Drum and Bass ( DnB, D&B, Drum n Bass) is an electronic music genre. It started in the UK rave scene (and its derivatives are darkcore and hardcore jungle). The genre eventually became one of the most well-known subgenres of electronic dance music. It also spread globally and gave rise to a wide variety of derivatives.
How Drum and Bass Started
Electronic musicians began to eliminate the extensively sampled recordings and create strong bass lines over the top of drumbeats around the beginning of 1991. The bass lines have a strong reggae influence. Musicians referred to the genre as a “hardcore jungle” and later “jungle.” The genre became famous in 1993 as a component of the prevalent youth subculture. Because of the violent tone in the samples these musicians used, people linked the jungle culture to crime and bloodshed.
Several sub-genres developed as it became increasingly popular with the general public. The Jungle producers, who abandoned the reggae-influenced sound, created this genre in 1995. They favored the more intricate, carefully edited breakbeat percussion and audible bass line. Radio stations then began airing the music, and eventually, other mainstream media followed as the sound grew more technically refined. All these increased the popularity and public acceptance of Drum and Bass music.
The Demise of The Genre
The peak of other genres like speed garage and house music diminished Drum & Bass’s popularity in the 1990s. Genres influenced by this style include the Garage House, acid house, and hip house. However, there are still traces of the Drum and Bass sound in the music of many well-known musicians. These include Linkin Park and the emergence of fresh talents like Pendulum.
People identify the drum and bass style of electronic music by quick breakbeats, ranging from 160 to 180 beats per minute. From its name, one can guess that the musicians synthesize the bass and sample the percussions. Often, they use samplers like the Amen Break, widely employed in the genre’s early stages of creation. Artists now have access to various samplers to create their tunes. The quick drumbeat that often opens a rhythmic composition provides the composer with a background against which to “paint” their musical creation.
The beats of Drum and Bass are usually made at the fast 4/4 speed. The bass line is just as crucial to the song as the drum beats are. Producers sometimes mix the bass line with a sub-bass pattern to produce a more robust sound. The bass can have either a high or low pitch or perhaps both. While most bass lines are synthesized from samples, some musicians use electric or acoustic bass to create their tracks.
Finally, like any other electronic music component, a synthesizer is crucial to creating a track. The drum and bass sound may be pitched up and down with the help of the synthesizer. Additionally, musicians usually add some jazzy light aspects or darker components to give the music a more substantial feel.
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