Big Beat
Breaks · 1996 · 120 to 140 BPM · also known as Chemical Breaks, Big Beat Breaks
Big beat took England's breakbeat scene and turned it into stadium rock between 1995 and 1999: huge, compressed breaks, sampled riffs, chorus hooks built like advertising jingles, all drunk on excess and proud of it. The Chemical Brothers, Prodigy and Fatboy Slim sold millions of records and put electronic music into every commercial on the planet. It burned out in three years and came back as nostalgia.
16 reference tracks
- The Prodigy: Firestarter (1996)
- The Chemical Brothers: Block Rockin' Beats (1997)
- The Chemical Brothers: Hey Boy Hey Girl (1999)
- Propellerheads: Spybreak! (1997)
- Fatboy Slim: The Rockafeller Skank (1998)
- The Chemical Brothers: Got to Keep On (2019)
- The Chemical Brothers: No Reason (2023)
- Fatboy Slim: Right Here Right Now (1998)
- Fatboy Slim: Praise You (1998)
- The Prodigy: Diesel Power (1997)
- Fatboy Slim: Weapon Of Choice
- The Prodigy: Serial Thrilla
- The Prodigy: Mindfields
- The Prodigy: Invaders Must Die
- The Chemical Brothers: Go
- The Chemical Brothers: Let Forever Be
At a glance
- Tempo: 120 to 140 BPM
- First appeared: around 1996
- Machines: Akai MPC, Akai S1000, Roland TR-909, Platines vinyle
- The sound: Breaks compressés énormes, Riffs rock samplés, Akai MPC et S-series, Compression pompée assumée
- Labels: Skint, Wall Of Sound, Freskanova
- Key artists: The Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy, Propellerheads, Bentley Rhythm Ace
Producing Big Beat
Big beat runs 115 to 140 BPM, with faster exceptions near 153, centered around 125 to 130 with a rock feel: breaks sit heavy and ahead of the beat with an MPC-style hip-hop swing around 58 to 62 percent that drags just enough. A huge funk or rock break, sampled on an Akai S1000 or MPC, plays almost whole at 128 BPM with a 909 kick on 1 and 3 and a 909 snare on 2 and 4 layered on top for extra weight. The bass is a riff rather than a line, either lifted from a distorted rock record or played raw on an analog synth through heavy overdrive, mixed loud and dirty enough to fight the kick. On top, sampled rock riffs, pitched vocal hooks, sirens, rave stabs and turntable scratches, run through Vinyl Distortion and Beat Repeat.
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 Big Beat?
Big beat took England's breakbeat scene and turned it into stadium rock between 1995 and 1999: huge, compressed breaks, sampled riffs, chorus hooks built like advertising jingles, all drunk on excess and proud of it. The Chemical Brothers, Prodigy and Fatboy Slim sold millions of records and put…
What tempo is Big Beat played at?
Between 120 and 140 BPM.
Who are the key Big Beat artists?
The Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy, Propellerheads, Bentley Rhythm Ace.
