Electro house is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by heavy bass and a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

around 130 beats per minute. The term has been used to describe the music of many ''DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJs, including

Benny Benassi Marco "Benny" Benassi (; born 13 July 1967) is an Italian DJ, record producer and remixer. He is widely seen as a pioneer of electro house, a genre brought into the mainstream by his 2002 summer club hit " Satisfaction". He started his career ...

Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead si ...

, Steve Aoki &

Deadmau5 Joel Thomas Zimmerman (born January 5, 1981), known professionally as Deadmau5 (stylized as deadmau5; pronounced "dead-mouse"), is a Canadian electronic music producer and DJ. He mainly produces progressive house music, though he also produce ...

Characteristics

Simon Reynolds described electro house, as a style attributed to artists like

Zedd Anton Zaslavski (russian: Антон Заславский; born 2 September 1989), known professionally as Zedd (), is a Russian-born German DJ, record producer, and songwriter. Zedd grew up and began his musical journey in Kaiserslautern, G ...

Erol Alkan Erol Alkan (born 30 May 1974) is an English DJ and producer of Turkish Cypriot descent. He grew up in Archway in North London. Career DJ and club promoter In 1993, Erol Alkan started DJing in various indie nightclubs in London. His fir ...

and

Bloody Beetroots The Bloody Beetroots is an Italian electronic music project of musician and producer Bob Rifo (also Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo and SBCR, born Simone Cogo). Established in late 2006, the Bloody Beetroots were initially a duo consisting of Bob Rifo an ...

. Electro-house is typified by its heavy bass. This is often in the form of buzzing basslines, such as those created with

sawtooth wave The sawtooth wave (or saw wave) is a kind of non-sinusoidal waveform. It is so named based on its resemblance to the teeth of a plain-toothed saw with a zero rake angle. A single sawtooth, or an intermittently triggered sawtooth, is called ...

s and

distortion In signal processing, distortion is the alteration of the original shape (or other characteristic) of a signal. In communications and electronics it means the alteration of the waveform of an information-bearing signal, such as an audio signa ...

. It is also often in the form of large bass drum sounds in a

four-on-the-floor Four-on-the-floor (or four-to-the-floor) is a rhythm pattern used primarily in dance genres such as disco and electronic dance music. It is a steady, uniformly accented beat in time in which the bass drum is hit on every beat (1, 2, 3, 4). ...

pattern. The

of electro house is usually between 125 and 135 beats per minute, usually 130. Electro house sometimes resembles

tech house Tech house is a subgenre of house music that combines stylistic features of techno with house. The term ''tech house'' developed as a shorthand record store name for a category of electronic dance music that combined musical aspects of techno, ...

, but it can contain melodic elements and electro-influenced samples and synths. In contrast, Reynolds stated the genre had "little relationship with either house or electro".

History

Reynolds described the sound as being influenced by '' Discovery'' by Daft Punk and further developed by Justice and Digitalism. The sound was popularized in the United States by

deadmau5 Joel Thomas Zimmerman (born January 5, 1981), known professionally as Deadmau5 (stylized as deadmau5; pronounced "dead-mouse"), is a Canadian electronic music producer and DJ. He mainly produces progressive house music, though he also produce ...

and noted the style's distinct style had a "dirty bass" with "grinding and whirring sawtooth b-lines". By 2011, the word "electro" had come to be seen as an

adjective In linguistics, an adjective (abbreviated ) is a word that generally modifies a noun or noun phrase or describes its referent. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun. Traditionally, adjectives were considered one of the ma ...

denoting "hard electronic dance music". Early songs that have been labelled retroactively as electro house include "Dark Invader" (1996) by Arrivers and "Raw S*it" (1997) by Basement Jaxx. Mr. Oizo's " Flat Beat" (1999) has also been considered an early example of the genre. Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

described " Satisfaction" (2002) by Italian DJ

as being a precursor to electro-house. By the mid 2000s, electro house saw an increase in popularity. In November 2006, electro house tracks " Put Your Hands Up For Detroit" by Fedde Le Grand and the D. Ramirez remix of " Yeah Yeah" by

Bodyrox Bodyrox are an English electro house music duo consisting of Jon Pearn (from Full Intention) and Nick Bridges. Biography " Yeah Yeah", Bodyrox's first commercial single, was released in November 2006 on the Eye Industries label, featuring voc ...

and Luciana held the number one and number two spots, respectively, in the UK Top 40 singles charts. Since then, electro house producers such as Feed Me, Knife Party,

The M Machine The M Machine is an American electronic music duo from San Francisco, California, United States, formed in 2011 and currently consisting of Ben Swardlick and Eric Luttrell. They have released four EPs, a single and two remix collections on Skril ...

