the.com/drum and bass
the genre where the breakbeat got chopped, sped to 175 BPM, and turned weaponized
means A genre of fast, bass-heavy electronic dance music, typically around 160–180 BPM, built on sped-up, chopped breakbeats and deep sub-bass.
from A literal English description that became a name: it foregrounds the two elements that define the music — the rapid percussive 'drum' (sampled breakbeats, famously the 'Amen break' from a 1960s funk track) and the rolling 'bass'. The genre emerged from the UK rave and jungle scenes of the early-to-mid 1990s, where 'jungle' and 'drum and bass' were used almost interchangeably before the latter became the broader label.
- sample roots
- Built on the looped Amen break, six seconds long
- tempo
- Typically 160-180 BPM, double-time over halftime drums
- birthplace
- Emerged from early-90s UK rave and jungle
- bass science
- Sub-bass designed for chests, not just ears
- global spread
- Now huge in Czech Republic and Austria
hospitality festival — annual drum and bass event in brighton since 2005, largest in the uk
hospital records — legendary drum and bass label founded by london mc high contrast in 1998
ram records — bristol drum and bass label established 1991, foundational to the genre
fabric london — nightclub that hosted iconic drum and bass nights until closure in 2017