Bass music

History and character

"Bass music" is an umbrella term, born in the UK and spread in the United States, for the family of electronic genres built around the bass as the protagonist: dubstep and its offshoots (brostep, riddim, melodic dubstep, colour bass, tearout), trap EDM, future bass, wave, and by extension UK bass/post-dubstep and other hybrid forms. In the UK, around 2010–2011, "bass music" or "UK bass" meant dubstep-influenced music moving between garage, funky and techno (often at about 130 BPM); in the United States the word mostly covers the dubstep and trap festival scene.

The main trunk is dubstep, born in south London in the early 2000s from UK garage, dub, jungle and grime: the Forward>> night (from 2001), the Big Apple Records shop in Croydon, Skream, Benga, Digital Mystikz (Mala and Coki), Loefah, Kode9 and Burial. From 2009–2011 the sound exploded in the United States in its "brostep" version (Skrillex, Excision, Datsik), while from 2012 trap EDM (Baauer, RL Grime, TNGHT, Flosstradamus) and future bass (Rustie, Hudson Mohawke, Flume, Cashmere Cat) widened the family. In the 2010s came riddim (popular from 2015), melodic dubstep (Seven Lions, Illenium), colour bass (Chime, who founded Rushdown in 2016), and wave (Klimeks, Plastician, from 2013).

Common elements: a tempo around 140–150 felt at half time, sub-bass as the protagonist, a mid bass designed with extreme sound design (LFOs, distortion, resampling), a structure built on builds and drops, and great importance placed on the dynamics between quiet sections and drops. The culture is that of the sound system (UK) and the festival (US: EDC, Lost Lands, Bass Canyon), with labels such as Tempa, DMZ, Hyperdub, OWSLA, Never Say Die, Disciple, Monstercat, Ophelia, Rushdown.

Scales and keys

Bass music is predominantly minor, with heavy use of dark colors (Phrygian, tritone) in the heavy currents and bright colors (major, Lydian, Dorian) in future bass and colour bass. Examples on F (sub root F1 = 43.65 Hz; F and E are among the most comfortable keys for the sub at 140). Roman numerals are relative to the natural minor.

Natural minor (Aeolian)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7. T S T T S T T.
• On F: F G Ab Bb C Db Eb.
• Chords: i Fm, ii° G°, III Ab, iv Bbm, v Cm, VI Db, VII Eb.
• Use: the basis of dubstep, trap EDM and melodic dubstep: i–VI–III–VII, i–VII–VI.
• Common mistakes: drops "harmonized" with too many notes: the mid bass is already rich in harmonics.

Phrygian

• Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7. S T T T S T T.
• On F: F Gb Ab Bb C Db Eb.
• Characteristic note: b2 (Gb).
• Chords: i Fm, bII Gb, III Ab, iv Bbm, v° C°, VI Db, vii Ebm.
• Use: UK dubstep (Wikipedia notes that the genre is often in minor or Phrygian, with dissonances such as the tritone), riddim, brostep: F–Gb riffs, bII–i stabs.
• Listening example: the dub bass lines of Digital Mystikz and Skream.
• Common mistakes: a semitone in the sub (beating): put it in the mid bass.

Tritone and Locrian as color

• Interval of 6 semitones (F–B): unstable, "evil". Locrian on F: F Gb Ab Bb Cb Db Eb (1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7).
• Use: F–B bass answers, wobbles that slide from the tonic to the tritone, horror stabs in brostep and tearout.

Major and Lydian (future bass, colour bass)

• Major: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7; on F F G A Bb C D E; chords I F, ii Gm, iii Am, IV Bb, V C, vi Dm, vii° E°.
• Lydian: 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7; on F F G A B C D E; characteristic note #4 (B); signature chord: major II (G).
• Use: major seventh and ninth chords with heavy sidechain (future bass), IV–V–iii–vi and "kawaii" progressions.

Dorian (melodic dubstep and future bass)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7. On F: F G Ab Bb C D Eb. Characteristic note 6 (D).
• Chords: i Fm, ii Gm, III Ab, IV Bb, v Cm, #vi° D°, VII Eb.
• Use: an "emotional" color with a major IV.

Harmonic minor

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7. On F: F G Ab Bb C Db E. Major V (C), vii° (E°).
• Use: final builds, "Eastern-flavored" trap EDM, epic melodic dubstep.

How to choose

• Heavy and dark (dubstep, riddim, brostep): Phrygian, tritone, Aeolian with a pedal.
• Emotional (melodic dubstep): Aeolian/Dorian with supersaw and vocals.
• Bright (future bass, colour bass): major, Lydian, extended chords.
• Trap EDM: Aeolian, harmonic minor, Phrygian for the "Eastern" melodies.

