and DJ Omega’s 2009 bass banger "My Name is the Lord."

Skrillex and the genre he lords over have both been described as the “Quentin Tarantino of EDM.” Someone took it literally and actually made a video combining Skrillex's "Kill Everybody" with a clip from Tarantino's "Kill Bill."

Skrillex Meets Tarantino's Kill Bill from Gerard Vila on Vimeo.

Tarantino clips have also been an inspiration for many user-made video and audio mashups, including: "Pulp Fiction" "Dubstep Remix" and Grindhouse Basterds (Quentin Tarantino themed remix project).

Madonna. Like Quentin Tarantino, Madge is notorious for making mint pushing the underground into the mainstream, precisely what is happening with EDM. Tarantino, himself infamous for referencing obscure films in his blockbusters, has a big old monologue about “Like A Virgin” in "Reservoir Dogs." Most recently Madonna said she had Tarantino in mind for the video to her William Orbit-produced dubstep revenge fantasia "Gang Bang."

Santa Esmeralda’s disco cover of Nina Simone’s “Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood” has long been a DJ staple and Tarantino favorite. It provided the soundtrack to the climactic fight scene between Lucy Lui and Uma Thurman in "Kill Bill Pt. 1." It has been re-re-sampled as recently as 2009 by Nicola Fasano & Pat Rich on tribal house track “76, Ocean Drive.” It was previously lifted for electronic stalwart Westbam’s 1988 classic “Monkey Say Monkey Do.”