Tech Trance
Trance · 1998 · 138 to 145 BPM · also known as Techtrance, Techno-trance
Tech trance is the hard zone between techno and trance: the massive kicks of the former, the arpeggios and tension of the latter, and very little melodic sweetness. It was born in the German and Dutch raves of the 1990s and remains the backbone of the toughest trance sets, and the crossing point where techno and trance DJs trade records with each other.
16 reference tracks
- Ecano: Run (1998)
- Breeder: The Chain (1998)
- S.O.L.: Quantensprung (1999)
- Kai Tracid: Liquid Skies (1999)
- Yoji Biomehanika: Ding-A-Ling (2000)
- Marco V: Godd (2001)
- Hybrid: Dogstar 2022 (Club Mixes) (2022)
- Charlotte de Witte: Overdrive (2023)
- Richard Durand: Wunderbaum (2023)
- Mark Sherry & David Forbes: Galvanizers (2023)
- RAM (38) & Richard Durand Pres Digital Culture: Space Time (2024)
- Ummet Ozcan: Timewave Zero
- Sander van Doorn: Riff
- Rank 1: Top Gear
- Sander Van Doorn & Marco V: What Say? (Original Mix)
- Marco V: Tolerance
At a glance
- Tempo: 138 to 145 BPM
- First appeared: around 1998
- Machines: Access Virus, Roland JP-8000, Roland TR-909, Steinberg Cubase
- The sound: Kicks techno appuyés, Arpèges acides tendus, Percussion métallique, Peu de breakdowns
- Labels: Tunnel Records, Noom, Bonzai, Kearnage, Pure Trance, Transmission
- Key artists: Marco V, Mark Sherry, Sander van Doorn (débuts), Ummet Ozcan (débuts)
Producing Tech Trance
Set the grid at 136 to 142 BPM, dead straight with no swing, letting the kick lead rather than the melody and holding a high energy plateau instead of rising and falling like uplifting trance. Layer the kick from a 909 and a longer, saturated, distorted kick tuned to the tonic, add a dry loud clap on two and four, and harden the open hat into something metallic. Keep the bass on the offbeat, a Virus-style saw with distortion, staying on the tonic or alternating with the fifth every eight bars, doubled by a saturated sixteenth-note line close to a closed 303, hard-sidechained at 8:1. Melodic content stays sparse and tense: an acid arpeggio with high resonance, dark two-bar minor stabs, and a four-note motif transposed once per section rather than any wide supersaw pad.
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 Tech Trance?
Tech trance is the hard zone between techno and trance: the massive kicks of the former, the arpeggios and tension of the latter, and very little melodic sweetness. It was born in the German and Dutch raves of the 1990s and remains the backbone of the toughest trance sets, and the crossing point…
What tempo is Tech Trance played at?
Between 138 and 145 BPM.
Who are the key Tech Trance artists?
Marco V, Mark Sherry, Sander van Doorn (débuts), Ummet Ozcan (débuts).
