Braindance
Ambient · 1997 · 100 to 160 BPM · also known as Rephlex Sound
Braindance is the counter name coined by Rephlex, the label run by Aphex Twin and Grant Wilson Claridge, to poke fun at the IDM label: music that makes the brain dance. Twisted acid, prankish electro, naive melodies and knowing breaks, it is more a house spirit than a strict style. The term outlived the label and today describes the whole playful acid IDM lineage. It deliberately resists definition, favoring surprise, humor and virtuosity over any single formula, and its refusal to settle into a fixed sound is arguably the one consistent trait shared by everyone who has ever claimed the name.
13 reference tracks
- µ-Ziq: Hasty Boom Alert (1997)
- Squarepusher: Come On My Selector (1997)
- Aphex Twin: Windowlicker (1999)
- Cylob: Cut the Midrange Drop the Bass (1998)
- Luke Vibert: I Love Acid (2003)
- Aphex Twin: Come To Daddy (1997)
- µ-Ziq: Lunatic Harness (1997)
- Bogdan Raczynski: Death To The Natives (1998)
- Squarepusher: My Red Hot Car (2001)
- Squarepusher: Chin Hippy
- µ-Ziq: Swan Vesta
- Aphex Twin: Meltphace 6
- Aphex Twin: Bucephalus Bouncing Ball
At a glance
- Tempo: 100 to 160 BPM
- First appeared: around 1997
- Machines: Roland TB-303, Roland SH-101
- The sound: Roland TB-303 hors des clous, Breaks édités joueurs, Mélodies détunées
- Labels: Rephlex, Analogical Force, Balkan Vinyl, WeMe, Warp Records
- Key artists: Aphex Twin (AFX), Luke Vibert, Bogdan Raczynski, DMX Krew, Ceephax Acid Crew
Producing Braindance
Braindance lives at two tempos, 130 to 150 BPM for twisted acid lines and 100 to 115 for prankish electro in the DMX Krew mold, jumping to jungle speeds near 165, on a straight grid ambushed with odd step counts, sudden tempo jerks or breaks that double speed for two bars. Keep the kick largely in 4/4, danceable but jostled, over an 808 electro or 909 acid base, then edit playful breaks on top, a repeated slice, a pitched snare roll, a missing hit, changing the pattern every four bars. The real voice is a TB-303 off the rails, sequenced in sixteenths with slides and out of scale notes, driven hard until it screams, paired with a rounder SH-101 bass. Add detuned keyboard melodies, DX7 bells, joke samples, and toy effects for a broken but precise sound.
The full production course, in French: tempo, drums, bass, sounds, arrangement, mix, plugins and machines, and a step by step start.
Frequently asked
What is Braindance?
Braindance is the counter name coined by Rephlex, the label run by Aphex Twin and Grant Wilson Claridge, to poke fun at the IDM label: music that makes the brain dance. Twisted acid, prankish electro, naive melodies and knowing breaks, it is more a house spirit than a strict style. The term…
What tempo is Braindance played at?
Between 100 and 160 BPM.
Who are the key Braindance artists?
Aphex Twin (AFX), Luke Vibert, Bogdan Raczynski, DMX Krew, Ceephax Acid Crew.
