Hard techno

History and character

Fast, aggressive techno with roots in the '90s: Joey Beltram (Energy Flash, 1990, R&S), Jeff Mills and his 140+ BPM techno, Surgeon and Regis in Birmingham, Ben Sims, Adam Beyer in the days of '90s Drumcode, and the German schranz of Chris Liebing and Frank Kvitta (2000s: pounding kick and distorted loops). Techno slowed down in the 2010s, but since 2020–2021 hard techno has enjoyed a huge revival, driven by TikTok, raves and festivals: Sara Landry, I Hate Models, 999999999, Nico Moreno, Dax J, Kobosil, Clara Cuvé, Trym, Shlømo, Holy Priest, with influences from trance, hardstyle, gabber, '90s rave and Eurodance.

The sound: a distorted, long kick with rumble, an offbeat or “rolling” bass halfway between techno and hardstyle, reverbed claps, trance or rave leads, sampled and pitched vocals, and nonstop peak-time energy.

Aesthetic: physical catharsis, speed, aggression, rave nostalgia, dark-club imagery.

Scales and keys

Convention: Roman numerals refer to the major scale on the same tonic (uppercase = major, lowercase = minor, ° diminished, ø half-diminished, + augmented; b/# = degree lowered/raised relative to major: in A minor F = bVI, G = bVII). The notes and chords below are calculated exactly from the formula.

Aeolian

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 — steps: T S T T S T T
• On A: A B C D E F G
• Diatonic triads: Am i · Bdim ii° · C bIII · Dm iv · Em v · F bVI · G bVII
• Seventh chords: Am7 i7 · Bm7b5 iiø7 · Cmaj7 bIIImaj7 · Dm7 iv7 · Em7 v7 · Fmaj7 bVImaj7 · G7 bVII7
• Characteristic note: the b6 (F): trance epicness in the leads.
• Use: rave leads in A minor (A–C–E–F–G), i–bVI–bVII progressions.
• Common mistakes: leads that are too complex at 155 BPM: phrases need to stay simple.

Phrygian

• Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 — steps: S T T T S T T
• On F#: F# G A B C# D E
• Diatonic triads: F#m i · G bII · A bIII · Bm iv · C#dim v° · D bVI · Em bvii
• Seventh chords: F#m7 i7 · Gmaj7 bIImaj7 · A7 bIII7 · Bm7 iv7 · C#m7b5 vø7 · Dmaj7 bVImaj7 · Em7 bvii7
• Characteristic note: the b2 (G): aggression and menace.
• Use: F#–G bass riffs, i–bII stabs, acid leads.
• Common mistakes: too many consecutive semitones, which make the riff muddled at high speed.

Harmonic minor

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7 — steps: T S T T S T+S S
• On E: E F# G A B C D#
• Diatonic triads: Em i · F#dim ii° · Gaug bIII+ · Am iv · B V · C bVI · D#dim vii°
• Seventh chords: Em(maj7) i(maj7) · F#m7b5 iiø7 · Gmaj7#5 bIII+maj7 · Am7 iv7 · B7 V7 · Cmaj7 bVImaj7 · D#dim7 vii°7
• Characteristic note: the leading tone D# and the augmented second C–D#: a dramatic hardstyle/trance color.
• Use: leads and i–V cadences in the breaks.
• Common mistakes: using it in the bass (it sounds “classical”).

Minor pentatonic

• Formula: 1 b3 4 5 b7 — steps: T+S T T T+S T
• On A: A C D E G
• Characteristic note: simple and powerful.
• Use: rave riffs and hoover leads.
• Common mistakes: too many notes.

How to choose between scales

Bass and riffs: Phrygian or a single note. Leads: Aeolian or harmonic minor (for the trance/hardstyle flavor). Many tracks are atonal with a single center; you choose the scale when you add a lead.

Harmony

Function

Minimal: tonic pedal, stabs and leads over 1–3 chords; trance leads add a minor progression in the breaks.

Techniques

• Pedal tone with a bass riff.
• i–bII or i–bVII dyads.
• Aeolian progressions in the leads (i–bVI–bVII).
• Distorted synth power chords (open fifths).

Harmonic rhythm

Static in the main section; 1 chord per bar in the melodic breaks.

Examples

• Am pedal.
• Am–Bb (i–bII).
• F#m–D–E (i–bVI–bVII).

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

• Feel: straight, very fast (150–160), no swing.
• Offbeat bass (steps 3, 7, 11, 15) or “rolling” (two sixteenth notes after the kick: .xx.); hardstyle influence with integrated kick-bass.
• Accents: huge kick, reverbed clap on 2 and 4, open hat on the offbeat, sixteenth-note hats.
• Build with snare rolls and a shortening kick; the drop comes after a silence.

Drums

Kick

On the quarter notes, distorted and long (decay 300–500 ms) with rumble; fundamental 45–55 Hz; often processed with serial distortion, clipper, EQ; sometimes a hardstyle-style “tok.”

