Goa Trance
Psy · 1991 · 135 to 150 BPM · also known as Psychedelic Goacore, Nitzhogoa, Newskool Goa, NeoGoa, Goa
Goa, India, in the late 1980s: European DJs play psychedelic electronic music on the beaches, released on cassette and DAT, blending body music, acid, and sped-up new beat. The style crystallizes in the early 1990s with oriental arpeggios, braided acid lines, and spiraling builds around 140 beats per minute. It is the founding myth of the entire psytrance culture, and its 1994 to 1997 golden age remains a revered canon.
25 reference tracks
- The Infinity Project: The Law (1991)
- Trilithon: Prayer (Mutant Version) (1991)
- S.M.I.L.E.: Call Of The Huichol (1992)
- Juno Reactor: Laughing Gas (1993)
- Hallucinogen: LSD (1994)
- Man With No Name: Teleport (1996)
- Juno Reactor: Guardian Angel (1995)
- Astral Projection: Mahadeva (1996)
- Astral Projection: Kabalah (1996)
- Pleiadians: Maia (1997)
- Filteria: Made Out Of Trance (2022)
- Filteria: Crimefighter Frog (2022)
- Hallucinogen: Shamanix (Domestic & Spacecat Remix) (2022)
- Juno Reactor: Conga Fury (Gorovich Remix) (2022)
- Prānā*: Sense Of Unity (2023)
- Astral Projection: Nilaya (1996)
- Juno Reactor: God Is God (1997)
- Pleiadians: Alcyone (1997)
- The Muses Rapt: Spiritual Healing (1993)
- Juno Reactor: 10,000 Miles
- Juno Reactor: Mona Lisa Overdrive
- Juno Reactor: Children Of The Night
- Astral Projection: Let There Be Light
- Juno Reactor: High Energy Protons
- Juno Reactor: Masters Of The Universe
At a glance
- Tempo: 135 to 150 BPM
- First appeared: around 1991
- Machines: Roland TB-303, Yamaha DX7, Roland TR-909
- The sound: Yamaha DX7 et FM orientale, Arpèges superposés en couches, DAT et éditions longues
- Labels: Dragonfly Records, Suntrip Records, Blue Room Released, TIP Records, Flying Rhino Records, DAT Records
- Key artists: Goa Gil, Astral Projection, Man With No Name, Hallucinogen, Etnica, Juno Reactor
Producing Goa Trance
Set the project between 140 and 145 BPM, fully quantized in straight sixteenths with no swing. The feel comes instead from layered arpeggios running at different speeds, eighths on one layer, sixteenths on another, triplets on a third, drifting against each other over 8 and 16 bar cycles, with tracks often running 8 to 10 minutes without slowing. Build a short, lightly saturated 909 kick, a clap buried in short reverb on 2 and 4, closed hats alternating strong and weak velocities, and synthetic percussion like 909 congas or sampled tablas. The bassline is a TB-303 or analog sawtooth, lowpass filtered near 300 Hz, playing sixteenths on the root with octave jumps and accents, often doubled an octave up with more resonance for the braided acid sound.
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 Goa Trance?
Goa, India, in the late 1980s: European DJs play psychedelic electronic music on the beaches, released on cassette and DAT, blending body music, acid, and sped-up new beat. The style crystallizes in the early 1990s with oriental arpeggios, braided acid lines, and spiraling builds around 140 beats…
What tempo is Goa Trance played at?
Between 135 and 150 BPM.
Who are the key Goa Trance artists?
Goa Gil, Astral Projection, Man With No Name, Hallucinogen, Etnica, Juno Reactor.
