trip hop
Downtempo electronic fusion
Trip hop is a music genre that emerged from Bristol, England in the early 1990s, blending hip-hop beats with atmospheric, downtempo electronic production.
The sound typically features slow breakbeats, deep bass, samples from jazz and soul, and often melancholic or ethereal vocals.
Massive Attack, Portishead, and Tricky defined the genre's moody, cinematic aesthetic.
The term itself—a play on hip-hop—was initially resisted by the artists it described.
Slow, atmospheric electronic music
- etherealDelicate beyond earthly measure
- moodyProne to sullenness
- dreamyVague and pleasantly distracted
- hauntingDisturbingly unforgettable
melancholic · brooding · nocturnal · shadowy · cinematic · murky · hypnotic · smoky
Major English seaport
- Massive AttackBritish trip-hop collective
- PortisheadEnglish trip-hop band
- Wild BunchNotorious frontier outlaws
- acid jazzGroove-based electronic soul fusion
Extracting subset for study
- turntablismPhonograph-based music creation
- scratchSuperficial wound or mark
- remixAltered version of recording
- lo-fiImperfect audio quality, informally
layering · soundscapes · vinyl · chopped · filtered · reverb · echo · manipulation
Sampled percussive rhythm pattern
- basslineLow-register musical foundation
- beatRhythmic pulse or strike
- syncopationStressed unexpected beats
- grooveNarrow cut or routine
loop · drum machine · shuffle · tempo · swing · percussion · backbeat · polyrhythm
downtempo
Slow, atmospheric electronic music
- etherealDelicate beyond earthly measure
- moodyProne to sullenness
- dreamyVague and pleasantly distracted
haunting · melancholic · brooding · nocturnal · shadowy · cinematic · murky · hypnotic · smoky · noir
Bristol
Major English seaport
- Massive AttackBritish trip-hop collective
- PortisheadEnglish trip-hop band
- Wild BunchNotorious frontier outlaws
sampling
Extracting subset for study
- turntablismPhonograph-based music creation
- scratchSuperficial wound or mark
- remixAltered version of recording
lo-fi · layering · soundscapes · vinyl · chopped · filtered · reverb · echo · manipulation · programming
breakbeat
Sampled percussive rhythm pattern
- basslineLow-register musical foundation
- beatRhythmic pulse or strike
- syncopationStressed unexpected beats
groove · loop · drum machine · shuffle · tempo · swing · percussion · backbeat · polyrhythm · laidback
- music genresblues, pop, jazz, rock, classical
- 90s MusicNirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Green Day, Radiohead
- hybrid genresjazz fusion, rock opera, blues rock, folk rock, country rock
- Alt Rockalt-rock, alternative metal, grunge, indie rock, post-grunge
- genre modifiersneo, post, alt, proto, nu
- Jamaican Musicreggae, dub, dancehall, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh
trip hopacoustic music
Sound without amplification
unplugged · live recordings · folk music · singer-songwriter · punk rock
trip, hop, trips, tripping, hopping, hops, hopped, tripped, road trip