2-Step
Bass · 1998 · 130 to 140 BPM · also known as Two Step, 2 Step Garage, 2-Step Garage
2 step is UK garage with the second and fourth kick removed: the groove becomes limping, sensual and unpredictable. Between 1998 and 2001, its absolute golden age, it ran everywhere from the pop charts to pirate radio, with Craig David as its voice, MJ Cole as its craftsman, and El-B representing its darker side. 2 step is proof that silence placed in exactly the right spot can make a floor dance harder than any kick drum could. That missing pulse forces the ear to fill the gap itself, and it is that tension between what is played and what is left out that gives the style its off kilter sway.
8 reference tracks
- Dem 2: Destiny (1998)
- Groove Chronicles: Stone Cold (1998)
- Shanks and Bigfoot: Sweet Like Chocolate (1999)
- Sweet Female Attitude: Flowers (2000)
- Wookie: Battle (2000)
- Craig David: Fill Me In (2000)
- PinkPantheress: Break It Off (2021)
- piri & tommy: soft spot (2022)
At a glance
- Tempo: 130 to 140 BPM
- First appeared: around 1998
- Machines: Akai S950, Roland TR-909, Steinberg Cubase
- The sound: Kicks asymétriques, Snares shuffleées, Basses sub découpées, Voix RnB pitchées
- Labels: Locked On, Instinct Records, Public Demand, Keysound Recordings, Ghost
- Key artists: MJ Cole, Artful Dodger, El-B, Wookie, Zed Bias, Craig David
Producing 2-Step
Sit between 130 and 138 BPM, most classics at 134 or 136, and define the groove by what you remove: strip the kicks off beats two and four so the pattern limps and sways, with a heavier swing than 4/4 garage, around 60 to 66 percent. The skeleton is kick on beat one and the and of two, a bright, snappy snare or rimshot on two and four with a ghost note late in beat three, and swung hats alternating loud and soft velocities. Bass fills the spaces the missing kicks left: a sine or triangle sub playing short, syncopated notes on the offbeats, with El-B style darker tracks adding a filtered, gliding sawtooth. Over it sit chopped female vocal phrases turned into rhythmic motifs, Rhodes stabs, and light bell or marimba color, softer than 4/4 UK garage.
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 2-Step?
2 step is UK garage with the second and fourth kick removed: the groove becomes limping, sensual and unpredictable. Between 1998 and 2001, its absolute golden age, it ran everywhere from the pop charts to pirate radio, with Craig David as its voice, MJ Cole as its craftsman, and El-B representing…
What tempo is 2-Step played at?
Between 130 and 140 BPM.
Who are the key 2-Step artists?
MJ Cole, Artful Dodger, El-B, Wookie, Zed Bias, Craig David.
