Riddim

History and character

Riddim is a subgenre of dubstep characterized by repetitive, minimal sub-basses and tuplet (triplet) percussion, with a "wonky," swaying feel. The name comes from the Jamaican term "riddim" (patois pronunciation of "rhythm"), which in reggae and dancehall indicates the instrumental backing track; MCs were already using it in garage and dancehall. The British style was born in Croydon in the early 2010s as a revival of early dubstep; the producer Jakes is named by many as the first riddim artist and is said to have given it its name around 2012. American producers and fans then applied the term to what had previously been called "wonky dubstep".

The sound gained popularity around 2015: Subfiltronik is considered the one who set its modern form, with Bukez Finezt, P0gman, Badklaat, 50 Carrot, Dubloadz, Coffi, Deemed, Blankface, Drippy, The Monsters, Kromestar (and Digital Mystikz's Coki among the roots). In the United States riddim dominates part of the festival scene (Lost Lands, Bass Canyon): "German Engineering" by Virtual Riot (EP, January 2018) reached number 11 on Billboard's dance/electronic album sales chart; "Sell Out" by Marshmello and Svdden Death (2019) entered the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart; Excision, Subtronics and Svdden Death act as a bridge to tearout.

Variants emerged: melodic riddim (melodic synths, crystalline textures, kick + clap instead of the snare alone; Chime and Ace Aura in the second half of the 2010s), liquid riddim (riddim basses with soft pads, the Shizuka and THORN COLLECTIVE collectives), briddim (a crossover with brostep) and the bridge to colour bass. Aesthetic: hypnotic repetition, space, very dark atmospheres (the producer Infekt speaks of "super dark textures"), square waves with LFOs, wide delays, heavy flanger and chorus.

Scales and keys

Riddim uses very few notes: often just one in the drop. The "mode" is supplied by the stabs, the answers and the intros. Examples on F (sub F1 = 43.65 Hz) and E. 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: intros with pads and strings; in the drop the tonic and an answer on the b7 or b6.

Phrygian

• Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7. S T T T S T T. On E: E F G A B C D.
• Characteristic note: b2 (F).
• Chords: i Em, bII F, III G, iv Am, v° B°, VI C, vii Dm.
• Use: mid bass answers a semitone away (E–F), dark pads.
• Common mistakes: turning the riff into a melody: riddim lives on repetition.

Tritone and chromaticism

• Locrian on E: E F G A Bb C D (1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7). Characteristic note b5 (Bb).
• Use: pitch "dives" from the tonic to the tritone, dissonant stabs between repetitions.

Minor pentatonic (melodic riddim)

• Formula: 1 b3 4 5 b7. On F: F Ab Bb C Eb.
• Use: crystalline arpeggios and leads over the repetitive bass.

Major and Lydian (melodic and liquid riddim)

• Major on F: F G A Bb C D E; Lydian on F: F G A B C D E (#4 = B).
• Use: bright pads and bells in contrast with the dark bass; a bridge to colour bass.

How to choose

• Classic riddim: one note + answer (b7, b2, b5).
• Melodic: pentatonic or major in the upper layers, bass always minimal.
• Rule: change the timbre, not the note.

Harmony

• Almost no harmony in the drop: tonic pedal; the mid bass repeats the same cell for 4–8 bars.
• Intro and breakdown: minor pads, strings, bells; 1–2 chords.
• Melodic riddim: pad chords (i–VI–III–VII) in a high register while the bass stays on one note.
• Cadences: none; the drop arrives through stops and silence.
• Harmonic rhythm: one change every 4–8 bars (or never).

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

• Half time at 140–150: snare (+ clap) on beat 3 of each bar.
• Triplets: percussion and bass LFOs often in triplets (1/8T, 1/16T) or in 3+3+2 cells (tresillo) that approximate them on a sixteenth-note grid.
• Repetition: the same bass cell for 4–8 bars; the "groove" is the relationship between the triplet bass and the quarter-note drums.
• Pauses: a quarter-note or half-bar stop with only the reverb.

Drums

Convention: 2 bars of 16 sixteenth notes (32 steps, as in r-riddim); beat 3 of each bar falls on steps 9 and 25.

Kick

• Steps 1, 15, 31 in the r-riddim rhythm: the 1 of the phrase and linking hits before the snare or the loop. Short kick, moderate click, body 50–60 Hz.

Snare and clap

• Steps 9 and 25, snare + clap (in melodic riddim, kick + clap instead of the full snare). Medium reverb (1–1.5 s) that fills the pauses.

Hi-hats and percussion

• Offbeat hats with small rolls at the end of the phrase (steps 28–31); triplet percussion, metallic and "sound design".
• Many tracks have very little percussion: the space is for the bass.

Dynamics and groove

• No swing on the quarter notes; the "wonky" feel comes from the triplets of the bass and percussion against the grid.

