DJ Royski
In The Mix...
My Music Explained
Contrary to popular belief, not everything I play is "techno"...simply having a faster beat, doesn't make any song fall into the techno category. So, here's a little education for all who don't understand the music I play. Definitions are listed below...
Electronica,
Includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing. The term was first used in the United States in the early 1990s with regards to post-rave global-influenced electronic dance music. Genres such as techno, drum and bass, downtempo, and ambient are among those encompassed by the umbrella term, entering the American mainstream from "alternative" or "underground" venues during the late 1990s. Prior to the adoption of electronica for this purpose, terms such as electronic listening music, and intelligent dance music were used. Allmusic categorises electronica as a top-level genre on their main page, where they state that electronica includes danceable grooves to music for headphones and chillout areas. Electronica has grown to influence mainstream crossover recordings. Electronic sounds began to form the basis of a wide array of popular music in the late 1970s, and became key to the mainstream pop and rock sounds of the 1980s. Since the adoption of "electronica" in the 1990s to describe more underground music with an electronic aesthetic, elements of modern electronica have been adopted by many popular artists in mainstream music.
Tech House,
Like progressive house, represents a fusion of house and either techno or minimal. However, whereas progressive house tends to incorporate atmospheric, ethereal, almost ambient sounds and is often mixed to varying degrees with trance and progressive trance, tech-house tends to have more in common with soulful deep house, traditional Detroit-style techno, and contemporary minimal, with which it is often mixed in practice. As one reviewer for Amazon.com suggested, this style fuses "steady techno rhythms with the soul and accessibility of house."
Example of Tech House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Trance,
Is a style of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s. Trance music is generally characterized by a tempo of between 130 and 155 BPM, short melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and down throughout a track. It is a combination of many forms of electronic music such as industrial, techno, and house. The origin of the term is uncertain, with some suggesting that the term is derived from the Klaus Schulze album Trancefer (1981) or the early trance act Dance 2 Trance. In any case, the name is undoubtedly linked to the perceived ability of music to induce an altered state of consciousness known as a trance. The effect of some trance music has been likened to the trance-inducing music created by ancient shamanists during long periods of drumming.
Example Of Trance - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Electro (electrofunk, electro-boogie), Electro House,
Is a genre of electronic music directly influenced by the use of TR-808 and funk records. Records in the genre typically have electronic sounds and some vocals are delivered in a deadpan, mechanical manner, often through a vocoder or other electronic distortion.
Electro House is a fusion genre of house music and electro, sometimes with the influence of other genres such as industrial, trance, dancehall, or indie rock. Stylistically, it combines the four to the floor beats commonly found in house music with harmonically rich analogue or digital basslines, abrasive high-pitched leads and the occasional piano or string riff. The tempo of electro house ranges approximately from 120 to 135 bpm.The style is considered to have originated in the early 2000s. From the point of origin, electro house has developed various subgenres of its own. The use of the word electro to describe this style of modern house music is contentious, and creates an ambiguity between electro house and classic electro, mostly because both styles sometimes share common sounding characteristics and similar tempo speed.
Example Of Electro House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
House, Deep House
Is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit, and Miami. It eventually reached Europe before becoming infused in mainstream pop and dance music worldwide. House is strongly influenced by elements of soul-and funk-infused varieties of disco. House generally mimics disco's percussion, especially the use of a prominent bass drum on every beat, but may feature a prominent synthesizer bassline, electronic drums, electronic effects, funk and pop samples, and reverb- or delay-enhanced vocals.
Deep House is a style of house music which fuses elements of Chicago house, disco, 80's soul, jazz-funk and Detroit techno. The Jazz influences of deep house are most frequently brought out by using more complex chords than simple triads (7ths, 9ths, 13ths, suspensions, alterations) which are held for many bars, which gives the tracks a slightly dissonant feel. The Disco music sound is a heavy influence in Deep House. The use of vocals is also more common in deep house than in many other forms of house music. Sonic qualities include soulful vocals, slow and concentrated dissonant melodies, smooth, stylish, and chic demeanor.
Example Of House, Deep House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Progressive House,
Is a style of house music that is noted for musical progression within melodies and basslines. The term was coined by Mixmag editor Dom Phillips. It has similar elements to both electro-house and trance. It has its origins in Great Britain in the early 1990s, with the output of Guerilla Records and Leftfield's first singles (particularly "Song of Life"). The music itself was produced with the 4-to-4 beat of house music and deeper dub-influenced basslines, with greater emphasis on emotion before structural considerations. Often, it featured elements from many different genres mixed together. Song of Life, for instance, has a trip-hop like down-pitched breakbeat and a high-energy Roland TB-303 riff at various stages. In 1992, the dance club Renaissance opened in Mansfield where DJs Sasha and John Digweed were instrumental in popularizing its early sound. Other notable Progressive House DJs and producers include: Nathan Fake, James Holden, Dave Seaman, Nick Warren, Jason Jollins, Hernan Cattaneo, Deadmau5, Anthony Pappa. Notable active progressive house labels include Baroque Records, Bedrock Records, Renaissance, Audiotherapy, Global Underground and Source of Gravity.