, Porter Robinson, Yasutaka Nakata and

Dada Life Dada Life are a Swedish DJ duo formed in 2006, which consists of Olle Cornéer and Stefan Engblom. They have released three albums, a number of singles and remixes and one compilation. The duo had early chart success in Belgium and the Netherla ...

have emerged.

Subgenres

Big room

In the early 2010s, a type of electro house known as big room began to develop, particularly gaining popularity through

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

-oriented events and festivals. Big room songs resemble Dutch house, often incorporating

drops Drop, DROP, drops or DROPS may refer to: * Drop (liquid) or droplet, a small volume of liquid ** Eye drops, saline (sometimes mydriatic) drops used as medication for the eyes * Drop (unit), a unit of measure of volume * Falling (physics), allowi ...

, minimalist percussion, regular beats, sub-bass layered

kick A kick is a physical Strike (attack), strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee (strike), ...

s, simple

melodies A melody (from Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combinati ...

and

synth A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

-driven breakdowns. The layout of a big room track is very similar to the layout of a typical electro house song.

Complextro

Complextro is typified by glitchy, intricate basslines and textures created by sharply cutting between instruments in quick succession. The term, a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words was coined by Porter Robinson to describe the music he was making in 2010. He has cited video game sounds, or chiptunes, as an influence on his music along with 1980s analog synth music. Other producers of the genre include

Adventure Club Adventure Club is a Canadian electronic dance music duo composed of Christian Srigley and Leighton James, based out of Montreal, Quebec. The duo began as a hardcore pop-punk band before venturing into electronic dance music in 2011. They ar ...

, Kill The Noise, Knife Party,

Madeon Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French DJ and music producer from Nantes, currently based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at 17 through a YouTube video, " ...

, Mord Fustang, Savant,

Virtual Riot Christian Valentin "Val" Brunn (born 20 July 1994), better known by his stage name Virtual Riot, is a German DJ and electronic music producer. He has released seventeen extended plays and two studio albums, most notably his 2016 extended play ' ...

and

Wolfgang Gartner Joseph Thomas Youngman (born March 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Wolfgang Gartner, is an American DJ and music producer. Much of his music prior to 2010 was released through his own record label, Kindergarten, but he signed with Ultr ...

Dutch house

Dutch house, sometimes referred to as 'Dirty Dutch', is a style of electro house that originated in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and found prominence by 2009, mainly pioneered by

Vato Gonzalez Vato Gonzalez (born 6 June 1983 as Björn Franken) is a Dutch record producer, songwriter, artist, DJ, who is signed to Spinnin' Records and DOORN Records. Best known for his single Badman Riddim (Jump) (featuring Foreign Beggars), which reache ...

, Afrojack and DJ Chuckie. It is primarily defined by complex rhythms made from Latin-influenced drum kits, a lower emphasis on basslines and squeaky, high-pitched lead synths. Influences on the subgenre include

Detroit techno Detroit techno is a type of techno music that generally includes the first techno productions by Detroit-based artists during the 1980s and early 1990s. Prominent Detroit techno artists include Juan Atkins, Eddie Fowlkes, Derrick May, Jeff Mil ...

, hip hop and other urban styles of music.

Fidget house

Fidget house, or fidget, is "defined by snatched vocal snippets, pitch-bent dirty basslines and rave-style synth stabs over glitchy 4/4 beats." It contains influences from

Chicago house Chicago house refers to house music produced during the mid to late 1980s within Chicago. The term is generally used to refer to the first ever house music productions, which were by Chicago-based artists in the 1980s. History and origins Disco ...

