Drill and Bass

Breaks · 1996 · 160 to 190 BPM · also known as Drill n Bass, Drill & Bass

The auteur hijacking of jungle in the mid 1990s: Squarepusher and Aphex Twin, around Rephlex and Warp, push break editing into absurd, virtuosic overdrive, IDM melody layered on top, humor and vertigo. This is not DJ music but a fireworks display of composition, one that would go on to shape breakcore and complex chamber electronics, prized more for listening than for mixing.

13 reference tracks

1. Squarepusher: Port Rhombus (1996)
2. Aphex Twin: Girl/Boy Song (1996)
3. u-Ziq: Hasty Boom Alert (1997)
4. Squarepusher: Come On My Selector (1997)
5. Aphex Twin: Windowlicker (1999)
6. Squarepusher: Nervelevers (2020)
7. µ-Ziq: Magic Pony Ride (2022)
8. Aphex Twin: Mt Saint Michel + Saint Michaels Mount
9. Aphex Twin: Cock/Ver10
10. Aphex Twin: 4
11. Aphex Twin: Yellow Calx
12. Aphex Twin: T69 Collapse
13. Aphex Twin: Carn Marth

At a glance

• Tempo: 160 to 190 BPM
• First appeared: around 1996
• Machines: Trackers (Amiga), Akai S950, Roland TB-303, Steinberg Cubase
• The sound: Éditions de breaks maniaque, Trackers et séquenceurs MIDI, Basse jazz jouée (Squarepusher), Resampling en cascade
• Labels: Warp Records, Planet Mu, Rephlex, Analogical Force
• Key artists: Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, µ-Ziq, Luke Vibert (frange), Venetian Snares (héritier)

Producing Drill and Bass

There is no club tempo here: sit anywhere between 150 and 200 bpm, often shifting mid track, with bars in 7/8 or 5/4 slipped in without warning, the feel of a virtuoso drummer who drank too much coffee. Build it by chopping an Amen or jazz break into dozens of slices per bar and writing each hit note by note in the piano roll, alternating two-step passages with bursts of thirty-second notes on the snare, pitch-shifting each slice. For bass, choose either a fast, played electric bass, slapped or walked, sampled note by note, or a TB-303 style acid line, running its own melody independent of the kick, with no sidechain. Layer soft IDM pads, music boxes and detuned pianos built through cascading resampling, a sound transformed until unrecognizable, then played back on a keyboard.

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 Drill and Bass?

The auteur hijacking of jungle in the mid 1990s: Squarepusher and Aphex Twin, around Rephlex and Warp, push break editing into absurd, virtuosic overdrive, IDM melody layered on top, humor and vertigo. This is not DJ music but a fireworks display of composition, one that would go on to shape…

What tempo is Drill and Bass played at?

Between 160 and 190 BPM.

Who are the key Drill and Bass artists?

Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, µ-Ziq, Luke Vibert (frange), Venetian Snares (héritier).

In the same family

• Breakbeat
• Breakbeat Hardcore
• Darkcore
• Jungle
• Drum and Bass
• Techstep
• Neurofunk
• Darkstep
• Liquid Drum and Bass
• Jump-Up
• Drumfunk
• Drumstep

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