Example of Progressive House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Techno,
Is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan, US during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988. Many styles of techno now exist, but Detroit techno is seen as the foundation upon which a number of subgenres have been built. The initial take on techno arose from the melding of Eurocentric synthesizer-based music with various American post-disco and pre-disco music styles such as Chicago house, funk, electro, and electric jazz. Added to this is the influence of futuristic and fictional themes that are relevant to life in American late capitalist society—particularly the book The Third Wave by Alvin Toffler. Pioneering producer Juan Atkins cites Toffler's phrase "techno rebels" as inspiring him to use the word techno to describe the musical style he helped to create. This unique blend of influences aligns techno with the aesthetic referred to as afrofuturism. To producers such as Derrick May, the transference of spirit from the body to the machine is often a central preoccupation; essentially an expression of technological spirituality. In this manner: "techno dance music defeats what Adorno saw as the alienating effect of mechanisation on the modern consciousness". Music journalists and fans of techno are generally selective in their use of the term; so a clear distinction can be made between sometimes related but often qualitatively different styles, such as tech house and trance. "Techno" is also commonly confused with generalized descriptors, such as electronic music and dance music.
Example Of Techno - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Minimal (originally, minimal techno),
Is a form of electronic dance music that is considered a minimalist derivative of techno or a subgenre of techno. It is characterized by a stripped-down aesthetic that exploits the use of repetition, and understated development. This style of dance music production generally adheres to the motto less is more; a principle that has been previously utilized, to great effect, in architecture, design, visual art, and Western art music. The tradition of minimalist aesthetics in Western culture can be traced to the German Bauhaus movement (1919 to 1933). Minimal techno is thought to have been originally developed in the early 1990s by Detroit based producers Robert Hood and Daniel Bell, although what is currently referred to as 'minimal' has largely been developed in Germany during the 2000s, and made very popular in the second half of the decade by labels such as M-nus.
Example Of Minimal - DJ Royski Hour Mix
New Wave,
Is a genre of music that emerged in in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and disco and 1960s pop music, as well as much of the original punk rock sound and ethos, such as an emphasis on short and punchy songs. The 1990s and 2000s have seen revivals, and a number of acts that have been influenced by a variety of New Wave styles.
Hip Hop,
Is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is based on the concepts of rapping, DJing, sampling, scratching, beatboxing and breakdancing. Hip hop began in the Bronx in New York City in the 1970s, primarily among African Americans, with Jamaican and Latino American immigrant influence. The term rap is often used synonymously with hip hop, but hip hop denotes the practices of an entire subculture. Rapping, also referred to as MCing or emceeing, is a vocal style in which the artist speaks lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized beat. Beats, almost always in 4/4 time signature, can be created by looping portions of other songs, usually by a DJ, or sampled from portions of other songs by a producer. Modern beats incorporate synthesizers, drum machines, and live bands. Rappers may write, memorize, or improvise their lyrics and perform their works a cappella or to a beat.
Example Of Hip-Hop - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Funk,
Is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground. Funk songs are often based on an extended vamp on a single chord, distinguishing it from R&B and soul songs centered around chord progressions. Like much African-inspired music, funk typically consists of a complex groove with rhythm instruments such as electric guitar, electric bass, Hammond organ, and drums playing interlocking rhythms. Funk bands sometimes have a horn section of several saxophones, trumpets, and in some cases, a trombone, which plays rhythmic "hits". Many of the most famous bands in the genre also played disco and soul extensively. Funk music was a major influence on the development of disco music, and funk samples were present in most styles of house music and early hip hop music. It is also the main influence of go-go.
Old School,
Describes the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music (1979–1984), and the music in the period preceding it from which it was directly descended (see Roots of hip hop). Old school hip hop is said to end around 1983-1984 with the emergence of Run DMC, the first new school hip hop group. The image, styles and sounds of the old school were exemplified by figures like Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, The Sugarhill Gang, Spoonie G, The Treacherous Three, Funky Four Plus One, Kurtis Blow, Fab 5 Freddy and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and it is characterized by the simpler rapping techniques of the time and the general focus on party related subject matter.