Interaction with the bass

• The main bass (r-riddim's 808 lane) plays the 3+3+2 cell: steps 1, 4, 7, 9, 12, 15… The drums leave space and the sidechain lets the bass breathe on the snare.

How it changes by section

• Intro: pad, bells, vocal sample; short build (8 bars) with snare roll and "riser"; drop: bass cell + drums; switch: change of timbre or cell; second drop: a more aggressive variation.

Fills and transitions

• Quarter-note stop; triplet snare roll; bass reverse; "impact" hit.

Sound choice

• Big, reverbed snares, simple kicks; triplet percussion with metallic timbres.

Typical mistakes

• Too much drum; a kick that covers the sub; triplets "approximated" inconsistently between bass and percussion.

Bass

• Repetitive, minimal sub-bass: mono sine on the tonic.
• Mid bass: square waves with LFOs (volume or filter) synced to triplets or eighths, light "yoi", heavy flanger and chorus, wide delays. Often a single patch with minimal variations.
• Notes: tonic; answers on the b7, b2, b5; pitch dive.
• Rhythm: 3+3+2 cell or triplets, repeated for 4–8 bars.
• Sidechain: from the kick and snare (4–8 dB).
• Examples: Subfiltronik, Bukez Finezt, 50 Carrot, Virtual Riot ("German Engineering").

Harmonic instruments

• Dark pads, drones, strings in the intros; bells, plucks and crystalline pads in melodic and liquid riddim.
• Low volume and high register; no fundamental.

Melody and vocals

• Short, repeated vocal samples (MC, dancehall, film), chops; melodies only in the intros or in melodic riddim (arpeggios, bells, plucks).
• Effects: wide delays (dotted quarter, ping-pong), long reverb, flanger, chorus.

Instruments

• Half-time drums, triplet percussion; sub; synth bass (square wave, wavetable); pads, bells, plucks; vocal samples; FX (flanger, chorus, delay).

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• SEM V — Filtered square bass: Square/pulse wave, 12 dB low-pass or band-pass filter, external LFO at 1/8T on the cutoff: "rubbery" riddim bass.
• Korg MS-20 V — Aggressive bass: Pulse with PWM and drive; LFO on volume and cutoff in triplets; then flanger.
• Mini V — Sub: Clean sine on the tonic, no glide.
• Jun-6 V — Pads and bells: Chorus I/II and sub-oscillator: soft pads for melodic riddim.
• Prophet-VS V — Crystalline textures: Digital waves with a slow vector: "glass" pads and bells.

Song structure

• Short tracks (3–4 min); in sets DJs mix the drops in rapid succession.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

• Huge, constant sub, a mid bass with clear modulations, lots of space between the hits, obvious modulation effects.
• References: Subfiltronik, Virtual Riot, Svdden Death (heavier side).

Kick

• EQ: high-pass 30 Hz, +2 dB at 55 Hz, −3 dB at 300 Hz, +2 dB at 4 kHz; mono.

Snare and clap

• EQ: high-pass 150 Hz, +3 dB at 200 Hz, +3 dB at 3 kHz; 4:1 compression + clipper; 1–1.5 s plate reverb with filtered return.

Hi-hats and percussion

• High-pass 500 Hz; panning 30–70%; low triplet delay.

Bass

• Sub: mono sine, low-pass 100 Hz, limiter.
• Mid bass: high-pass 100 Hz, saturation, flanger/chorus only above 300 Hz (to avoid breaking mono compatibility), dynamic EQ; sidechain from kick and snare 4–8 dB.
• Automation: LFO speed, flanger depth, filter.

Pads, bells, plucks

• High-pass 300 Hz; long hall reverb; wide stereo; sidechain from the snare.

Vocals and samples

• High-pass 150 Hz, heavy compression, wide dotted-quarter delay.

Backing vocals

• Rare.

FX

• Impacts and risers at a controlled level.

Buses and groups

• Drum bus with clipper; bass bus with limiter; music bus with sidechain.

Sidechain

• Kick → sub, kick + snare → mid bass and pads.

Master

• Chain: EQ → glue → clipper → limiter.
• Indicative targets: −5/−4 LUFS integrated for festivals; true peak −0.3/−1 dBTP.

Common mistakes

• Flanger/chorus below 200 Hz (phase and mono issues); a sub whose level varies with the LFO; repetition without micro-variations (it gets boring even for riddim).

Reference tracks for the mix

• Virtual Riot — German Engineering (EP, 2018); Marshmello & Svdden Death — Sell Out (2019).

Reference listening

• Virtual Riot — German Engineering (EP, 2018)
• Marshmello & Svdden Death — Sell Out (2019)
• Papa Khan — Rain (dall'EP Blossom, 2020; ponte verso il colour bass)