Music / Styles A–Z / Groove and the dance floor · 09 of 35
Techno
Techno began in Detroit in the mid-1980s, with Frankfurt an early second home: electronic music for a continuous DJ set, on a repetitive beat at 120 to 150 BPM.
- Where and when
- Detroit, mid-1980s; Frankfurt
- Tempo
- 120–150 BPM
- Played on
- Drum machines, sequencers, synthesizers, DAWs
What it is
Techno is electronic music made for a continuous DJ set, at 120 to 150 BPM, in common time with a repetitive beat. It began in Detroit in the mid-1980s, with Frankfurt an early second home, and its producers drew on Kraftwerk and the European synthesizer tradition.
For the producer. Rhythm comes first, and sound synthesis shapes distinctive timbres. Roland's TR-808 and TR-909 from the 1980s are prized, and their software emulations are popular.
The records that made it
From the lesson Groove and the dance floor, where the sources are listed · links open a search
- 1982Cosmic CarsCybotron
- 1985No UFO'sModel 500 · Generally taken as the first techno record.
- Strings of LifeDerrick May · Took techno to Europe.
- 1991Nation 2 NationUnderground Resistance · Showed techno's jazz side.
Techno in this month’s records
New releases the press we read wrote about, tagged techno on MusicBrainz · updated with every build