The Top Forty or Top 40,
Is a music industry shorthand for the currently most-popular songs in a particular genre. When used without qualification, it typically refers to the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music songs of the previous week. Top 40 became the dominant radio format of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
Includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing. The term was first used in the United States in the early 1990s with regards to post-rave global-influenced electronic dance music. Genres such as techno, drum and bass, downtempo, and ambient are among those encompassed by the umbrella term, entering the American mainstream from "alternative" or "underground" venues during the late 1990s. Prior to the adoption of electronica for this purpose, terms such as electronic listening music, and intelligent dance music were used. Allmusic categorises electronica as a top-level genre on their main page, where they state that electronica includes danceable grooves to music for headphones and chillout areas. Electronica has grown to influence mainstream crossover recordings. Electronic sounds began to form the basis of a wide array of popular music in the late 1970s, and became key to the mainstream pop and rock sounds of the 1980s. Since the adoption of "electronica" in the 1990s to describe more underground music with an electronic aesthetic, elements of modern electronica have been adopted by many popular artists in mainstream music.
Tech House,
Like progressive house, represents a fusion of house and either techno or minimal. However, whereas progressive house tends to incorporate atmospheric, ethereal, almost ambient sounds and is often mixed to varying degrees with trance and progressive trance, tech-house tends to have more in common with soulful deep house, traditional Detroit-style techno, and contemporary minimal, with which it is often mixed in practice. As one reviewer for Amazon.com suggested, this style fuses "steady techno rhythms with the soul and accessibility of house."
Example of Tech House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Trance,
Is a style of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s. Trance music is generally characterized by a tempo of between 130 and 155 BPM, short melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and down throughout a track. It is a combination of many forms of electronic music such as industrial, techno, and house. The origin of the term is uncertain, with some suggesting that the term is derived from the Klaus Schulze album Trancefer (1981) or the early trance act Dance 2 Trance. In any case, the name is undoubtedly linked to the perceived ability of music to induce an altered state of consciousness known as a trance. The effect of some trance music has been likened to the trance-inducing music created by ancient shamanists during long periods of drumming.
Example Of Trance - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Electro (electrofunk, electro-boogie), Electro House,
Is a genre of electronic music directly influenced by the use of TR-808 and funk records. Records in the genre typically have electronic sounds and some vocals are delivered in a deadpan, mechanical manner, often through a vocoder or other electronic distortion.
Electro House is a fusion genre of house music and electro, sometimes with the influence of other genres such as industrial, trance, dancehall, or indie rock. Stylistically, it combines the four to the floor beats commonly found in house music with harmonically rich analogue or digital basslines, abrasive high-pitched leads and the occasional piano or string riff. The tempo of electro house ranges approximately from 120 to 135 bpm.The style is considered to have originated in the early 2000s. From the point of origin, electro house has developed various subgenres of its own. The use of the word electro to describe this style of modern house music is contentious, and creates an ambiguity between electro house and classic electro, mostly because both styles sometimes share common sounding characteristics and similar tempo speed.
Example Of Electro House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
House, Deep House
Is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit, and Miami. It eventually reached Europe before becoming infused in mainstream pop and dance music worldwide. House is strongly influenced by elements of soul-and funk-infused varieties of disco. House generally mimics disco's percussion, especially the use of a prominent bass drum on every beat, but may feature a prominent synthesizer bassline, electronic drums, electronic effects, funk and pop samples, and reverb- or delay-enhanced vocals.
Deep House is a style of house music which fuses elements of Chicago house, disco, 80's soul, jazz-funk and Detroit techno. The Jazz influences of deep house are most frequently brought out by using more complex chords than simple triads (7ths, 9ths, 13ths, suspensions, alterations) which are held for many bars, which gives the tracks a slightly dissonant feel. The Disco music sound is a heavy influence in Deep House. The use of vocals is also more common in deep house than in many other forms of house music. Sonic qualities include soulful vocals, slow and concentrated dissonant melodies, smooth, stylish, and chic demeanor.
Example Of House, Deep House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Progressive House,
Is a style of house music that is noted for musical progression within melodies and basslines. The term was coined by Mixmag editor Dom Phillips. It has similar elements to both electro-house and trance. It has its origins in Great Britain in the early 1990s, with the output of Guerilla Records and Leftfield's first singles (particularly "Song of Life"). The music itself was produced with the 4-to-4 beat of house music and deeper dub-influenced basslines, with greater emphasis on emotion before structural considerations. Often, it featured elements from many different genres mixed together. Song of Life, for instance, has a trip-hop like down-pitched breakbeat and a high-energy Roland TB-303 riff at various stages. In 1992, the dance club Renaissance opened in Mansfield where DJs Sasha and John Digweed were instrumental in popularizing its early sound. Other notable Progressive House DJs and producers include: Nathan Fake, James Holden, Dave Seaman, Nick Warren, Jason Jollins, Hernan Cattaneo, Deadmau5, Anthony Pappa. Notable active progressive house labels include Baroque Records, Bedrock Records, Renaissance, Audiotherapy, Global Underground and Source of Gravity.