Harmony

• Two worlds: in the heavy currents the harmony is almost absent (pedal + a mid bass rich in harmonics); in the melodic currents (future bass, melodic dubstep, colour bass) the chords are the protagonists, often extended (maj7, 9, add9) and played by supersaws with sidechain.
• Harmonic rhythm: at 140 felt as 70, one chord per bar (about 2 seconds) or per 2 bars.
• Loops: progressions of 4 chords repeated; breakdowns with the same progression played by piano or pad.
• Borrowed chords: minor iv in major (future bass), harmonic major V, Phrygian bII.
• Voicing: future bass with wide chords (low root + seventh, third and ninth on top); dubstep with open fifths or cluster stabs.
• Cadences: VI–VII–i or V–i in builds; pedal in the drop.

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

• Half time: nominal tempo 140–150 but snare on beat 3 of the bar (felt as 2 and 4 at 70–75). It is the common denominator of dubstep, riddim, trap EDM and future bass.
• Triplets and tuplets: dubstep and riddim often use shuffle and triplets (hats, bass LFO at 1/8T or 1/16T).
• Trap: eighth-note hats with rolls in 1/16, 1/32 and triplets; long 808s.
• Space: very few kick and snare hits; the space is left to the bass.
• Double time: moments of double time (DnB at 150, 2-step rhythms) as a variation.

Drums

Convention: bar of 16 sixteenth notes, quarter notes on 1, 5, 9, 13. At 140 BPM a sixteenth note lasts about 107 ms.

Kick

• Dubstep/riddim: 1 and a few other points (e.g. 15 of the second bar before the snare). Trap EDM: roughly 1, 8, 11, doubled by the 808. Future bass: 1 and 11.
• Short, punchy kicks (they must not cover the sub), body 50–70 Hz.

Snare and clap

• Sixteenth 9 of each bar (beat 3, i.e. the half-time "backbeat"). Huge snares: body 180–250 Hz, crack 2–5 kHz, often with a short/medium reverb.
• Trap and future bass: snare + clap layered; UK dubstep: snare with reverb and a "metallic" tone.

Hi-hats and percussion

• UK dubstep: offbeat hats with shuffle and small rolls; brostep/riddim: sparse hats, metallic percussion; trap EDM and future bass: eighth-note hats with trap rolls (1/16, 1/32, triplets).
• Ethnic percussion and "tribal" samples in UK dubstep (Loefah, Mala).

Dynamics and groove

• Swing: UK dubstep with shuffle (55–60% or triplets) on the hats; brostep and riddim straighter but with triplets; trap with light or no swing.

Interaction with the bass

• The mid bass fills the spaces between kick and snare; the sub follows the kick or holds long notes; sidechain from the snare as well as the kick.

How it changes by section

• Intro and breakdown: light or absent half-time drums; build with an accelerating snare (1/4 → 1/8 → 1/16 → 1/32), risers, silence.
• Drop: full drums and bass; in the second drop, bass variations ("switches") and sometimes a change of rhythm (double time, slower half-time).

Fills and transitions

• Total stop before the drop (1 bar or half a quarter note), snare rolls, metallic toms, "drop" vocal samples, reverses.

Sound choice

• Processed samples, very clean in the low end; layered snares; "sound design" percussion.

Typical mistakes

• Too much drum (the bass can't breathe); a long kick; a snare that is weak next to the bass; hats too loud that distract from the bass.

Bass

• The protagonist: sub (pure sine or 808) + mid bass (wobble, growl, yoi, screech, reese, tuned "colour").
• Sound design: LFOs on filter, volume and wavetable (wobble), FM and distortion (growl), formants ("yoi", "talking"), chained resampling, OTT, comb filter, vocoder and resonator (colour bass).
• Register: sub 30–80 Hz; mid bass 100 Hz–5 kHz.
• Notes: tonic, b2, b5, b7 in the dark currents; chord roots in future bass and melodic.
• Rhythm: phrases that talk to the drums, timbre changes every half bar or every bar; LFOs at 1/4, 1/8, 1/8T, 1/16.
• Sidechain and kick: sharp sidechain (4–10 dB) from kick and snare; the sub stops under the kick.
• 808 (trap EDM): long, tuned, with glide and distortion.

Harmonic instruments

• Supersaws and pads with sidechain (future bass, melodic dubstep), piano in breakdowns, cinematic strings, metallic stabs and dark pads (dubstep), plucks and bells (colour bass, kawaii).
• Mid-high register; in drops the harmonic instruments leave the center to the bass.

