Techno music

Techno is a form of electronic music that emerged in the mid-1980s and primarily refers to a particular style developed in and around Detroit and subsequently adopted by European producers. "Techno" is also a informal and misleading term often used in North America, and perhaps elsewhere, to describe all forms of electronic dance music.

Substyles and related genres

In the early 1990s, adventurous techno producers experimented with the style, spawning new genres that have taken on a life of their own. The most prominent of these techno offshoots are:

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• Detroit techno - music in the style of early techno from Detroit, but not necessarily originating in Detroit. Famous for searing strings and crisp, tight but intricate hihat patterns.
• Tech house - a slightly lower-tempo fusion that often combines techno with a prominent bass line and other elements of house and dub.
• Trance and its subgenres - a form that tends to emphasize continuous synthesized, melodic or harmonic figures in the lower midrange frequencies, and that often uses build-ups, dramatic crescendos, muted bass drums, and sometimes includes vocals.
• Hardcore, aka "rave", which evolved into jungle - a form based mainly on complex arrangements of sampled percussion, often at high tempos (140–200 BPM), and often featuring loud, dub-influenced bass lines played at half time.
• Gabba, Gabber, or what was known as hardcore techno in the U.S. - a very loud, aggressive, high-tempo (160–220 BPM) techno, much of which originated in Rotterdam and often features a distorted Roland TR-909 bass drum overdriven to the point where it becomes a tonal square wave.
• Acid techno - Chicago inspired style of techno that originally featured the sound of the Roland TB-303 synthesizer.
• IDM, representing techno's "avant-garde" side - a genre often influenced by and crossing over into ambient and experimental music, usually features complex, asymmetrical beat patterns that render it more for listening than dancing.

Less well-known genres or styles directly related to techno include Yorkshire Bleeps and Bass or "Bleep," which was prominent in the very early 1990s, and Ghettotech, which combines some of the aesthetics of techno with hip-hop, house music, and Miami bass. Various other styles exist and have a fan base, although the names and encyclopedic notability of these styles are points of contention. Examples include amigacore, speedcore, splittercore, bouncy techno, Schranz, Swechno, and Wonky techno.

Related Topics:
Yorkshire Bleeps and Bass - Ghettotech - Hip-hop - House music - Miami bass - Amigacore - Speedcore - Splittercore - Bouncy techno - Schranz - Swechno - Wonky techno

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Occasionally, well-funded pop music producers will formulate a radio or club-friendly variant of techno. The music of Technotronic, 2 Unlimited, and Lords Of Acid were early examples of this phenomenon. Established pop stars also sometimes get techno makeovers, such as when William Orbit produced Madonna's "Ray Of Light".

Related Topics:
Technotronic - 2 Unlimited - Lords Of Acid - William Orbit - Madonna

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