Example of Progressive House - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Techno,
Is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan, US during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988. Many styles of techno now exist, but Detroit techno is seen as the foundation upon which a number of subgenres have been built. The initial take on techno arose from the melding of Eurocentric synthesizer-based music with various American post-disco and pre-disco music styles such as Chicago house, funk, electro, and electric jazz. Added to this is the influence of futuristic and fictional themes that are relevant to life in American late capitalist society—particularly the book The Third Wave by Alvin Toffler. Pioneering producer Juan Atkins cites Toffler's phrase "techno rebels" as inspiring him to use the word techno to describe the musical style he helped to create. This unique blend of influences aligns techno with the aesthetic referred to as afrofuturism. To producers such as Derrick May, the transference of spirit from the body to the machine is often a central preoccupation; essentially an expression of technological spirituality. In this manner: "techno dance music defeats what Adorno saw as the alienating effect of mechanisation on the modern consciousness". Music journalists and fans of techno are generally selective in their use of the term; so a clear distinction can be made between sometimes related but often qualitatively different styles, such as tech house and trance. "Techno" is also commonly confused with generalized descriptors, such as electronic music and dance music.
Example Of Techno - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Minimal (originally, minimal techno),
Is a form of electronic dance music that is considered a minimalist derivative of techno or a subgenre of techno. It is characterized by a stripped-down aesthetic that exploits the use of repetition, and understated development. This style of dance music production generally adheres to the motto less is more; a principle that has been previously utilized, to great effect, in architecture, design, visual art, and Western art music. The tradition of minimalist aesthetics in Western culture can be traced to the German Bauhaus movement (1919 to 1933). Minimal techno is thought to have been originally developed in the early 1990s by Detroit based producers Robert Hood and Daniel Bell, although what is currently referred to as 'minimal' has largely been developed in Germany during the 2000s, and made very popular in the second half of the decade by labels such as M-nus.
Example Of Minimal - DJ Royski Hour Mix
New Wave,
Is a genre of music that emerged in in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, and disco and 1960s pop music, as well as much of the original punk rock sound and ethos, such as an emphasis on short and punchy songs. The 1990s and 2000s have seen revivals, and a number of acts that have been influenced by a variety of New Wave styles.
Hip Hop,
Is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is based on the concepts of rapping, DJing, sampling, scratching, beatboxing and breakdancing. Hip hop began in the Bronx in New York City in the 1970s, primarily among African Americans, with Jamaican and Latino American immigrant influence. The term rap is often used synonymously with hip hop, but hip hop denotes the practices of an entire subculture. Rapping, also referred to as MCing or emceeing, is a vocal style in which the artist speaks lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized beat. Beats, almost always in 4/4 time signature, can be created by looping portions of other songs, usually by a DJ, or sampled from portions of other songs by a producer. Modern beats incorporate synthesizers, drum machines, and live bands. Rappers may write, memorize, or improvise their lyrics and perform their works a cappella or to a beat.
Example Of Hip-Hop - DJ Royski Hour Mix
Funk,
Is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground. Funk songs are often based on an extended vamp on a single chord, distinguishing it from R&B and soul songs centered around chord progressions. Like much African-inspired music, funk typically consists of a complex groove with rhythm instruments such as electric guitar, electric bass, Hammond organ, and drums playing interlocking rhythms. Funk bands sometimes have a horn section of several saxophones, trumpets, and in some cases, a trombone, which plays rhythmic "hits". Many of the most famous bands in the genre also played disco and soul extensively. Funk music was a major influence on the development of disco music, and funk samples were present in most styles of house music and early hip hop music. It is also the main influence of go-go.
Old School,
Describes the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music (1979–1984), and the music in the period preceding it from which it was directly descended (see Roots of hip hop). Old school hip hop is said to end around 1983-1984 with the emergence of Run DMC, the first new school hip hop group. The image, styles and sounds of the old school were exemplified by figures like Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, The Sugarhill Gang, Spoonie G, The Treacherous Three, Funky Four Plus One, Kurtis Blow, Fab 5 Freddy and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and it is characterized by the simpler rapping techniques of the time and the general focus on party related subject matter.
The Top Forty or Top 40,
Is a music industry shorthand for the currently most-popular songs in a particular genre. When used without qualification, it typically refers to the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music songs of the previous week. Top 40 became the dominant radio format of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
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djroyski@sio.midco.net