Melody and vocals

• UK dubstep: rare melodies, dub vocal samples and dialogue; brostep: "drop" vocal samples; trap EDM: chops and hip hop samples; future bass and melodic dubstep: pop toplines, female vocals, pitched vocal chops; wave: reverbed, melancholic vocals.
• Effects: long reverbs in breakdowns, dotted-quarter delay, pitch shift and formant shift, vocoder.

Instruments

• Sampled and synthetic drums, 808, synth subs and basses (Serum, Vital, Massive historically), supersaws, pads, piano, strings, vocal samples, pop vocals, FX (risers, impacts, sweeps).

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Korg MS-20 V — Growl and wobble: Two VCOs in pulse/saw, resonant high-pass + low-pass with drive; LFO on the cutoff at 1/8 or 1/8T: classic wobble.
• DX7 V — FM growl: Modulators at 1:2, 1:3 ratios, high feedback; fast envelope: the base for growls and "yoi" to distort.
• OP-Xa V — Supersaw and chords: Unison and detune for future bass and melodic dubstep chords; release 200–400 ms with sidechain.
• Mini V — Sub: Clean sine/triangle for the sub under the mid bass.
• Prophet-VS V — Digital textures and pads: Vector waves for evolving pads and intros.
• Vocoder V — Colour bass and robotic voices: Vocoder with a rich carrier (supersaw) and a bass as the modulator: "bass that is a chord".

Song structure

• US tracks are often short (3–4 min) with 16-bar drops; UK ones are longer and made for mixing.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

• Physical, constant sub, aggressive but controlled mid bass, huge snare, large dynamic contrast between breakdown and drop.
• References: Skream and Mala (UK), Skrillex and Excision (US), Flume and Illenium (melodic).

Kick

• EQ: high-pass 25–30 Hz, +2 dB at 50–60 Hz, −3 dB at 300 Hz, +2 dB at 3–5 kHz; clipper; mono.

Snare and clap

• EQ: high-pass 120–150 Hz, +3 dB at 200 Hz, −2 dB at 500 Hz, +3 dB at 2–4 kHz, +2 dB shelf at 10 kHz.
• Compression 4:1, attack 10 ms, release 100 ms, 3–5 dB; parallel; clipper.
• Reverb: plate or room 0.8–1.5 s (longer in UK dubstep), pre-delay 10–20 ms, filtered return.

Hi-hats and percussion

• High-pass 400–600 Hz; panning 20–60%; short reverb.

Bass

• Sub: mono, low-pass 100 Hz, dedicated clipper or limiter.
• Mid bass: high-pass 100–150 Hz, multiband distortion, OTT, dynamic EQ on resonances, de-esser above 5 kHz; stereo only above 300 Hz.
• Sidechain: kick and snare → bass, 4–10 dB.

Synths, pads, leads

• High-pass 200 Hz; strong sidechain in the melodic genres (up to 10–15 dB of intentional "pumping" in future bass); hall reverb 2–3 s.

Vocals

• High-pass 100 Hz, serial compression, de-esser, reverb and delay; in drops the vocal is often just chops.

Backing vocals

• Wide doubles and harmonies, high-pass 200 Hz.

FX

• Risers, impacts, sweeps at a controlled level; downlifter at the start of breakdowns.

Buses and groups

• Drum bus glue + clipper; bass bus slow compression + saturation; music bus with sidechain.

Sidechain

• Kick → sub; kick + snare → mid bass; kick → chords (future bass, heavy).

Master

• Chain: EQ → glue → clipper → limiter.
• Indicative targets: dubstep/riddim/brostep −5/−3 LUFS integrated for festivals; future bass and melodic −7/−5; classic UK dubstep −8/−6. True peak −0.3/−1 dBTP.

Common mistakes

• Stereo sub; mid bass with fixed resonances; snare that disappears in the drop; drops quieter than the build (loudness management between sections).

Reference tracks for the mix

• Skream — Midnight Request Line (2005); Skrillex — Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (2010); Flume feat. Kai — Never Be Like You (2016).

Reference listening

• Skream — Midnight Request Line (2005)
• Benga & Coki — Night (2007)
• Burial — Untrue (album, 2007)
• Skrillex — Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (2010)
• TNGHT — Higher Ground (2012)
• Baauer — Harlem Shake (2012)
• Seven Lions feat. Fiora — Days to Come (2012)
• Flume feat. Kai — Never Be Like You (2016)