• Typical construction: (1) a short transient (909 click or a “tok” at 1–3 kHz, 20–40 ms); (2) a sine body with a pitch envelope falling from 150–200 Hz to the tonic in 30–60 ms; (3) distortion (overdrive or waveshaper, then clipper); (4) EQ that removes 200–400 Hz and restores 50 Hz; (5) a separate rumble on the offbeats. At 155 BPM a quarter note lasts 387 ms: the kick tail must end before the next one or be cut by the rumble sidechain.
• Tuning: tune the tail to the track's tonic (e.g. A1 = 55 Hz or F1 = 43.7 Hz).
• Velocity and dynamics: no velocity variation; dynamics come only from the arrangement (kick in / kick out).

Clap and snare

Clap on 2 and 4 with long reverb and distortion; snare rolls in the builds.

Hi-hat

Open hat on the offbeat; sixteenth-note hats, often distorted.

Percussion

Metallic percs, industrial noises, vocal shots.

Dynamics and ghost notes

Fixed; movement comes from filters and distortion.

Interaction with the bass

The bass (or the rumble) occupies the offbeats; extreme sidechain/volume shaping.

Sections

Intro with kick; main; break with lead/vocal; build; drop.

Fills and transitions

Snare rolls, halving kick, risers, stops.

Choosing sounds

Custom-built kicks (layers + distortion), distorted 909 claps.

Typical mistakes

Kick without low-end control (mud); too many stacked distortions; harsh hats.

Bass

• Sound: distorted rumble, synthetic offbeat bass (distorted saw), rolling bass.
• Register: E1–A1.
• With the kick: on the offbeats; 10–15 dB sidechain or volume shaping.
• Notes: tonic.

Harmonic instruments

Distorted stabs, dark pads, trance/hoover leads in the breaks, supersaw.

Melody and vocals

• Lead: trance, rave, hoover, acid; simple phrases.
• Vocal: pitched samples (also pop/Eurodance), spoken phrases, screams.
• Effects: distortion, long reverb, delay.

Instruments

Drum machines and processed samples, virtual and analog synths, distortion units, clippers, samplers.

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Korg MS-20 V — Distorted lead and bass: Filter overdrive and high resonance for aggressive rave sounds.
• ARP 2600 V — FX and perc: Noise and S&H for industrial FX and percs.
• Synthi V — Noise and drone: Textures and noises for the breaks.
• Jup-8 V — Supersaw and trance lead: Two detuned VCOs in unison for trance leads in the breaks.
• Mini V — Offbeat bass: Distorted saw with short decay.

Song structure

Tracks run 4–6 minutes; DJs mix quickly.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

A huge, controlled distorted kick, pushing low end, aggressive but not painful highs; very high loudness. References: recent productions by I Hate Models, Sara Landry, Dax J; Charlotte de Witte — Doppler as a “cleaner” reference.

Kick

Layers (transient + body + distorted tail); HP 25 Hz; +2 dB at 50 Hz; −4/−6 dB at 200–400 Hz; serial distortion (overdrive → clipper); EQ after the distortion to clean up; mono.

Rumble / bass

HP 30 Hz; LP 150–200 Hz; distortion; sidechain 10–15 dB; mono.

• Rumble chain: kick send → long reverb 100% wet (hall 4–8 s) → heavy distortion/saturation → low-pass EQ at 150 Hz and high-pass at 30 Hz → gate or sidechain from the kick (attack 0.1 ms, release 150–250 ms) → 4:1 compression for a constant level.
• Phase control: check with a correlation meter that the kick and rumble don't cancel each other (invert the rumble's phase and pick the fuller version); everything below 120 Hz in mono.

Balance and reference

Kick 0 dB, rumble −4/−6 dB, clap −6, hats −12/−15, lead −6/−8. Listen at low volume: the kick should remain the loudest element even there.

Clap

HP 250 Hz; light distortion; hall 2–3 s with distortion on the return; centered.

Hi-hat and perc

HP 600 Hz; dynamic EQ 7–10 kHz; panning 15–60%; light distortion.

Lead and pad

HP 200–300 Hz; −3 dB at 400–600 Hz; distortion/saturation; long hall; wide; sidechain 6–10 dB.

Vocal

HP 150 Hz; distortion; heavy compression; long delay/reverb.

FX

Risers, noise, impacts.

Buses and groups

Drum bus with clipper; mono low-end bus with limiter; sidechained synth bus.

Sidechain

Bass 10–15 dB, synths 6–10 dB, reverbs 8 dB.

Master

EQ → clipper (2–4 dB) → limiter. Target −6/−4 LUFS integrated, true peak −0.3 dBTP (club), crest factor 4–6 dB.

Common mistakes

Muddy low end from too many distortions; kick losing its transient after the limiter; painful hats at 8 kHz; uncontrolled mono.

Reference tracks for the mix

• Joey Beltram — Energy Flash (1990)
• Jeff Mills — The Bells (1996)
• Charlotte de Witte — Doppler (2020)

Reference listening

• Joey Beltram — Energy Flash (1990)
• Jeff Mills — The Bells (1996)
• Charlotte de Witte — Doppler (2020)