, Baltimore club, Kuduro, Pimba and hip hop. Purveyors of the genre include

The Bloody Beetroots The Bloody Beetroots is an Italian electronic music project of musician and producer Bob Rifo (also Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo and SBCR, born Simone Cogo). Established in late 2006, the Bloody Beetroots were initially a duo consisting of Bob Rifo an ...

, AC Slater, Danger, Hervé,

Jack Beats Jack Beats is an English electronic music project from London, originally formed in 2007 by DJ Plus One (from the Scratch Perverts) and Beni G (from The Mixologists), both of which are multiple DJ champions and award-winning DJs. The Jack Beats ...

and

Switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...

. The term fidget house was coined by DJs/producers Jesse Rose and Switch, "as a joke, which has now gone a little too far."

Melbourne bounce

Melbourne bounce is a subgenre of electro house originating in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia, characterized by the progression from the

uptempo A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...

, horn-infused Dutch house style, tech trance synths, electro house stabs, and scouse house-influenced bass lines, sometimes also including elements of acid house,

psytrance Psychedelic Trance, Psytrance or Psy is a subgenre of trance music characterized by arrangements of rhythms and layered melodies created by high tempo riffs. The genre offers variety in terms of mood, tempo, and style. Some examples include full ...

. The genre is generally characterized by a standard 128 bpm, altrough in some cases up to 150 bpm. The term has been used to describe the 2012 to 2016 music of some DJ/producers, including Deorro,

Joel Fletcher Joel Fletcher Allan, better known as Joel Fletcher, is a music producer and DJ from Melbourne, Australia, who is best known for his 2013 remix of New Zealand rapper Savage's 2005 single "Swing", which charted in Australia and in New Zealand. In ...

, Will Sparks, Vinai, and TJR. It is composed of bouncy offbeat bass, whiny vocal cut/saw lead, raucous horns, 8-bar snare fills before the drop. It often features a repetitive beat structure with some amount of build-ups and mild drops throughout. It started as a cross between elements, and underground Melbourne house/ minimal style. Melbourne Bounce gained popularity around mid to late 2012 and had a steady rise from 2013. In 2014, productions of

, Will Sparks, and Uberjak'd were playing both domestically and internationally, and influencing the EDM style of Steve Aoki, TJR, and more.

Further development

Jungle terror

Jungle terror is a music genre that developed in the 2010s. It is often described as a "chaotic" mix of house with

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust * Grime (music genre), a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game * "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Woo ...

and drum 'n' bass rhythms. There are also animal noises as well as vocal cuts and percussions. The Dutch DJ and music producer

Wiwek Wiwek Mahabali, better known mononymously as Wiwek, is a Dutch DJ and music producer based in Utrecht, Netherlands. Early life Wiwek was born in the Netherlands and is of Indian descent. His father is an Indian musician and singer. His stage na ...

is named as the founder of the genre, who made the style popular in the EDM scene between 2013 and 2016.

, Diplo and KURA are also associated with the genre.

Moombahton

Moombahton came as a mixture of slowed-down Dutch house and

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American hip hop, ...

. Its identifying characteristics include "a thick, spread-out bass line; some dramatic builds; and a two-step pulse, with quick drum fills", but it has "no real rules beyond working within a 108 bpm range." A

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsDave Nada David Villegas, better known professionally as Dave Nada, is an Ecuadorian-American DJ and producer credited with creating the fusion-genre Moombahton. He is a member of the production and DJ duo Nadastrom and co-founder of Hermanito Label along ...

when he slowed down the tempo of the Afrojack remix of the Silvio Ecomo & Chuckie song "Moombah" to please party-goers with tastes in reggaeton. Other producers of the genre include Dillon Francis, Diplo and Munchi. ''Moombahcore'' is a style of moombahton with elements of breakcore,

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

, techstep and newstyle hardcore. Characteristics of the genre include chopped vocals,

-influenced bass sounds and extensive build-ups. Artists who have produced moombahcore include Delta Heavy, Dillon Francis, Feed Me, Knife Party and Noisia.

Notes and references

{{Electronica House music genres 1990s in music 2000s in music 2010s in music