Doomcore
Hardcore · 1992 · 120 to 150 BPM · also known as Doom Core, Slow Hardcore
Slow, funereal hardcore invented by The Mover out of Frankfurt: pads of apocalypse, cavernous kicks, and the atmosphere of an empty cathedral after the end of the world, running between 130 and 150 beats per minute. It has been an absolute cult favorite among connoisseurs of the PCP label, a style that was never mainstream and never tried to be. Its spiritual descendants run all the way to today's doomcore-wave revival.
15 reference tracks
- Mescalinum United: Symphonies Of Steel (1992)
- The Mover: Waves of Life (1994)
- Jack Lucifer: 96 Knights (1996)
- Pilldriver: Apocalypse Never (1997)
- Low Entropy: Doomcore Records (2013)
- Heliotype X Cathy Battistessa: Someone Like You (Heliotype's Balearic Edit) (2022)
- Rodrigo Rodriguez: Lacrimae (2022)
- The Peoples Republic Of Europe: Tyrannosaurus Rex (2022)
- Ghostvoice: Ghostvoice Ep (2023)
- Der Cherep: These Last Days (2024)
- Low Entropy: Piss Over Berghain (Frantic Edit)
- Low Entropy: No More Wars (Stop The Wars! Edit)
- Low Entropy: 2011 Hamburg Acid City (Full-On Acid Remix)
- Marc Acardipane: one world no future
- Low Entropy: Without Hope (Hopeless Mix)
At a glance
- Tempo: 120 to 150 BPM
- First appeared: around 1992
- Machines: Roland TR-909, Akai S950, Steinberg Cubase
- The sound: Kicks caverneux réverbérés, Nappes funèbres, Tempo retenu, Basses d'outre-tombe
- Labels: Cold Rush Records, The Third Movement, PCP, Things To Come, Planet Core Productions
- Key artists: The Mover, Rave Creator, Renegade Legion, Fifth Era (frange)
Producing Doomcore
Doomcore slows hardcore down to 130 to 150 BPM, often 135 to 140 in The Mover's own tracks, the only branch of hardcore where the tempo drops below fast techno, and that slowness is the point, each kick has time to ring out and the space between hits becomes a place of its own. There is no swing, but a deliberate heaviness, delay pads by 20 to 30ms for a dragging effect, and program at 138 BPM, many tracks hold the same pattern for eight minutes, patience is the technique. The kick is a distorted 909 like in hard techno but treated with a long, dark reverb, unusual elsewhere in the family, sitting on all four beats or only 1 and 3 in the heaviest passages, with a distant, reverbed 909 snare or a long-plated clap on 2 and 4.
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 Doomcore?
Slow, funereal hardcore invented by The Mover out of Frankfurt: pads of apocalypse, cavernous kicks, and the atmosphere of an empty cathedral after the end of the world, running between 130 and 150 beats per minute. It has been an absolute cult favorite among connoisseurs of the PCP label, a style…
What tempo is Doomcore played at?
Between 120 and 150 BPM.
Who are the key Doomcore artists?
The Mover, Rave Creator, Renegade Legion, Fifth Era (frange).
