Liquid Drum and Bass
Breaks · 1996 · 170 to 176 BPM · also known as Liquid Funk, Liquid DnB, Liquid
Liquid drum and bass is the side of the genre that breathes: soul chords, sung vocals and round basslines, reviving Bukem's legacy in the early 2000s when Fabio named it liquid funk. Hospital Records turned it into a mainstream-facing label without betraying the tempo. For most listeners it is the genre's entry point, and its own unabashed embrace of softness.
6 reference tracks
- LTJ Bukem: Music (1993)
- High Contrast: If We Ever (2004)
- Commix: Be True (2007)
- London Elektricity: Just One Second (2005)
- Calibre: Even If (2003)
- Hybrid Minds: Halcyon (2020)
At a glance
- Tempo: 170 to 176 BPM
- First appeared: 1996
- Machines: Fender Rhodes, Akai S3000, Native Instruments Massive, Steinberg Cubase
- The sound: Rhodes et accords soul, Voix chantées, Basses rondes, Breaks feutrés
- Labels: Hospital Records, Creative Source, The North Quarter, Liquicity, Good Looking, Fokuz
- Key artists: LTJ Bukem, Calibre, High Contrast, London Elektricity, Lenzman, Netsky (débuts)
Producing Liquid Drum and Bass
Liquid keeps drum and bass tempo at 170 to 174 BPM but softens the feel, with real swing of 55 to 58 percent on the hats and ghost notes; where neurofunk counts in sixteenths, liquid counts in two-bar phrases, chords changing every two or four bars like soul, so the fast tempo becomes a treadmill under a song at 87 BPM. The break is a softer two-step, kick on 1 and the and of 3, snare on 2 and 4 but rounder, over a jazz or funk break played whole underneath with light swing. The bass is round, never distorted, a sine or triangle sub playing a melodic line that follows the chords, sidechained lightly just so the kick can breathe. The Fender Rhodes carries the genre with seventh and ninth chords, joined by sung soul vocals and warm pads.
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 Liquid Drum and Bass?
Liquid drum and bass is the side of the genre that breathes: soul chords, sung vocals and round basslines, reviving Bukem's legacy in the early 2000s when Fabio named it liquid funk. Hospital Records turned it into a mainstream-facing label without betraying the tempo. For most listeners it is the…
What tempo is Liquid Drum and Bass played at?
Between 170 and 176 BPM.
Who are the key Liquid Drum and Bass artists?
LTJ Bukem, Calibre, High Contrast, London Elektricity, Lenzman, Netsky (débuts).
In the same family
- Breakbeat
- Breakbeat Hardcore
- Darkcore
- Jungle
- Drum and Bass
- Techstep
- Neurofunk
- Darkstep
- Jump-Up
- Drumfunk
- Drumstep
- Ragga Jungle
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